Space science

The term space science may mean:

• The study of issues specifically related to space travel and space exploration, including space medicine.
• Science performed in outer space 
• The study of everything in outer space;this is sometimes called astronomy, but more recently astronomy can also be regarded as a division of broader space science, which has grown to include other related fields.

This article describes the third meaning, space science describing all of the various science fields that are concerned with the study of the Universe, generally also meaning "excluding the Earth" and "outside of the Earth's atmosphere".

Divisions of space science

One proposed timeline of the origin of space, from physical cosmology.

By subject

• Stellar astronomy - the study of stars
  • Solar astronomy - the study of our Sun
• Planetary science - the study of planets, especially those other than Earth
• Galactic astronomy - the study of our Milky Way Galaxy
• Extragalactic astronomy - the study of the larger universe beyond the Milky Way
• Physical cosmology - the study of the origin, large-scale structure, and space-time relationships of the universe

Interdisciplinary fields

A simulated-color map of the surface of Venus as measured by synthetic aperture radar on the Magellan probe.

The Helix Nebula, NGC7293.

Comet Tempel 1 67 seconds after colliding with the Deep Impact probe.

• Astrobiology
• Astrochemistry or Cosmochemistry
• Astrophysics - the intersection of physics and space science, the study of the physics of extraterrestrial objects and interstitial spaces
  • Space plasma physics
  • Orbital mechanics or astrodynamics, which also has applications to spacecraft
• Planetary science - overlaps with Earth science
  • Planetary geology
• Micro-g environment research
• Forensic astronomy
• Space archaeology - the study of human artifacts in outer space
• Archaeoastronomy - the history of human understanding of the universe
• Astronautics is the science and engineering of spacefaring and spaceflight, a subset of Aerospace engineering (which includes atmospheric flight)
  • Aerospace engineering
  • Control engineering
  • Orbital mechanics
  • Spacecraft design for launch vehicles and satellites
  • Space environment - study of conditions that affect the operation of spacecraft
  • Spacecraft propulsion
  • Space food
  • Space logistics
  • Space medicine

By approach

• Observational astronomy - Observatories on the ground as well as space observatories take measurements of celestial entities and phenomena
  • Astrometry - stuies the position and movements of celestial objects
  • Amateur astronomy
• Theoretical astronomy - mathematical modelling of celestial entities and phenomena

Related activities

• Space exploration - includes scientific investigations through manned spaceflight and space probes
• Space colonization
• Commercialization of space
  • Space manufacturing
  • Space tourism
• Space warfare
  • Alien invasion
• Asteroid-impact avoidance
• Space law
• Remote sensing
• Planetarium - A synthetic observatory, used for education and presentations

Science, engineering and technology

The distinction between science, engineering and technology is not always clear. Science is the reasoned investigation or study of phenomena, aimed at discovering enduring principles among elements of the phenomenal world by employing formal techniques such as the scientific method.Technologies are not usually exclusively products of science, because they have to satisfy requirements such as utility, usability and safety.
Engineering is the goal-oriented process of designing and making tools and systems to exploit natural phenomena for practical human means, often (but not always) using results and techniques from science. The development of technology may draw upon many fields of knowledge, including scientific, engineering, mathematical, linguistic, and historical knowledge, to achieve some practical result.
Technology is often a consequence of science and engineering — although technology as a human activity precedes the two fields. For example, science might study the flow of electrons in electrical conductors, by using already-existing tools and knowledge. This new-found knowledge may then be used by engineers to create new tools and machines, such as semiconductors, computers, and other forms of advanced technology. In this sense, scientists and engineers may both be considered technologists; the three fields are often considered as one for the purposes of research and reference.
The exact relations between science and technology in particular have been debated by scientists, historians, and policymakers in the late 20th century, in part because the debate can inform the funding of basic and applied science. In the immediate wake of World War II, for example, in the United States it was widely considered that technology was simply "applied science" and that to fund basic science was to reap technological results in due time. An articulation of this philosophy could be found explicitly in Vannevar Bush's treatise on postwar science policy, Science—The Endless Frontier: "New products, new industries, and more jobs require continuous additions to knowledge of the laws of nature... This essential new knowledge can be obtained only through basic scientific research." In the late-1960s, however, this view came under direct attack, leading towards initiatives to fund science for specific tasks (initiatives resisted by the scientific community). The issue remains contentious—though most analysts resist the model that technology simply is a result of scientific research.