All Topics  
Space science

 

   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link






 

Space science



 
 
Space science is an all-encompassing term that describes all of the various science fields that are concerned with the study of the Universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
, generally also meaning "excluding the Earth" and "outside of the Earth's atmosphere". Originally, all of these fields were considered part of astronomy
Astronomy

Astronomy is the science of Astronomical object and Phenomenon that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere . It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the physical cosmology....
. However, in recent years the major sub-fields within astronomy, such as astrophysics
Astrophysics

Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of astronomical objects such as galaxy, stars, planets, exoplanets, and the interstellar medium, as well as their interactions....
, have grown so large that they are now considered separate fields on their own.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Space science'
Start a new discussion about 'Space science'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Space science is an all-encompassing term that describes all of the various science fields that are concerned with the study of the Universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
, generally also meaning "excluding the Earth" and "outside of the Earth's atmosphere". Originally, all of these fields were considered part of astronomy
Astronomy

Astronomy is the science of Astronomical object and Phenomenon that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere . It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the physical cosmology....
. However, in recent years the major sub-fields within astronomy, such as astrophysics
Astrophysics

Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of astronomical objects such as galaxy, stars, planets, exoplanets, and the interstellar medium, as well as their interactions....
, have grown so large that they are now considered separate fields on their own. There are eight overall categories that can generally be described on their own; Astrophysics, Galactic Science, Stellar Science, non-Earth Planetary Science, Biology of Other Planets, Astronautics/Space Travel, Space Colonization and Space Defense. The Library of Congress
Library of Congress

The Library of Congress is the de facto national library of the United States and the research arm of the United States Congress. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and holds the largest number of books....
 and Dewey Decimal System have a major classification "Descriptive Astronomy" which they use instead of placing descriptive works into their huge "Geography" collections.

Astronomy


Astronomical Methods

Palomar
Astronomical methods are the equipment and techniques used to collect data about the objects in Space. Galileo's first astronomical method was to find and buy the best telescope of the time and then point that telescope to the heavens. Methods can be categorized according to the wavelength they are attempting to record.

Radio astronomy
Radio astronomy

Radio astronomy is a subfield of astronomy that studies Astronomical object at radio frequency. The initial detection of radio waves from an astronomical object was made in the 1930s, but subsequent advances have identified a number of different sources of radio emission....
 includes radio telescope
Radio telescope

A radio telescope is a form of Directional antennae radio Antenna used in radio astronomy and in tracking and collecting data from satellites and space probes....
s; devices that receive and record radio waves from outside the Earth. They record cosmic microwave background radiation
Cosmic microwave background radiation

In physical cosmology, the cosmic microwave background radiation CMB is a form of electromagnetic radiation filling the universe. With a traditional optical telescope, the space between stars and galaxies is pitch black....
 resulting from the Big Bang
Big Bang

The Big Bang is the physical cosmology model of the initial conditions and subsequent development of the universe supported by the most comprehensive and accurate explanations from current scientific method and observation....
, Pulsar
Pulsar

Pulsars are highly magnetized, rotating neutron stars that emit a beam of electromagnetic radiation. The observed periods of their pulses range from 1.4 milliseconds to 8.5 seconds....
s and other sources. Optical astronomy
Optical astronomy

Optical astronomy has two meanings:* In popular culture optical astronomy encompasses a wide variety of observations via telescopes that are sensitive in the range of visible light....
 is the oldest kind of astronomy. X-ray
X-ray astronomy

X-ray astronomy is an observational branch of astronomy, which deals with the study of X-ray emission from celestial objects. X-ray radiation is absorbed by the Earth's Earth's atmosphere, so instruments to observe X-rays must be taken to high altitude, in the past with balloons and sounding rockets....
 observatories include the Chandra X-ray Observatory
Chandra X-ray Observatory

The Chandra X-ray Observatory is a satellite launched on STS-93 by NASA on July 23, 1999. It was named in honor of Indian-United States physicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar who is known for determining the Chandrasekhar limit for white dwarf stars to become neutron stars....
 and others. gamma ray includes the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory
Compton Gamma Ray Observatory

The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory was the second of the NASA "Great Observatories program" to be launched to space, following the Hubble Space Telescope....
 and others. Neutrino astronomy
Neutrino astronomy

Neutrino astronomy is the branch of astronomy that observes astronomical objects with Neutrino detectors in special observatories. Nuclear reactions in stars and supernova explosions produce copious amounts of neutrinos, a very few of which may be detected by a neutrino telescope....
 observatories have also been built, primarily to study our Sun. Gravitational wave
Gravitational wave

In physics, a gravitational wave is a fluctuation in the curvature of spacetime which propagates as a wave#Traveling wave, traveling outward from a moving object or system of objects....
 observatories have been theorized.

