Wikipedia:Vital articles/Level/5/Physical sciences/Astronomy

Overview
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Level 4 Level 5

Vital articles is a list of subjects for which Wikipedia should have corresponding high-quality articles. It serves as a centralized watchlist to track the status of Wikipedia's most essential articles. This is one of the sub-lists of the fifty thousand article Vital articles/Level 5 and is currently under construction.

Articles in the Vital list have their assessments labelled as:

• Featured articles
• Former featured articles
• A-class articles
• Good articles
• Delisted good articles
• Failed good article nominees
• B-class articles
• C-class articles
• Start-class articles
• Stub-class articles
• List-class articles
• Unassessed articles

The progress bar is auto-updated via category count, and the symbols and article counts are updated daily by User:cewbot. Please read the FAQ before modifying the article list.

Total articles: 808/900

For astronomical instruments, see the Astronomical technology (Level 5) section

Astronomy basics (30 articles)

1. Astronomy (Level 2)
2. Astronomical object (Level 4)
   1. Interstellar object
   2. Substellar object
3. Astrophysics (Level 4)
4. Astronomer
5. Astrobiology
   1. Extraterrestrial life (Level 4)
   2. Search for extraterrestrial intelligence
6. Astrochemistry
   1. Cosmochemistry
   2. List of interstellar and circumstellar molecules
7. Cosmology
8. Space physics
9. Theoretical astronomy
10. Computational astrophysics
11. Gravitational-wave astronomy
12. Neutrino astronomy
13. Time-domain astronomy
14. Night sky
15. Amateur astronomy
    1. Astrophotography

Databases

1. Astrophysics Data System
2. SIMBAD
3. NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database
4. VizieR

Surveys and Catalogs

1. Messier object
2. New General Catalogue
3. 2MASS
4. Sloan Digital Sky Survey

Observational astronomy (47 articles)

Basics (34 articles)

1. Observatory (Level 4)
2. Luminosity (Level 4)
3. Magnitude (Level 4)
   1. Absolute magnitude
   2. Apparent magnitude
4. Extinction (Level 4)
5. Effective temperature
6. Light curve
7. Photometry (Level 4)
   1. Photometric system
      1. UBV photometric system
8. Cosmic distance ladder (Level 4)
   1. Stellar parallax
   2. Tip of the red-giant branch
   3. Planetary nebula luminosity function
9. Astrometry (Level 4)
   1. Proper motion
   2. Radial velocity
   3. Parallax (Level 4)
10. Polarization in astronomy
11. Astronomical spectroscopy
    1. Forbidden mechanism
12. Infrared astronomy
13. Visible-light astronomy
    1. Light pollution
14. Airmass
15. Astronomical seeing
16. Twinkling
17. Luminosity distance
18. Recessional velocity
19. Spectral energy distribution
20. Surface brightness
21. Angular resolution
22. Angular diameter

Radio astronomy (8 articles)

1. Radio astronomy
   1. Radio spectrum pollution
2. Submillimetre astronomy
3. Astronomical radio source
4. Astrophysical maser
   1. Megamaser
5. Brightness temperature
6. Spectral index

High-energy astronomy (5 articles)

1. High-energy astronomy
2. Ultraviolet astronomy
3. X-ray astronomy
   1. Astrophysical X-ray source
4. Gamma-ray astronomy

Astronomical objects (261 articles)

Solar System (110 articles)

