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The Astronomer is a fictional character, an ancient alien appearing in the Marvel Comics universe. He is one of the Elders of the Universe. His first appearance was in Silver Surfer (Vol.3) #4.
Fictional character biography Long ago, the Astronomer chose to dedicate himself monomaniacally to chronicling the slow evolution of the stars and galaxies themselves. He long ago lost interest in living beings. He helped the Grandmaster devise a plot against Galactus. His desires were for a new universe to be created, one where he and his fellow Elders of the Universe would have more power. To that end, he also helped the Grandmaster to conceive the strategy which he used to manipulate the entity Death into vowing to bar all of them from her realm forever, making them all immortal. The Astronomer attended a meeting of the Elders on Ego's surface where this new immortality was revealed to the rest of their conspiracy.[1] He later attended another meeting of the Elders on Earth.[2] Their subsequent attempt to use the six Infinity Gems to kill Galactus was thwarted when Nova caused the local star to go nova and then collapse into a black hole which quickly sucked in Nova, the Silver Surfer, all six Infinity Gems and all eight Elders who were physically present. Galactus managed to retrieve his two heralds and five of the Elders (whom he soon consumed as punishment for their actions) but not the Astronomer, the Possessor or the Trader.[3] Instead, these three Elders traveled through the black hole and emerged in a mystical dimension where they made a deal with the In-Betweener: in exchange for the Elders using the Soul Gem to restore him, the In-Betweener would take them back to their home reality and kill Galactus. Soon, Galactus, who was suffering from "cosmic indigestion" caused by the Elders he had consumed, sent the Silver Surfer, Mister Fantastic, and the Invisible Woman in search of the Infinity Gems. The three agents of Galactus fell victim to the Astronomer's plan and the In-Betweener was restored. After taking the Elders and the Infinity Gems back to their own reality, the In-Betweener attempted to destroy Galactus but found himself unable to do so and stated his intention to hurl Galactus into the black hole instead. The three Elders, who wanted to rescue their brother Elders from within Galactus, threatened him with the other five Infinity Gems and the In-Betweener responded by summoning Death and forcing her to negate them despite her vow. As a result, the Astronomer, the Possessor, and the Trader were apparently disintegrated.[4] Due to previous schemes involving Death, the Elders were supposed to be barred from her realm so whether the Astronomer is truly dead remains to be seen. However, the Possessor has since been encountered, alive again, by Quasar.[5] Powers and abilities The Astronomer has a superhuman intellect, with vast knowledge of astronomy and highly advanced alien technology. He also has the ability to project laser beams from his hands. The Astronomer wears a device over his right eye which enables him to see over vast distances. The limits of this telescopic vision are unknown. As one of the Elders of the Universe, the Astronomer has entered into a pact with Death that has rendered him virtually immortal. He cannot be killed by any means and is totally indestructible, unless Death revokes her vow. References External links fr:Astronome (comics) it:Astronomo (personaggio) fi:Astronomi (sarjakuvahahmo) tl:Astronomer (komiks)
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