A space telescope is a telescope orbiting or travelling from the Earth, such as the Hubble space telescope
Hubble Space Telescope

The Hubble Space Telescope is a Space observatory that was carried into Low Earth orbit STS-31 in April 1990. It is named after the American astronomer Edwin Hubble....
. RXTE is Long Exposure Time Astronomy used to study millisecond pulsar
Millisecond pulsar

A millisecond pulsar , often referred to as "recycled pulsar", is a pulsar with a rotational period in the range of about 1-10 milliseconds....
s and pulsar deceleration
Rotation-powered pulsar

Rotation-powered pulsar is one of the major classes of pulsars. A Rotation-powered pulsar is a rapidly rotating neutron star, whose electromagnetic radiation is observed in regularly spaced intervals, or pulses....
.

Spectroscopy
Spectroscopy

Spectroscopy was originally the study of the interaction between radiation and matter as a function of wavelength . In fact, historically, spectroscopy referred to the use of visible light dispersed according to its wavelength, e.g....


Astronomy teaching tools include Planetarium
Planetarium

File:Planetarium-Thursday-1-July-2008.JPGFile:Belgrade Planetarium theatre day.jpgFile:Belgrade Planetarium theatre night.jpgA planetarium is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation....
s and others.

Further information can be found at Library of Congress Classification QB1-139 General Astronomy (Dewey 520), QB140-237 Practical and spherical astronomy (Dewey 522), (Observatories Dewey 522), QB468-480 Non-optical methods of astronomy

Descriptive Astronomy

Galileo's second astronomical method was to describe what he saw in the telescope. Descriptive Astronomy is the highest sub-category of Astronomy used by the Library of Congress and Dewey Decimal systems to classify any knowledge related to describing celestial objects. Because we are seeing today portions of the Universe as they actually looked millions or billions of years ago we should have a historical section within Descriptive astronomy: History of The Universe includes the size, shape and structure of the historical universe), Cartography of The Historical Universe, Early Universe and others. The Current Universe includes size shape and structure of the current Universe, cartography of the current Universe and others.

Cartography of Space Bodies. Recording photographic or similar images of the Earths surface from space is a well developed science, yet still expanding because of advances in the actual resolution of images taken from space or atmosphere and because of advances in digitizing and manipulating the images. Most of these advances are being applied to the cartography of space-located bodies, even though acquiring the original images of those bodies is extremely complicated and expensive, usually requiring long distance probes to carry the cameras. Further information is available at Library of Congress Classification: G3190-3191 Celestial maps.

Visible matter in the universe is apparently organized geographically into structures with large amounts of space between them; either the space between planets, the space between stars or the space between galaxies. Even galaxies themselves are not spread uniformly but appear to be located in filaments. Therefore The Universe can be divided geographically into regions that follow this structure The Filaments of Galaxies are the furthest visible structures.

Those filaments are made of supercluster
Supercluster

Superclusters are large groups of smaller galaxy groups and clusters and are among the Large-scale structure of the cosmos of the cosmos....
s, tending to line up in filaments. Our Milky Way Galaxy is a galaxy in what is called the Our Supercluster of Galaxies by the National Geographic Society. Some 150 million light-years across, Our Supercluster is a great aggregation of perhaps thousands of smaller clusters of galaxies. The largest of these smaller clusters is called the Virgo Cluster. According to National Geographic, The Virgo Cluster contains the center of mass of Our Supercluster. Although The Milky Way Galaxy is a part of Our Supercluster, it is not a part of the Virgo Cluster. Our Milky Way Galaxy is part of a cluster called the Local Group. Gravitationally, our Local Group plays a small role in Our Supercluster because it is a small and distant cluster from the center. A much larger cluster within in Our Supercluster is the Ursa Major Cluster. The following objects are located within Our Supercluster but not within the Local Group; they are objects 100,000,000 light-years to 10,000,000 light-years from the Sun: M49, M51
Whirlpool Galaxy

