AGB asymptotic giant branch
AGN active galactic nucleus
ASCA Japanese x-ray telescope
BAL broad absorption line
BBB big blue bump (in quasar spectra)
BBXRT Broad-Band X-ray Telescope
BCG blue compact galaxies
BDM baryonic dark matter
BH black hole
BL Lac BL Lacertae object (galaxy)
CAI calcium-aluminum-rich inclusion (in meteorites)
CCD charged couple device
cD compact disk galaxy
CDM cold dark matter
CFRS Canada-France redshift survey
CG compact group (of galaxies)
CMB cosmic microwave background
CMD color-magnitude diagram
CO Compton Observatory
BATSE
EGRET
COBE COsmic Background Explorer
DIRBE
FIRAS
CREA cosmic ray exposure age
CV cataclysmic variable
dC carbon-rich dwarf star
DIB diffuse interstellar band
DIG diffuse ionized gas
DLA damped Ly-alpha absorber
DLAS damped Lyman-alpha system
EBL extragalactic background light
EBR extragalactic background radiation field
EDM energy dominant monster
EGG evaporating gaseous globules
EKO Edgeworth-Kuiper object
EO Einstein Observatory
IPC
MPC
SSS
ERO extremely red object
ESE extreme scattering event
EUV extreme ultraviolet
EUVE Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer
EXOSAT
FIRST Faint images of the radio sky at twenty cm
FRW Friedmann-Robertson-Walker iniverse model
FUV far ultraviolet
FR Fanaroff-Riley radio source type
FSRQ flat spectrum radio quasar
FWHM full width at half-maximum
GBH galactic blach hole candidate
GC globular cluster
GR general relativity
GRB gamma ray burst
GRBR gamma ray burst remnant
GRO Gamma Ray Observatory (see Compton Observatory)
HB horizontal branch
HCG Hickson compact group (of galaxies)
HDF Hubble deep field
HDM hot dark matter
HET Hobby-Eberly telescope (11 m. at McDonald Observatory)
HHO Herbig-Haro object
HST Hubble Space Telescope
FOS faint object spectrograph
GHRS Goddard high-resolution spectrograph
WFPC wide-field planetary camera
HVC high-velocity cloud
ICM intracluster medium
IGM intergalactic medium
IIM ionized interstellar medium
IMF initial mass function
interplanetary magnetic field
ION isolated old neutron star
IRAF Infrared Astronomy Facility
IRAS Infrared Astronomy Satellite
IRTS Infrared Telescope in Space
ISM interstellar medium
ISO infrared space observatory (European satellite)
IUE International Ultraviolet Explorer
LBQS large bright quasar survey
LBV luminous blue variable
LF luminosity function
LMC Large Magellanic Cloud
LMXB low-mass X-ray binaries
LSC local supercluster
LTE local thermodynamic equilibrium
M/L mass to light ratio
MACHO massive compact halo object
MDM mixed dark matter (hot and cold)
MMT multiple mirror telescope
MOND modified (Newtonian) dynamics
MS main sequence
MSTO main-sequence turnoff
MTB mass-transfer binary
MW Milky Way galaxy
OGLE optical gravitational lensing experiment
OLF optical luminosity function
OT optical transient
OVV optically violently variable
PIB primeval isocurvature baryon
PLE pure luminosity evolution (quasars), w/o density evolution
PNN planetary nebula nuclei
QPO quasi-periodic oscillations (in X-ray binaries)
QSO quasi-stellar object
QSR quasar; esp. one associated with radio galaxy
RBL radio-selected BL Lacertae object
RG radio galaxy
RGB red-green-blue; also, red giant branch
RLQ radio loud quasar
ROSAT
WFC wide-field camera
PSPC position-sensitive proportional counter
RQQ radio quiet quasar
SEA small, earth-approaching asteroid
SED spectral energy distribution
SFR star formation rate
SGR soft gamma-ray repeater
SMC Small Magellanic Cloud
SN supernova
SNC meteorite type associated with Mars
SNR supernova remnant
SOHO solar and heliospheric observatory (satellite)
SR special relativity
SSRQ steep spectrum radio quasar
SXT soft X-ray transient
SZ Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect
TF Tully-Fisher method of galaxy distance determination
TOAD tremendous outburst amplitude dwarf nova
TTS T-Tauri star
UBVRI ultraviolet-blue-visual-red-infrared
UHE ultra-high-energy
UHECR ultra-high-energy cosmic ray (>= 3 x 1020 eV)
UVOIR ultraviolet-optical-infrared
VBLR very broad line region (in quasars)
WIMP weakly interacting massive particle
WR Wolf-Rayet star
XRB X-ray background
YSO young stellar object
ZPF zero-point field (for the vacuum)
(!!) == remarkable paper