1. Solar System (Level 2)
   1. Formation and evolution of the Solar System (Level 4)
      1. Nebular hypothesis (Level 4)
      2. Nice model
   2. Interplanetary medium (Level 4)
      1. Interplanetary dust cloud
2. Sun (Level 2)
   1. Solar wind (Level 4)
   2. Solar core
   3. Solar cycle
   4. Photosphere
   5. Chromosphere
   6. Stellar corona
   7. Heliosphere
   8. Solar neutrino
   9. Coronal mass ejection
   10. Solar flare
   11. Sunspot
3. Mercury (Level 3)
   1. Atmosphere of Mercury
   2. Geology of Mercury
4. Venus (Level 3)
   1. Atmosphere of Venus
   2. Geology of Venus
5. Earth (Level 1)
   1. Earth's orbit
   2. Earth's shadow
   3. Location of Earth
6. Moon (Level 3)
   1. Near side of the Moon
   2. Far side of the Moon
   3. Origin of the Moon
      1. Giant-impact hypothesis
   4. Orbit of the Moon
   5. Geology of the Moon
   6. Internal structure of the Moon
7. Mars (Level 3)
   1. Atmosphere of Mars
   2. Geology of Mars
      1. Geological history of Mars
      2. Olympus Mons
   3. Life on Mars
   4. Moons of Mars
      1. Phobos
      2. Deimos
8. Asteroid belt (Level 4)
   1. Ceres (Level 4)
   2. Vesta
   3. Pallas
   4. Hygiea
9. Jupiter (Level 3)
   1. Atmosphere of Jupiter
      1. Great Red Spot
   2. Magnetosphere of Jupiter
   3. Rings of Jupiter
   4. Moons of Jupiter
      1. Galilean moons
      2. Io (Level 4)
      3. Europa (Level 4)
      4. Ganymede (Level 4)
      5. Callisto (Level 4)
   5. Jupiter trojan
10. Saturn (Level 3)
    1. Magnetosphere of Saturn
    2. Rings of Saturn
    3. Moons of Saturn
       1. Dione
       2. Enceladus (Level 4)
       3. Iapetus
       4. Mimas
       5. Rhea
       6. Tethys
       7. Titan (Level 4)
11. Uranus (Level 3)
    1. Atmosphere of Uranus
    2. Rings of Uranus
    3. Moons of Uranus
       1. Ariel
       2. Miranda
       3. Oberon
       4. Titania
       5. Umbriel
12. Neptune (Level 3)
    1. Rings of Neptune
    2. Moons of Neptune
       1. Triton (Level 4)
       2. Proteus
       3. Nereid
13. Kuiper belt (Level 4)
    1. Pluto (Level 4)
       1. Atmosphere of Pluto
       2. Moons of Pluto
          1. Charon
       3. Dysnomia
    2. Haumea
       1. Moons of Haumea
    3. Makemake
    4. Gonggong
    5. Quaoar
    6. Arrokoth
14. Scattered disc
    1. Eris (Level 4)
15. Oort cloud (Level 4)
    1. Sedna
16. Planet Nine

Notable comets (5 articles)

1. Halley's Comet (Level 4)
2. Comet Hyakutake
3. Comet Hale–Bopp
4. Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9
5. 2060 Chiron

Notable stars (43 articles)

1. Achernar
2. Aldebaran
3. Algol
4. Alpha Centauri (Level 4)
   1. Proxima Centauri
5. Acrux
6. Altair
7. Antares
8. Arcturus (Level 4)
9. Barnard's Star
10. Beta Centauri
11. Beta Pictoris
12. Betelgeuse (Level 4)
13. Canopus (Level 4)
14. Capella (Level 4)
15. Castor
16. Crab Pulsar
17. CW Leonis
18. Cygnus X-1 (Level 4)
19. Deneb
20. Epsilon Eridani
21. Eta Carinae
22. Fomalhaut
23. Gamma Cassiopeiae
24. Mira
25. Polaris (Level 4)
26. Pi Puppis
27. Pollux
28. Procyon (Level 4)
29. PSR B1937+21
30. Regulus
31. Rigel (Level 4)
32. Scorpius X-1
33. Sirius (Level 4)
34. Spica
35. Stephenson 2-18
36. Tau Ceti
37. TRAPPIST-1
38. TW Hydrae
39. UY Scuti
40. Vega (Level 4)
41. VY Canis Majoris
42. Zeta Ophiuchi

Notable exoplanets (11 articles)

1. 51 Pegasi b
2. 55 Cancri e
3. Gliese 581d
4. HD 189733 b
5. HD 209458 b
6. K2-18b
7. Kepler-22b
8. Kepler-186f
9. Kepler-442b
10. Kepler-452b
11. Proxima Centauri b

Milky Way (9 articles)

1. Milky Way (Level 3)
2. Galactic Center (Level 4)
   1. Sagittarius A
      1. Sagittarius A* (Level 4)
3. Carina–Sagittarius Arm
4. Norma Arm
5. Orion Arm
6. Perseus Arm
7. Scutum–Centaurus Arm