The Whirlpool Galaxy is an Interacting galaxy Grand design spiral galaxy spiral galaxy located at a distance of approximately 23 million light-years in the constellation Canes Venatici....
, M58
Messier 58

Messier 58 is a barred spiral galaxy located approximately 68 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo . It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1779....
, M59, M60, M61, M63
Sunflower Galaxy

The Sunflower Galaxy is an unbarred spiral galaxy in the Canes Venatici constellation. It is a flocculent spiral galaxy, consisting of a central disc surrounded by many short spiral arm segments....
, M64
Black Eye Galaxy

The Black Eye Galaxy was discovered by Edward Pigott in March 1779, and independently by Johann Elert Bode in April of the same year, as well as by Charles Messier in 1780....
, M65, M66
Messier 66

Messier 66 is an intermediate spiral galaxy about 36 million light-years away in the constellation Leo . It was discovered by Charles Messier in 1780....
. National Geographic magazine has produced a very good drawing of this region in its Map of the Universe Supplement, October 1999 issue.

Local Group: Our Milky Way Galaxy is one of about 30 galaxies called the Local Group. The Local Group is about 4 million light-years across. In the Local Group our Milky Way Galaxy plays a large gravitational part because our galaxy is the second largest galaxy in our Local Group, second only to the Andromeda Galaxy. All of the other galaxies in our Local Group are gravitationally bound either to the Andromeda Galaxy or to our Milky Way Galaxy. Inside of our local group but outside of our Galaxy are objects 4,000,000 LY to 1,000,000 LY from the Sun: M31
Andromeda Galaxy

The Andromeda Galaxy is a spiral galaxy approximately 2.5 million light-years away in the constellation Andromeda . It is the nearest spiral galaxy to our own, the Milky Way Galaxy....
, M32, M33
Triangulum Galaxy

The Triangulum Galaxy is a spiral galaxy approximately 3 million light-years away in the constellation Triangulum. The galaxy is also sometimes informally referred to as the Pinwheel Galaxy by some amateur astronomy references...
.

Orion Arm
Milky Way Galaxy: Our Milky Way Galaxy is a massive mass-containing structure 100,000 light-years across and 30,000 light-years tall. Most of its billions of suns are organized into approximately 12 structures called "arms". Our Sun is located in what is called the "Orion Arm". The next arm outside of us is called the "Perseus Arm". The Crab Nebula M1
Crab Nebula

The Crab Nebula  is a supernova remnant and pulsar wind nebula in the constellation of Taurus . The nebula was first observed by John Bevis, and corresponds to a bright supernova recorded by Chinese astronomy and Islamic astronomy astronomers SN 1054....
 is located in the Perseus Arm. The arm outside of the Perseus Arm is called the Outer Arm. Palomar 1 is located in the Outer Arm. The next arm inside of us is called the Sagittarius Arm. The Ring Nebula M57
Ring Nebula

The famously named "Ring Nebula" is located in the northern constellation of Lyra, and also catalogued as Messier 57, M57 or NGC 6720....
 and the Carina Nebula (NGC 3372) are located in the Sagittarius Arm. The next arm inside of the Sagittarius Arm is called the Crux Arm. The inner arms are much shorter, obviously from being shifted by gravitational forces. Arms beside each other today may have at an earlier time been one.

Orion Arm: The Orion Nebula M42
Orion Nebula

The Orion Nebula is a diffuse nebula situated south of Orion 's Belt. It is one of the brightest nebulae, and is visible to the naked eye in the night sky....
 is located in our Arm. Celestial Objects 1000 LY to 100 LY from the Sun: M39, M44
Beehive Cluster

The Beehive Cluster is an open cluster in theconstellation Cancer . It is one of the nearest open clusters to the Solar System, and it contains a larger star population than most other nearby clusters....
, M45
Pleiades (star cluster)

File:Pleiades Lanoue.pngIn astronomy, the Pleiades are an open star cluster in the constellation of Taurus . It is among the nearest star clusters to Earth, and Randall Munroe's favorite astronomical object....
. Celestial Objects 100 LY to 16LY From the Sun. Celestial Objects less than 16 LY from the Sun: List of nearest stars
List of nearest stars

This list of stars nearest to the Earth is ordered by increasing distance out to a maximum of 5 parsecs . Including the Solar System, there are currently 50 stellar systems known which may lie within this distance....


