--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No one working as an astronomer is…" description: "\"No one working as an astronomer is shackled in chains. This is a tremendous profession. There are lots of neat people, and you get to do cool things. I..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ea/alan-stern-5283_astronomer_no-one-working-as-an-astronomer-is-shack_2861155.png" --- # No one working as an astronomer is shackled in chains… ![“No one working as an astronomer is shackled in chains. This is a tremendous profession. There are lots of neat people, and you get to do cool things. If I had to say something negative, it's that there's often a whole lot of travel that takes me away from my children. That can be a bummer a lot of…” quote by Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ea/alan-stern-5283_astronomer_no-one-working-as-an-astronomer-is-shack_2861155.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ea/alan-stern-5283_astronomer_no-one-working-as-an-astronomer-is-shack_2861155.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ea/alan-stern-5283_astronomer_no-one-working-as-an-astronomer-is-shack_2861155.png) > “No one working as an astronomer is shackled in chains. This is a tremendous profession. There are lots of neat people, and you get to do cool things. If I had to say something negative, it's that there's often a whole lot of travel that takes me away from my children. That can be a bummer a lot of times.” [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Astronomy offers freedom and excitement, but extensive travel can separate professionals from family, creating personal challenges. **In simple terms:** Astronomy is rewarding but often requires travel away from family. Key Takeaway Seek work‑life balance. Themes career fulfillment travel family Mood thoughtful balanced Type reflective professional When to use this quote - research missions - conference attendance - family time planning Key Concepts space exploration personal sacrifice Questions to Reflect On - How can astronomers maintain family connections? - What policies could support work‑life balance in research? A Different Perspective Remote work may reduce travel. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Astronomer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astronomer/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Profession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profession/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Travel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/travel/) ## Related quotes > [I tell public audiences, don't go to a podiatrist for brain surgery; don't go to an astronomer for planetary science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/i-tell-public-audiences-don-t-go-to-a-podiatrist-for-brain-surgery/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Why would you listen to an astronomer about a planet?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/why-would-you-listen-to-an-astronomer-about-a-planet/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [There is something about giving everything to your profession. In Italian, an obsession is not necessarily negative. Its the art of putting all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renzo-piano/there-is-something-about-giving-everything-to-your-profession-in/) [Renzo Piano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renzo-piano/) > [“An Astronomer is to tell where the planets are. Then an Astrologer is to interpret what the location of those planets mean for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitta-xinindlu/an-astronomer-is-to-tell-where-the-planets-are-then-an-astrologer-is/) [Mitta Xinindlu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitta-xinindlu/) > [Any astronomer can predict with absolute accuracy just where every star in the universe will be at 11.30 tonight. He can make no such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/any-astronomer-can-predict-with-absolute-accuracy-just-where-every/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When people on airplanes ask me what I do, I used to say I was a physicist, which ended the discussion. I once said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-geller/when-people-on-airplanes-ask-me-what-i-do-i-used-to-say-i-was-a/) [Margaret Geller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-geller/) > [My parents gave me a small telescope, then I built my own, and one thing led to another. So that's how I ended up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimitar-sasselov/my-parents-gave-me-a-small-telescope-then-i-built-my-own-and-one/) [Dimitar Sasselov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimitar-sasselov/) > [“Sleep disorders are a known occupational hazard to astronomers and their support staff.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/sleep-disorders-are-a-known-occupational-hazard-to-astronomers-and/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“Deandre gazed at her like she was the stars, and he was a mere astronomer, searching her face for the constellations, admiring the beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aishabella-sheikh/deandre-gazed-at-her-like-she-was-the-stars-and-he-was-a-mere/) Aishabella Sheikh > [Just because a man glances up at the sky at night does not make him an astronomer, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyne/just-because-a-man-glances-up-at-the-sky-at-night-does-not-make-him/) [John Boyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyne/) > [I'm an amateur astronomer, and I practice that hobby a lot. And I'm fascinated by hard science. Hard science is something for me that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-russ/i-m-an-amateur-astronomer-and-i-practice-that-hobby-a-lot-and-i-m/) [Tim Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-russ/) > [“The astonished astronomer who made the discovery was left with one all-important question: is it more appropriate to e-mail, call, or text your boss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/the-astonished-astronomer-who-made-the-discovery-was-left-with-one/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [If I didn't choose art, I would have become an astronomer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-max/if-i-didn-t-choose-art-i-would-have-become-an-astronomer/) [Peter Max](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-max/) > [I was a kind of a one-man army. I could solder circuits together, I could turn out things on the lathe, I could work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-van-allen/i-was-a-kind-of-a-one-man-army-i-could-solder-circuits-together-i/) [James Van Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-van-allen/) > [“The toxicity of medical and industrial gas to the human depends on where it is used. A gas that is regarded as safe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-toxicity-of-medical-and-industrial-gas-to-the-human-depends-on/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) ## More by Alan Stern > [Competition-driven innovation and price pressure that commercial practices foster can only make human spaceflight ever more common and U.S. leadership in this domain ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/competition-driven-innovation-and-price-pressure-that-commercial/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Of course Pluto is a planet: It's massive enough to have its shape controlled by gravity rather than material strength, which is the hallmark…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/of-course-pluto-is-a-planet-it-s-massive-enough-to-have-its-shape/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [It used to be said that Pluto is a misfit. But now we know Earth is the misfit. This is the most populous class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/it-used-to-be-said-that-pluto-is-a-misfit-but-now-we-know-earth-is/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [The Kuiper belt region, which I call the third zone because it lies beyond the rocky terrestrial planets and beyond the giant planets, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/the-kuiper-belt-region-which-i-call-the-third-zone-because-it-lies/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [I think if you were between maybe 6 and 16, there was nothing like Apollo, and I wonder if there can be something like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/i-think-if-you-were-between-maybe-6-and-16-there-was-nothing-like/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [If you put Earth out beyond Neptune, you wouldn't be able to call it a planet because it couldn't clear its zone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/if-you-put-earth-out-beyond-neptune-you-wouldn-t-be-able-to-call-it-a/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Why would you listen to an astronomer about a planet?