Astronomers
Observe, research, and interpret astronomical phenomena to increase basic knowledge or apply such information to practical problems.
- O*NET-SOC code
19-2011.00 - Preparation Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
Wages
Median annual wage, U.S.$128,820
Employment, U.S.2,120
Median hourly wage$61.94
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $78,010 | $99,920 | $128,820 | $166,000 | $195,190 |
By state (5)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | 100 | $129,020 | 2.33 |
| California | 110 | $123,540 | 0.44 |
| Hawaii | 100 | $102,000 | 11.67 |
| Maryland | 980 | $132,620 | 26.06 |
| Virginia | $128,930 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
| # | Occupation | Job Zone | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Physicists | 5 | 0.980 |
| 2 | Physics Teachers, Postsecondary | 5 | 0.966 |
| 3 | Atmospheric and Space Scientists | 4 | 0.962 |
| 4 | Hydrologists | 4 | 0.959 |
| 5 | Mathematicians | 5 | 0.949 |
| 6 | Biochemists and Biophysicists | 5 | 0.947 |
| 7 | Industrial Ecologists | 5 | 0.945 |
| 8 | Nanosystems Engineers | 5 | 0.943 |
| 9 | Materials Scientists | 4 | 0.943 |
| 10 | Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers | 4 | 0.943 |
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Astronomers, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hydrologists | Systems Analysis | 1.00 | 0.959 |
| Materials Scientists | Operations Analysis | 0.76 | 0.943 |
| Statisticians | Programming | 1.12 | 0.939 |
| Engineering Teachers, Postsecondary | Instructing | 1.00 | 0.938 |
| Chemistry Teachers, Postsecondary | Instructing | 1.00 | 0.928 |
| Bioinformatics Technicians | Programming | 1.00 | 0.928 |
| Electrical Engineers | Quality Control Analysis | 2.12 | 0.922 |
| Climate Change Policy Analysts | Systems Analysis | 0.88 | 0.915 |
| Environmental Science Teachers, Postsecondary | Instructing | 0.76 | 0.908 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Astronomers, excluding software Astronomers already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Wolfram Research Mathematica | 10 of 20 | 15.4x |
| Maplesoft Maple | 6 of 20 | 18.5x |
| STATISTICA | 5 of 20 | 19.2x |
| Perl | 8 of 20 | 5.6x |
| Systat Software SigmaPlot | 4 of 20 | 30.8x |
| Mathsoft Mathcad | 5 of 20 | 11.5x |
| Synergy Software KaleidaGraph | 3 of 20 | 46.2x |
| UNIX | 8 of 20 | 4.1x |
| Microsoft Visual Studio | 6 of 20 | 6.0x |
| GNU Octave | 3 of 20 | 34.6x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 4.25 | 5.12 |
| Science | Essential skill | 4.25 | 5.12 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 4.12 | 5.00 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 4.12 | 5.00 |
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 4.12 | 4.12 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.88 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.75 |
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 4.00 | 4.12 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.62 | 3.88 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.50 | 4.00 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 3.38 | 3.62 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.62 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.12 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 3.12 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 2.62 |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 2.50 | 2.50 |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 2.25 | 2.00 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 2.00 | 2.00 |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 1.00 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 1.75 | 1.00 |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.75 |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 1.38 | 0.38 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 1.38 | 0.38 |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 1.12 | not rated |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (33) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Physics | 4.96 | 6.57 |
| Mathematics | 4.91 | 6.43 |
| Computers and Electronics | 4.17 | 5.74 |
| English Language | 4.04 | 4.83 |
| Education and Training | 3.35 | 4.65 |
| Engineering and Technology | 3.22 | 4.00 |
| Chemistry | 3.00 | 4.09 |
| Communications and Media | 2.43 | 2.74 |
| Administration and Management | 2.39 | 3.35 |
| Design | 2.35 | 2.74 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 2.22 | 2.65 |