Nearby-Stars Solar Systems: By measuring the extremely small movements of nearby stars astronomers have been able to prove that there are planets going around these Suns, therefore these suns have become "Solar Systems".

Solar system
Solar System

The Solar System consists of the Sun and those Astronomical object bound to it by gravity: the eight planets and five dwarf planets, their 173 known Natural satellite, and billions of Small Solar System body....
 includes Scientific Study of Solar System Planets, Venus
Venus

Venus is the second-closest planet to the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus , the Roman mythology goddess of love....
, Mercury
Mercury (planet)

Mercury is the innermost and smallest planet in the Solar System, orbiting the Sun once every 88 days. The orbit of Mercury has the highest Orbital eccentricity of all the Solar System planets, and it has the smallest axial tilt....
, Saturn
Saturn

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn, along with Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune, is classified as a gas giant....
, Jupiter
Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the Solar system by size planet within the Solar System. It is two and a half times as massive as all of the other planets in our Solar System combined....
, Uranus
Uranus

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun and the third-largest and fourth most massive planet in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus the father of Kronos and grandfather of Zeus ....
, Neptune
NEPTUNE

=Overview=The project, along with sister project, VENUS, offers a unique approach to ocean science. Traditionally, ocean scientists have relied on infrequent ship cruises or space-based satellites to carry out their research....
, Mars
MARS

In cryptography, MARS is a block cipher that was IBM's submission to the Advanced Encryption Standard process. MARS was selected as an AES finalist in August 1999, after the AES2 conference in March 1999, where it was voted as the fifth and last finalist algorithm....
, and Moon
Moon

The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite and the List of natural satellites by diameter satellite in the Solar System. The average centre-to-centre distance from the Earth to the Moon is km, about thirty times the diameter of the Earth....


Further reading can be found in the Library of Congress Classification QB495-903 Descriptive astronomy (Dewey 523) Galileo's second astronomical method was to describe what he saw in the telescope.

Physics Of The Universe / Astrophysics


After first looking at the planets, then second describing what he saw, Galileo's third astronomical method was to theorize about the reasons for what he saw in the telescope, specifically to theorize that the Earth goes around the Sun. The Physics of the Universe can be divided into several broad categories:

Astrophysical Theory includes general relativity
General relativity

General relativity or the general theory of relativity is the Geometry Theoretical physics of gravitation published by Albert Einstein in 1916....
 and others.

Astrophysical Processes includes baryon
Baryon

Baryons are the family of composite particle subatomic particle made of three quarks, as opposed to the mesons which are the family of composite particles made of one quark and one antiquark....
ic and others.

Physical Processes, General includes Mechanics
Mechanics

Mechanics is the branch of physics concerned with the behaviour of physical body when subjected to forces or Displacement , and the subsequent effect of the bodies on their environment....
, Electromagnetism
Electromagnetism

Electromagnetism is the physics of the electromagnetic field, a field which exerts a force on Elementary particles with the property of electric charge and which is reciprocally affected by the presence and motion of such particles....
, electromagnetic force
Electromagnetic force

In physics, the electromagnetic force is the force that the electromagnetic field exerts on electrically charged particles. It is the electromagnetic force that holds electrons and protons together in atoms, and which hold atoms together to make molecules....
s, Statistical Mechanics
Statistical mechanics

Statistical mechanics is the application of probability theory, which includes Mathematics tools for dealing with large populations, to the field of mechanics, which is concerned with the motion of particles or objects when subjected to a force....
, Thermodynamics
Thermodynamics

In physics, thermodynamics is the study of the conversion of heat energy into different forms of energy ; different energy conversions into heat energy; and its relation to macroscopic variables such as temperature, pressure, and volume....
, Quantum Mechanics
Quantum mechanics

Quantum mechanics is a set of principles underlying the most fundamental known description of all physical systems at the microscopic scale . Notable amongst these principles are both a dual wave-like and particle-like behavior of matter and radiation, and prediction of probabilities in situations where classical physics predicts certaintie...
, relativity
Theory of relativity

File:spacetime curvature.pngThe theory of relativity, or simply relativity, generally refers specifically to two theories of Albert Einstein: special relativity and general relativity....
, gravity and others.

