Ad astra (phrase)

:"For other uses, see Ad astra."

"Ad astra" is a Latin phrase meaning "to the stars". The phrase has its origin with Virgil, who wrote "sic itur ad astra" ("thus you shall go to the stars"; "Aeneid" book IX, line 641) and "opta ardua pennis astra sequi", ("they choose hardship that follow the stars on wings"; book XII, lines 892–893). Seneca the Younger later wrote "non est ad astra mollis e terris via" ("there is no easy way from the earth to the stars"). The most renowned phrase by Seneca the Younger is "per aspera ad astra" (through difficulties to the stars), which is also the official motto of the State of Kansas, though Kansas uses the variant "Ad astra per aspera".

Mottos

It is used as, or as part of, the motto of many organizations. It has also been adopted as a proper name for various unrelated things (publications, bands, games, etc.). It also sees general use as a popular Latin tag.

* Exact motto
** Elgin Academy, Scotland
** Phi Gamma Delta, United States
** Salesian Institute San Miguel, Honduras
** Colegio Salesiano San José, El Salvador
** Colegio Salesiano Don Bosco, El Salvador
** Innova Junior College, Singapore
** Ardrossan Academy, Scotland
** Miami Central High School, United States
** Presbyterian Ladies' College, Armidale, Australia
** Ruamrudee International School, Thailand
** Slough Grammar School in Berkshire, England
** United States Air Force Academy Class of 2007
** University College Dublin, Ireland
** Princess High School,Roodepoort,South Africa
* "per ardua ad astra" — "through struggles to the stars"
** Royal Air Force — translated slightly differently as "Through Adversity to the Stars"
** Royal Australian Air Force
** Royal Canadian Air Force
** Searcher spacecraft, in the TV series Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
** Trondheim katedralskole, cathedral school in Trondheim, Norway
** Avondawe Ltd
** Jamie Ashton Ltd
** Dialectic IT Ltd
** Colegio Rio Branco,São Paulo/SP - BRAZIL - Rotary Club
* "ad astra per aspera" — "to the stars through difficulties"
** Albury High School in Albury, New South Wales, Australia
** Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina
** Coventry High School, Coventry, Rhode Island
** Dr Challoner's Grammar School in Buckinghamshire, England
** Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Aeronáuticos, in Madrid, Spain
** "Grupo 5 de Caza", a fighter/bomber squadron of the Fuerza Aerea Argentina (Argentine Air Force)
** Half-Life 2: Riot Act, a Half-Life 2 mod by Germano Guerrini
** Immaculate Conception High School in Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies
** Kansas (U.S. state) and Seal of Kansas
** Mirman School in Los Angeles, California
** Morristown-Beard School in Morristown, New Jersey
** Mount Saint Michael Academy in The Bronx, New York
** Starfleet, the fictional organization in the Star Trek universe.
** Trenton air cadet training centre, Canada
* "per aspera ad astra" — "through adversity to the stars" or sometimes even "a rough road leads to the stars"
** California State University, East Bay, California State University
** Cornelia Strong College, University of North Carolina at Greensboro
** Gouda, a city in The Netherlands
** Nuriootpa High School, Barossa Valley, South Australia
** Pall Mall (cigarette)
** Queenwood School for Girls, Sydney, Australia
** Saint Patrick's High School, Karachi
** Hardwald High School, Olten Switzerland
** The 6th Company/II Batallion of The Danish Royal Guard
** South African Air Force
** Stevens Institute of Technology
** Girton Grammer School, Bendigo, Victoria, Australia
* "Sic itur ad astra" — "thus one goes to the stars"
** Detroit, Michigan public schools
** Richmond, Virginia (city)
** Universidad de San Andrés, Buenos Aires, Argentina
** The Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania
** Canadian Forces Air Command
** Colombian Air Force
** Alice Smith School, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
** Jean-Pierre Blanchard the first human to cross the English channel, by air.
* "Ad astra per alia porci" — "to the stars on the wings of a pig"
** Motto on John Steinbeck's personal stamp, featuring a figure of the Pigasus
*"Per herbam ad astra" — "From grass to the stars"
** Motto of Wisborough Green Lawnmower Races, United Kingdom

Other usage

*"Ad astra" is in the lyrics of the Schoolhouse Rock song "My Hero Zero" to describe the infinite possibilities of the number zero.
* "Ad astra per aspera (a rough road leads to the stars)" is on a memorial plaque affixed to Launch Complex 34 and dedicated to the crew of Apollo 1.
* "Per aspera ad astra is the motto of the school: Colegio Rio Branco, São Paulo/SP
* Ad Astra is the name of an annual literary science fiction convention held in Toronto.
* On the Voyager Golden Record "ad astra per aspera" is repeated twice in Morse Code.
* In the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird", the pageant composed by Miss Grace Merriweather is named "Ad Astra Per Aspera".
* El Filibusterismo, the novel by Jose Rizal, opens the first chapter with the epigraph "Sic itur ad astra".
* Appears on the coat of arms on every package of Pall Mall cigarettes.
* "Aspera, per aspera, per ardua, ad astra" is the refrain of singer Erin Mckeown's song "Aspera" on the album We Will Become Like Birds.
* Ad Astra is the title of the second song from Arcturus's album La Masquerade Infernale.
* In the movie Star Trek, the spaceship Enterprise bears the inscription "per ardua ad astra"
* Pol Medina,cartoonist and crator of Pugad Baboy, used "Ad Astra Per Aspera" as motto of the defunct Pugad Baboy Company.
* The musician Tomo Milicevic, from 30 Seconds To Mars, has a tattoo on his arm saying "Per Aspera ET Astra"
* "Ad Astra" is the title of the sculpture at the entrance to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC.
* "Sic Itur Ad Astra" is the motto of the University of Saint Andrews in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
* "Ad Astra per Aspera" is the title of the sixth song from Acceptance's album Phantoms.

Related phrase

A related phrase, "ex astris" ("from the stars"), is used frequently in NASA publications and in science fiction. See Ex astris, scientia.Also used in the film "Armageddon" in the finale.

External links

* [http://www.raf.mod.uk/history_old/hrafmotto.html History of the RAF motto] (but note that this page misspells "sic itur")
* [http://www.airforce.forces.gc.ca/ Royal Canadian Air Force Website]