| Administrative | 2.09 | 2.61 |
| Telecommunications | 2.04 | 1.65 |
| Geography | 1.96 | 2.35 |
| Mechanical | 1.91 | 2.13 |
| Biology | 1.83 | 1.78 |
| Economics and Accounting | 1.82 | 1.82 |
| Customer and Personal Service | 1.74 | 1.74 |
| Law and Government | 1.74 | 1.48 |
| Production and Processing | 1.74 | 1.43 |
| Sales and Marketing | 1.68 | 1.50 |
| Building and Construction | 1.65 | 1.61 |
| Foreign Language | 1.65 | 1.35 |
| Public Safety and Security | 1.65 | 1.22 |
| Transportation | 1.61 | 1.30 |
| Psychology | 1.57 | 1.13 |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 1.57 | 1.09 |
| History and Archeology | 1.48 | 1.13 |
| Philosophy and Theology | 1.39 | 1.00 |
| Therapy and Counseling | 1.39 | 1.00 |
| Fine Arts | 1.30 | 0.65 |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 1.13 | not rated |
| Food Production | 1.00 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Oral Comprehension | 4.12 | 5.12 |
| Oral Expression | 4.12 | 5.00 |
| Written Comprehension | 4.12 | 5.00 |
| Written Expression | 4.12 | 5.00 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 4.12 | 4.88 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 4.12 | 4.75 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 4.00 | 4.88 |
| Number Facility | 4.00 | 4.38 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.88 | 4.38 |
| Information Ordering | 3.88 | 4.25 |
| Near Vision | 3.88 | 4.12 |
| Speech Clarity | 3.88 | 3.88 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.75 | 4.25 |
| Originality | 3.75 | 4.12 |
| Far Vision | 3.75 | 4.00 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.62 | 4.12 |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.62 | 4.00 |
| Selective Attention | 3.50 | 3.38 |
| Speech Recognition | 3.38 | 3.50 |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Visualization | 2.88 | 3.12 |
| Memorization | 2.88 | 2.62 |
| Speed of Closure | 2.62 | 2.62 |
| Time Sharing | 2.62 | 2.62 |
| Depth Perception | 2.00 | 1.88 |
| Auditory Attention | 1.88 | 1.50 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 1.88 | 1.50 |
| Trunk Strength | 1.75 | 1.25 |
| Finger Dexterity | 1.62 | 0.75 |
| Night Vision | 1.62 | 0.75 |
| Spatial Orientation | 1.50 | 0.62 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 1.50 | 0.50 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 1.38 | 0.50 |
| Control Precision | 1.25 | not rated |
| Manual Dexterity | 1.25 | not rated |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Dynamic Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Explosive Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
| Extent Flexibility | 1.00 | not rated |
| Glare Sensitivity | 1.00 | not rated |
| Gross Body Coordination | 1.00 | not rated |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 1.00 | not rated |
| Multilimb Coordination | 1.00 | not rated |
| Peripheral Vision | 1.00 | not rated |
| Rate Control | 1.00 | not rated |
| Reaction Time | 1.00 | not rated |
| Response Orientation | 1.00 | not rated |
| Sound Localization | 1.00 | not rated |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 1.00 | not rated |
| Stamina | 1.00 | not rated |
| Static Strength | 1.00 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- C in demand
- C++ in demand
- Python in demand
- The MathWorks MATLAB in demand
- Apache Hadoop hot
- IBM SPSS Statistics hot
- Linux hot
- Microsoft Excel hot
- Microsoft Office software hot
- Microsoft PowerPoint hot
- Microsoft Word hot
- Oracle Java hot
- R hot
- SAS hot
- Structured query language SQL hot
- Abstraction plus reference plus synthesis A++
- Adaptive optics AO simulation software
- Analyze
- Astronomical Image Processing System AIPS
- Astronomical Image Processing for Windows AIP4WIN
- Astronomical information processing system AIPS++
- Avis Fits Viewer
- Data reduction software
- Diffraction Limited MaxIm DL
- European Southern Observatory Munich Image Data Analysis System ESO-MIDAS
- Formula translation/translator FORTRAN
- Fortran
- IRIS
- Interface definition language IDL
- MSB Software Astroart
All 38
- Multipurpose Interactive Image Processing System MIIPS
- National Instruments LabVIEW
- Software Bisque CCDSoft
- Software development tools
- Spectroscopy databases
- Starcal
- Visual Numerics PV-WAVE
- Web browser software
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | 520 | 12.12 | $156,750 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 180 | 5.00 | Not available |