Origins Of The Universe Universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
  Theories of the Origins of the Universe, Big Bang Theory, Early Universe, Evidence, Cosmic Microwave Background, Dark Ages, Interstellar Medium , voids
Void (astronomy)

In astronomy, voids are the empty spaces between galaxy filament, the largest-scale structures in the Universe, that contain very few, or no, galaxies....
, Filaments of Galaxies, galaxy clusters and others.

Astrophysical Plasma includes plasma
Plasma (physics)

In physics and chemistry, plasma is a partially ionized gas, in which a certain proportion of electrons are free rather than being bound to an atom or molecule....
 and quasineutrality
Plasma (physics)

In physics and chemistry, plasma is a partially ionized gas, in which a certain proportion of electrons are free rather than being bound to an atom or molecule....
 and others.

Cosmic Plasmas Between Stars, (Diffuse Plasmas) includes intergalactic space, intergalactic medium, interstellar medium
Interstellar medium

In astronomy, the interstellar medium is the gas and cosmic dust that pervade interstellar space: the matter that exists between the stars within a galaxy....
, interplanetary medium
Interplanetary medium

The interplanetary medium is the material which fills the solar systems and through which all the larger solar system bodies such as planets, asteroids and comets move....
, interstellar space
Interstellar space

Interstellar space may mean:* In astronomy: all the space within a galaxy not occupied by star or their planetary systems. The interstellar medium resides ? by definition ? in interstellar space....
, heliospheric current sheet
Heliospheric current sheet

The heliospheric current sheet is the surface within the Solar System where the magnet of the Sun's magnetic field changes from north to south....
, interplanetary medium
Interplanetary medium

The interplanetary medium is the material which fills the solar systems and through which all the larger solar system bodies such as planets, asteroids and comets move....
, Solar wind
Solar wind

The solar wind is a Electric current—a Plasma —ejected from the stellar atmosphere of the sun. It consists mostly of electrons and protons with energies of about 1 electron volt....
 and others.

Cosmic Plasmas Inside Stars, (Dense Plasma) includes Stars
STARS

STARS can mean:*Fulton surface-to-air recovery system*Shock Trauma Air Rescue Society*STARS members in Resident Evil, a fictional task force that appears in Capcom's Resident Evil video game franchise....
, plasma physicists, active galactic nuclei
Active galactic nucleus

An active galactic nucleus is a compact region at the centre of a galaxy which has a much higher than normal luminosity over some or all of the electromagnetic spectrum ....
, fusion power
Fusion power

Fusion power is the power generated by nuclear fusion reactions. In this kind of reaction, two light atomic nucleus fuse together to form a heavier nucleus and in doing so, release a large amount of energy....
, magnetohydrodynamic
Magnetohydrodynamics

Magnetohydrodynamics is the academic discipline which studies the dynamics of electrical conduction fluids. Examples of such fluids include Plasma , liquid metals, and Brine....
, X-ray
X-ray

X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 10 to 0.01 nanometers, corresponding to frequency in the range 30 Hertz to 30 Hertz and energies in the range 120 Electron volt to 120 keV....
s , bremsstrahlung
Bremsstrahlung

Bremsstrahlung , is electromagnetic radiation produced by the deceleration of a charged particle, such as an electron, when deflected by another charged particle, such as an atomic nucleus....
, Cosmology
Physical cosmology

Physical cosmology, as a branch of astronomy, is the study of the largest-scale structures and dynamics of our universe and is concerned with fundamental questions about its formation and evolution....
 , reionized
Reionization

In Big Bang physical cosmology, reionization is the process that reionized the matter in the universe after the "Timeline of the Big Bang#Dark ages." It is the second of two major phase changes of hydrogen gas in the universe....
, ambipolar diffusion
Ambipolar diffusion

Ambipolar diffusion is diffusion of positive and negative particles in a Plasma at the same rate due to their interaction via the electric field....
, Particle Physics
Particle physics

Particle physics is a branch of physics that studies the elementary particle constituents of matter and radiation, and the interactions between them....
 and others.