Notable galaxies (35 articles)

1. Local Group (Level 4)
   1. Andromeda Galaxy (Level 4)
   2. Magellanic Clouds
      1. Large Magellanic Cloud (Level 4)
      2. Small Magellanic Cloud (Level 4)
   3. Sagittarius Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxy
   4. Triangulum Galaxy (Level 4)
2. 3C 273 (Level 4)
3. Antennae Galaxies
4. Arp 220
5. BL Lacertae
6. Cartwheel Galaxy
7. Centaurus A (Level 4)
8. Cygnus A
9. Hoag's Object
10. IC 1101
11. Markarian 231
12. Markarian 421
13. Markarian 501
14. Messier 49
15. Messier 77
16. Messier 81
17. Messier 82
18. Messier 83
19. Messier 87 (Level 4)
20. Messier 106
21. NGC 1275
22. NGC 4151
23. NGC 4945
24. NGC 5548
25. NGC 6946
26. Pinwheel Galaxy (Level 4)
27. Sculptor Galaxy
28. Sombrero Galaxy
29. Whirlpool Galaxy (Level 4)

Notable nebulae (21 articles)

1. Carina Nebula (Level 4)
2. Cassiopeia A
3. Cat's Eye Nebula
4. Coalsack Nebula
5. Crab Nebula (Level 4)
6. Cygnus Loop
7. Dumbbell Nebula
8. Eagle Nebula (Level 4)
9. Horsehead Nebula (Level 4)
10. Lagoon Nebula
11. NGC 6302
12. NGC 7027
13. Omega Nebula
14. Orion Nebula (Level 4)
15. Rho Ophiuchi cloud complex
16. Ring Nebula (Level 4)
17. Rosette Nebula
18. Sagittarius B2
19. Tarantula Nebula
20. Trifid Nebula
21. Westerhout 40

Notable star clusters (12 articles)

1. 47 Tucanae
2. Beehive Cluster
3. Hyades (Level 4)
4. Messier 4
5. Messier 7
6. Messier 13
7. Messier 15
8. Messier 22
9. Omega Centauri (Level 4)
10. Pleiades (Level 4)
11. R136
12. Trapezium Cluster

Notable galaxy clusters (11 articles)

1. Virgo Supercluster (Level 4)
   1. Virgo Cluster (Level 4)
2. Laniakea Supercluster
3. Centaurus A/M83 Group
4. Coma Cluster
5. Fornax Cluster
6. IC 342/Maffei Group
7. M81 Group
8. Perseus Cluster
9. Great Attractor (Level 4)
10. Bullet Cluster

Notable transient events (6 articles)

1. Kepler's Supernova
2. SN 1054
3. SN 1572
4. SN 1972E
5. SN 1987A
6. GW170817

Other notable objects (4 articles)

1. Local Bubble
2. Hubble Deep Field
3. ʻOumuamua
4. 2I/Borisov

Celestial mechanics (71 articles)

1. Celestial mechanics (Level 4)
2. Orbit (Level 3)
   1. Barycenter (Level 4)
   2. Tidal locking (Level 4)
   3. Orbital eccentricity
   4. Orbital elements
   5. Orbital inclination
3. Eclipse (Level 4)
   1. Eclipse cycle
   2. Lunar eclipse (Level 4)
   3. Saros
   4. Solar eclipse (Level 4)
   5. Umbra, penumbra and antumbra
4. Transit
   1. Transit of Mercury
   2. Transit of Venus
5. Kepler's laws of planetary motion (Level 4)
6. Lagrange point (Level 4)
7. Sidereal time
   1. Daylight
   2. Dawn
   3. Twilight
   4. Sunrise
   5. Morning
   6. Daytime
   7. Forenoon
   8. Noon
   9. Afternoon
   10. Evening
   11. Sunset
   12. Dusk
   13. Night (Level 4)
   14. Midnight
   15. Midnight sun
   16. Polar night
   17. Zodiacal light
   18. Belt of Venus
   19. Blue hour
   20. Golden hour
   21. Terminator
8. Lunar phase
   1. Full moon
   2. New moon
   3. Supermoon
9. Apsis
10. Gravitational collapse
11. Axial precession
12. Accretion
13. Velocity dispersion
14. Roche limit
15. Tidal acceleration