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/why-would-you-listen-to-an-astronomer-about-a-planet/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [When we first sent missions to Jupiter, no one expected to find moons that would have active volcanoes. And I could go down a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/when-we-first-sent-missions-to-jupiter-no-one-expected-to-find-moons/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Pluto is still active four and a half billion years into its history. It was expected that small planets like Pluto would cool off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/pluto-is-still-active-four-and-a-half-billion-years-into-its-history/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [The Kuiper Belt is the largest mapped structure in our planetary system, three times as big as all the territory from the sun out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/the-kuiper-belt-is-the-largest-mapped-structure-in-our-planetary/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [If two billion people wanted to watch a robot fly by Pluto, imagine what it will be like when the first humans step on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/if-two-billion-people-wanted-to-watch-a-robot-fly-by-pluto-imagine/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [To keep everyone invested in your vision, you have to back up a little bit and really analyze who the different stakeholders are and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/to-keep-everyone-invested-in-your-vision-you-have-to-back-up-a-little/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [We're going to find Marses and maybe Earths out in the solar system's attic of the Oort Cloud and the Kuiper Belt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/we-re-going-to-find-marses-and-maybe-earths-out-in-the-solar-system-s/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [One of the implications of the discovery of the Kuiper Belt and its many small planets is that many scientists now think of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/one-of-the-implications-of-the-discovery-of-the-kuiper-belt-and-its/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [CASIS has to succeed because for it not to succeed would be a huge setback for the International Space Station program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/casis-has-to-succeed-because-for-it-not-to-succeed-would-be-a-huge/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) [Explore all 102 Alan Stern quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) ## More Astronomer quotes > [“The toxicity of medical and industrial gas to the human depends on where it is used. A gas that is regarded as safe in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/the-toxicity-of-medical-and-industrial-gas-to-the-human-depends-on/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [I was a kind of a one-man army. I could solder circuits together, I could turn out things on the lathe, I could work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-van-allen/i-was-a-kind-of-a-one-man-army-i-could-solder-circuits-together-i/) [James Van Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-van-allen/) > [If I didn't choose art, I would have become an astronomer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-max/if-i-didn-t-choose-art-i-would-have-become-an-astronomer/) [Peter Max](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-max/) > [“The astonished astronomer who made the discovery was left with one all-important question: is it more appropriate to e-mail, call, or text your boss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-shusterman/the-astonished-astronomer-who-made-the-discovery-was-left-with-one/) [Neal Shusterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-shusterman/) > [I'm an amateur astronomer, and I practice that hobby a lot. And I'm fascinated by hard science. Hard science is something for me that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-russ/i-m-an-amateur-astronomer-and-i-practice-that-hobby-a-lot-and-i-m/) [Tim Russ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-russ/) > [Why would you listen to an astronomer about a planet?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-stern/why-would-you-listen-to-an-astronomer-about-a-planet/) [Alan Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-stern/) > [Just because a man glances up at the sky at night does not make him an astronomer, you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyne/just-because-a-man-glances-up-at-the-sky-at-night-does-not-make-him/) [John Boyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyne/) > [“Deandre gazed at her like she was the stars, and he was a mere astronomer, searching her face for the constellations, admiring the beauty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aishabella-sheikh/deandre-gazed-at-her-like-she-was-the-stars-and-he-was-a-mere/) Aishabella Sheikh > [“Sleep disorders are a known occupational hazard to astronomers and their support staff.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/sleep-disorders-are-a-known-occupational-hazard-to-astronomers-and/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [My parents gave me a small telescope, then I built my own, and one thing led to another. So that's how I ended up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimitar-sasselov/my-parents-gave-me-a-small-telescope-then-i-built-my-own-and-one/) [Dimitar Sasselov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimitar-sasselov/) > [When people on airplanes ask me what I do, I used to say I was a physicist, which ended the discussion. I once said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-geller/when-people-on-airplanes-ask-me-what-i-do-i-used-to-say-i-was-a/) [Margaret Geller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-geller/) > [Any astronomer can predict with absolute accuracy just where every star in the universe will be at 11.30 tonight. He can make no such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/any-astronomer-can-predict-with-absolute-accuracy-just-where-every/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“An Astronomer is to tell where the planets are. Then an Astrologer is to interpret what the location of those planets mean for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitta-xinindlu/an-astronomer-is-to-tell-where-the-planets-are-then-an-astrologer-is/) [Mitta Xinindlu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitta-xinindlu/) > [“Industrial liquid gas containers were left open and venting gas into the indoor environment in high altitude astronomy. On reflection, I realized that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/industrial-liquid-gas-containers-were-left-open-and-venting-gas-into/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [“Very high altitude astronomy only works by ignoring established biological science”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/very-high-altitude-astronomy-only-works-by-ignoring-established/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) [Browse all 83 Astronomer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astronomer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No one working as an astronomer is shackled in chains. This is a tremendous profession. There are lots of neat people, and you get to do cool things. If I had to say something negative, it's that there's often a whole lot of travel that takes me away from my children. 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