Further information can be found at Library of Congress Classification QB460-466 Astrophysics, QB349-421 Theoretical astronomy and celestial mechanics, and QB980-991 Cosmogony. Cosmology (PHYSICAL COSMOLOGY ONLY), (Dewey "Theoretical Astronomy" 521)

Cosmology/Cosmonauts


Physics can explain the underlying physical science of any galaxy, yet many aspects of galaxies are not best described through their physics. Galactic physical science is the general term for all physical sciences that can be applied to any galaxy in the Universe or to a particular galaxy.

Galaxy Formation and Evolution includes Galaxies
Galaxy

A galaxy is a massive, gravitation system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and cosmic dust, and an important but poorly-understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter....
, elliptical galaxies
Elliptical galaxy

An elliptical galaxy is a galaxy having an approximately ellipsoid shape and a smooth, nearly featureless brightness profile. They range in shape from nearly spherical to highly flattened and in size from hundreds of millions to over one trillion stars....
 Giant Galaxies, Spiral Galaxies, M31
Andromeda Galaxy

The Andromeda Galaxy is a spiral galaxy approximately 2.5 million light-years away in the constellation Andromeda . It is the nearest spiral galaxy to our own, the Milky Way Galaxy....
 The Andromeda Galaxy
Andromeda Galaxy

The Andromeda Galaxy is a spiral galaxy approximately 2.5 million light-years away in the constellation Andromeda . It is the nearest spiral galaxy to our own, the Milky Way Galaxy....
 and others.

Intra-Galaxy Processes, General includes Black Hole
Black hole

In general relativity, a black hole is a region of space in which the gravitational field is so powerful that nothing, including electromagnetic radiation , can escape its pull after having fallen past its event horizon....
, Globular Cluster
Globular cluster

A globular cluster is a sphere collection of stars that orbits a Galactic Center as a satellite. Globular clusters are very tightly bound by gravity, which gives them their spherical shapes and relatively high stellar densities toward their centers....
s, Satellite
Satellite

In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an Physical body which has been placed into orbit by human endeavor. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
 Galaxy, Retrograde Rotation, Halo star
Star

A star is a massive, luminous ball of Plasma that is held together by its own gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth....
s, High Velocity Clouds, Monoceros Ring
Monoceros Ring

The Monoceros Ring is a proposed ring of stars around the Milky Way which consists of a stellar stream torn from the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy as it merges with the Milky Way over the course of billions of years....
, accretion disc, Gravitation
Gravitation

Gravitation is a natural phenomenon that gives weight to objects. In everyday life, attraction due to gravity is the result of the presence of relatively large bodies, such as the Earth and the Moon....
, Angular momentum
Angular momentum

In physics, the angular momentum of a particle about an origin is a vector quantity related to rotation, equal to the mass of the particle multiplied by the cross product of the position vector of the particle with its velocity vector....
, Centripetal force
Centripetal force

The centripetal force is the external force required to make a body follow a curved path. Hence centripetal force is a kinematic force requirement, not a particular kind of force like gravity or electromagnetism....
, tidal effects
Tidal force

The tidal force is a secondary effect of the force of gravity and is responsible for the tides. It arises because the gravitational force exerted on one body by a second body is not constant across its diameter....
, Viscosity
Viscosity

Viscosity is a measure of the Drag of a fluid which is being deformed by either shear stress or extensional stress. In everyday terms , viscosity is "thickness"....
, orbit
ORBit

ORBit is a Common Object Request Broker Architecture 2.4 compliant Object Request Broker . It features mature C , C++ and Python bindings, and less developed bindings for Perl, Lisp , Pascal , Ruby , and Tcl....
al momentum, Accretion disk, Active galactic nuclei, Protoplanetary discs, Gamma ray burst
Gamma ray burst

Gamma-ray bursts are the most Luminosity Electromagnetism events occurring in the universe since the Big Bang. They are flashes of gamma rays emanating from seemingly random places in deep space at random times....
s and others.