Orbital mechanics (20 articles)

1. Orbital mechanics (Level 4)
   1. Space rendezvous
   2. Orbital resonance
   3. Orbital station-keeping
2. Escape velocity (Level 4)
   1. Bi-elliptic transfer
   2. Hohmann transfer orbit
3. Geostationary orbit (Level 4)
4. Geosynchronous orbit (Level 4)
   1. Molniya orbit
5. Gravity assist (Level 4)
   1. Oberth effect
6. Low Earth orbit (Level 4)
   1. Frozen orbit
   2. Sun-synchronous orbit
   3. Polar orbit
7. Halo orbit
8. Lissajous orbit
9. Co-orbital configuration
   1. Horseshoe orbit

Celestial sphere (115 articles)

General (27 articles)

1. Celestial sphere (Level 4)
2. Celestial cartography
3. Constellation (Level 4)
4. Spherical astronomy
5. Epoch
6. Celestial coordinate system (Level 4)
   1. Equatorial coordinate system (Level 4)
   2. Equinox
      1. Right ascension
      2. Declination
   3. Galactic coordinate system
7. Equinox (Level 4)
   1. March equinox
   2. September equinox
8. Ecliptic (Level 4)
9. Horizon (Level 4)
10. Solstice (Level 4)
    1. Summer solstice
    2. Winter solstice
11. Hour angle
12. Position angle
13. Meridian
14. Nadir
15. Zenith
16. Celestial equator
17. Tropical year
18. Zodiac (Level 4)

Constellations (88 articles)

Zodiac (12 articles)

1. Aquarius
2. Aries
3. Cancer
4. Capricornus
5. Gemini
6. Leo
7. Libra
8. Pisces
9. Sagittarius
10. Scorpius
11. Taurus
12. Virgo

Other (76 articles)

1. Andromeda
2. Antlia
3. Apus
4. Aquila
5. Ara
6. Auriga
7. Boötes
8. Caelum
9. Camelopardalis
10. Canes Venatici
11. Canis Major (Level 4)
12. Canis Minor
13. Carina
14. Cassiopeia (Level 4)
15. Centaurus (Level 4)
16. Cepheus
17. Cetus
18. Chamaeleon
19. Circinus
20. Columba
21. Coma Berenices
22. Corona Australis
23. Corona Borealis
24. Corvus
25. Crater
26. Crux (Level 4)
27. Cygnus
28. Delphinus
29. Dorado
30. Draco
31. Equuleus
32. Eridanus
33. Fornax
34. Grus
35. Hercules
36. Horologium
37. Hydra
38. Hydrus
39. Indus
40. Lacerta
41. Leo Minor
42. Lepus
43. Lupus
44. Lynx
45. Lyra
46. Mensa
47. Microscopium
48. Monoceros
49. Musca
50. Norma
51. Octans
52. Ophiuchus
53. Orion (Level 4)
54. Pavo
55. Pegasus
56. Perseus
57. Phoenix
58. Pictor
59. Piscis Austrinus
60. Puppis
61. Pyxis
62. Reticulum
63. Sagitta
64. Sculptor
65. Scutum
66. Serpens
67. Sextans
68. Telescopium
69. Triangulum
70. Triangulum Australe
71. Tucana
72. Ursa Major (Level 4)
73. Ursa Minor (Level 4)
74. Vela
75. Volans
76. Vulpecula

Planetary science (43 articles)

1. Planetary science
2. Planet (Level 3)
   1. Definition of planet
      1. IAU definition of planet
         1. Clearing the neighbourhood
   2. Terrestrial planet (Level 4)
      1. Carbon planet
      2. Coreless planet
      3. Iron planet
      4. Earth analog
      5. Super-Earth
   3. Giant planet (Level 4)
      1. Gas giant
      2. Ice giant
      3. Chthonian planet
   4. Exoplanet (Level 4)
      1. Rogue planet
3. Atmosphere (Level 4)
4. Magnetosphere
5. Ring system (Level 4)
6. Minor planet (Level 4)
   1. Asteroid (Level 3)
   2. Dwarf planet (Level 4)
7. Natural satellite (Level 3)
   1. Satellite system
   2. Exomoon
8. Comet (Level 3)
9. Meteoroid (Level 4)
   1. Bolide
   2. Meteor shower (Level 4)
10. Impact event (Level 4)
11. Trojan
12. Centaur
13. Axial tilt
14. Planetary differentiation
15. Planetary habitability
    1. Circumstellar habitable zone
16. Planetesimal
17. Protoplanet
18. Albedo (Level 4)
19. Methods of detecting exoplanets
20. Planetary core
21. Planetary mass

