Thursday, March 22, 2007

Astrology and Astronomy: What Is the Difference?

Some people have a hard time separating astrology from astronomy. They are two completely different disciplines, and deserve to be completely distinguished from each other. If you make the mistake of referring to astrology as astronomy or vice versa, you are likely to confuse people are just get strange looks. So here I have explained each of them thoroughly, and provided you with easy ways to remember them. Just take the time to commit the different to memory. It is something that you will remember forever, and you will be a better person for it.

Astrology is the study of patterns of stars and the moon, and is most recognizable for having brought the zodiac signs to the table. It tries to associate animals or times of year to the study of human nature. For example, someone born in a certain month will display certain characteristics. It is widely regarded as being a study that is far from scientific, since it fabricates much of its information based on observed things. It is more of a hobby than anything, and provides people with an interesting little blurb to read in the paper.

Astronomy, on the other hand, is the scientific study of the movement of celestial bodies such as stars. It also observes all of the phenomenon that occur in space, such as black holes, nebulas, and the many other strange and beautiful things that can occur. There are many different sub-studies under astronomy, including the study of planets, stars, galaxies, the sun, or just a combination of everything. They usually try to explain how all of these things work together, and try to gain a heightened understanding of the universe.

As you can see, the difference between the two things is very vast. While one of them revolves around scientific studies and a heightened knowledge of the world, the other just uses the discoveries of one in order to try and explain human nature. It does not seem to work very well, and creates a huge gap between the two studies and how well they fly with the world in general. But as long as you know that the two terms aren’t interchangeable, you will be able to avoid sounding like a buffoon when trying to describe one.

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