Astronomical metaphor in media discourse

The article focuses on the astronomical metaphor realized in media discourse. As the result of popularization of astronomy and space research, astronomical terminology and non-term lexical units are actively introduced in man’s mind serving as the basis for creating metaphors. The metaphorical potential of astronomic lexicon is widely used in media discourse whose purpose is to not only inform but also influence the audience resorting to the totality of linguistic means, particularly various kinds of metaphor. The article presents the definition of the astronomical metaphor. As the result of semantic classification, seven thematic groups of the astronomical metaphor are distinguished. The procedures of quantitative analysis allow identifying thematic groups and lexical units, most productive in the process of metaphorization. The functional analysis of astronomical metaphor realized in media discourse results in the description of its functions.