Stellar astronomy (110 articles)

1. Star (Level 3)
2. Variable star (Level 4)
   1. Cataclysmic variable star
      1. Nova (Level 4)
   2. Cepheid variable (Level 4)
      1. Classical Cepheid variable
      2. RR Lyrae variable
      3. Type II Cepheid
   3. Flare star
   4. Luminous blue variable
   5. Mira variable
   6. T Tauri star
   7. Herbig Ae/Be star
   8. Instability strip
3. Star system (Level 4)
   1. Planetary system (Level 4)
   2. Binary star (Level 4)
      1. Binary pulsar
      2. X-ray binary
      3. Roche lobe
4. Star cluster (Level 4)
   1. Stellar association
   2. Open cluster
   3. Globular cluster
      1. Blue straggler
   4. Super star cluster
5. Compact star
   1. White dwarf (Level 4)
      1. Chandrasekhar limit
   2. Neutron star (Level 4)
      1. Pulsar (Level 4)
      2. X-ray pulsar
      3. Magnetar
   3. Stellar black hole
6. Intergalactic star
7. Stellar classification (Level 4)
   1. Main sequence (Level 4)
      1. Red dwarf
   2. Subdwarf
   3. Subgiant
   4. Giant star (Level 4)
      1. Blue giant
      2. Red giant (Level 4)
   5. Carbon star
   6. S-type star
   7. Supergiant star (Level 4)
      1. Blue supergiant star
      2. Yellow supergiant star
      3. Red supergiant star
   8. Hypergiant
   9. Wolf–Rayet star (Level 4)
   10. Be star
   11. B[e] star
8. Stellar evolution (Level 4)
   1. Red-giant branch
   2. Helium flash
   3. Asymptotic giant branch
   4. Horizontal branch
9. Star formation (Level 4)
   1. Starburst galaxy (Level 4)
   2. Starburst region
   3. Jeans instability
   4. Pre-stellar core
   5. Protostar (Level 4)
   6. Hayashi track
   7. Pre-main-sequence star
   8. Young stellar object
10. Stellar kinematics (Level 4)
11. Stellar magnetic field (Level 4)
12. Stellar nucleosynthesis
    1. Proton–proton chain
    2. CNO cycle
    3. Triple-alpha process
    4. Carbon-burning process
    5. s-process
    6. r-process
13. Stellar structure (Level 4)
    1. Stellar core
    2. Radiation zone
    3. Convection zone
    4. Stellar atmosphere
14. Stellar rotation
15. Stellar mass
    1. Initial mass function
16. Stellar wind
17. Metallicity (Level 4)
    1. Chemically peculiar star
18. Circumstellar disc
    1. Debris disk
    2. Protoplanetary disk
    3. Proplyd
19. Brown dwarf (Level 4)
20. Hertzsprung–Russell diagram (Level 4)
21. Double star
22. Protoplanetary nebula
23. Planetary nebula (Level 4)
24. Supernova (Level 3)
    1. Type Ia supernova
    2. Type Ib and Ic supernovae
    3. Type II supernova
    4. Superluminous supernova
    5. Pair-instability supernova
    6. Supernova nucleosynthesis
25. Gamma-ray burst (Level 4)
    1. Gamma-ray burst emission mechanisms
    2. Gamma-ray burst progenitors
26. Fast radio burst
27. Kilonova
28. Asteroseismology
29. Mass–luminosity relation

Galactic and extragalactic astronomy (81 articles)

Basics (49 articles)

1. Galactic astronomy
2. Extragalactic astronomy
3. Outer space (Level 3)
4. Galaxy (Level 3)
   1. Galaxy formation and evolution (Level 4)
5. Cosmic dust
6. Black hole (Level 3)
   1. Supermassive black hole (Level 4)
   2. Micro black hole
   3. Kugelblitz
   4. Accretion disk
   5. Event horizon (Level 4)
      1. Schwarzschild radius
7. Interstellar medium (Level 4)
   1. Interstellar cloud
   2. Interstellar ice
   3. Nebula (Level 4)
   4. Dark nebula (Level 4)
      1. Bok globule
   5. Reflection nebula
   6. Emission nebula
   7. Molecular cloud (Level 4)
   8. Superbubble
   9. H I region
   10. H II region (Level 4)
8. High-velocity cloud
9. Cosmic ray (Level 4)
   1. Ultra-high-energy cosmic ray
10. Galactic plane
    1. Thin disk
    2. Thick disk
11. Galactic bulge
12. Galaxy rotation curve
13. Galactic halo
    1. Dark matter halo
14. Interacting galaxy
    1. Galaxy merger
    2. Galactic tide
15. Satellite galaxy
16. Galaxy groups and clusters (Level 4)
    1. Supercluster (Level 4)
17. Gravitational lens
    1. Strong gravitational lensing
    2. Weak gravitational lensing
18. Intergalactic dust
    1. Intracluster medium
19. Warm–hot intergalactic medium
20. Galaxy filament
21. Void (Level 4)

Galaxy classification (22 articles)

1. Galaxy morphological classification (Level 4)
2. Hubble sequence
3. Spiral galaxy (Level 4)
   1. Unbarred spiral galaxy
   2. Barred spiral galaxy (Level 4)
   3. Magellanic spiral
   4. Density wave theory
   5. SSPSF model
   6. Tully–Fisher relation
4. Elliptical galaxy (Level 4)
   1. Dwarf elliptical galaxy
   2. Type-cD galaxy
   3. Faber–Jackson relation
5. Lenticular galaxy (Level 4)
6. Irregular galaxy (Level 4)
7. Dwarf galaxy (Level 4)
8. Dark galaxy
9. Brightest cluster galaxy
10. Ring galaxy
11. Low surface brightness galaxy
12. Peculiar galaxy
13. Lyman-alpha emitter

Active galactic nucleus (10 articles)

1. Active galactic nucleus (Level 4)
2. Eddington luminosity
3. Low-ionization nuclear emission-line region
4. Seyfert galaxy (Level 4)
5. Luminous infrared galaxy
6. Radio galaxy (Level 4)
7. Quasar (Level 4)
8. Blazar (Level 4)
   1. BL Lacertae object
9. Lyman-alpha forest

Physical cosmology (51 articles)

1. Physical cosmology (Level 3)
   1. Observational cosmology
2. Universe (Level 2)
   1. Observable universe (Level 4)
      1. Cosmological horizon
         1. Particle horizon
3. Chronology of the universe (Level 4)
   1. Timeline of the early universe
   2. Age of the universe
   3. Big Bang (Level 3)
   4. Grand unification epoch
   5. Inflation (Level 4)
   6. Electroweak epoch
   7. Quark epoch
   8. Hadron epoch
   9. Lepton epoch
   10. Recombination
   11. Photon epoch
   12. Reionization
4. Structure formation
5. Shape of the universe
6. Ultimate fate of the universe (Level 4)
   1. Heat death of the universe
   2. Big Rip
   3. Big Crunch
   4. Cyclic model
7. Cosmic microwave background (Level 4)
   1. Discovery of cosmic microwave background radiation
8. Big Bang nucleosynthesis
   1. Alpher–Bethe–Gamow paper
9. Baryogenesis
10. Expansion of the universe
    1. Accelerating expansion of the universe
    2. Scale factor
11. Baryon acoustic oscillations
12. Primordial fluctuations
13. Dark matter (Level 4)
14. Dark energy (Level 4)
    1. Cosmological constant (Level 4)
    2. Lambda-CDM model
    3. Quintessence
15. Redshift (Level 4)
    1. Blueshift
    2. Hubble's law (Level 4)
       1. Hubble volume
16. Comoving and proper distances
17. Anthropic principle
18. Flatness problem
19. Horizon problem
20. Steady-state model
21. Multiverse