Milky Way Galactic Physical Science is the overall science containing all the physical sciences related directly to the Milky Way Galaxy: Halo star
Star

A star is a massive, luminous ball of Plasma that is held together by its own gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth....
s, Milky Way High Velocity Clouds, Milky Way Monoceros Ring
Monoceros Ring

The Monoceros Ring is a proposed ring of stars around the Milky Way which consists of a stellar stream torn from the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy as it merges with the Milky Way over the course of billions of years....
, Milky Way accretion disc, Milky Way Gravitation
Gravitation

Gravitation is a natural phenomenon that gives weight to objects. In everyday life, attraction due to gravity is the result of the presence of relatively large bodies, such as the Earth and the Moon....
, Milky Way Angular momentum
Angular momentum

In physics, the angular momentum of a particle about an origin is a vector quantity related to rotation, equal to the mass of the particle multiplied by the cross product of the position vector of the particle with its velocity vector....
, Milky Way Centripetal force
Centripetal force

The centripetal force is the external force required to make a body follow a curved path. Hence centripetal force is a kinematic force requirement, not a particular kind of force like gravity or electromagnetism....
, Milky Way tidal effects
Tidal force

The tidal force is a secondary effect of the force of gravity and is responsible for the tides. It arises because the gravitational force exerted on one body by a second body is not constant across its diameter....
, Milky Way Viscosity
Viscosity

Viscosity is a measure of the Drag of a fluid which is being deformed by either shear stress or extensional stress. In everyday terms , viscosity is "thickness"....
, Milky Way orbit
ORBit

ORBit is a Common Object Request Broker Architecture 2.4 compliant Object Request Broker . It features mature C , C++ and Python bindings, and less developed bindings for Perl, Lisp , Pascal , Ruby , and Tcl....
al momentum, Milky Way event horizon
Event horizon

In general relativity, an event horizon is a boundary in spacetime, most often an area surrounding a black hole, beyond which events cannot affect an outside observer....
, Milky Way black hole
Black hole

In general relativity, a black hole is a region of space in which the gravitational field is so powerful that nothing, including electromagnetic radiation , can escape its pull after having fallen past its event horizon....
 and others.

Stellar science


Physics is the underlying physical science of any star, yet many aspects of stars are not best described through their physics. Stellar science is the general term for ALL physical sciences that can be applied to any star in the Universe or to a particular star. Solar science of the Sun Sun
Sun

The Sun , a G V star, is the star at the center of the Solar System. The Earth and other matter orbit the Sun, which by itself accounts for about 98.6% of the Solar System's mass....
 is the overall science containing all of the physical sciences related directly to our local Sun.

Stellar-Processes, General Stellar dynamics
Stellar dynamics

Stellar dynamics is the branch of astrophysics which describes in a statistical way the collective motions of stars subject to their mutual gravity....
, star
Star

A star is a massive, luminous ball of Plasma that is held together by its own gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth....
s, Stellar Evolution
Stellar evolution

Stellar evolution is the process by which a star undergoes a sequence of radical changes during its lifetime. Depending on the mass of the star, this lifetime ranges from only few millions of years to trillions of years , considerably more than the age of the universe....
, event horizon
Event horizon

In general relativity, an event horizon is a boundary in spacetime, most often an area surrounding a black hole, beyond which events cannot affect an outside observer....
, black hole
Black hole

In general relativity, a black hole is a region of space in which the gravitational field is so powerful that nothing, including electromagnetic radiation , can escape its pull after having fallen past its event horizon....
, x-ray
X-ray

X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 10 to 0.01 nanometers, corresponding to frequency in the range 30 Hertz to 30 Hertz and energies in the range 120 Electron volt to 120 keV....
s, nuclear fusion
Nuclear fusion

In nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, nuclear fusion is the process by which multiple like-charged atomic nuclei join together to form a heavier nucleus....
  and others. In astronomy
Astronomy

Astronomy is the science of Astronomical object and Phenomenon that originate outside the Earth's atmosphere . It is concerned with the evolution, physics, chemistry, meteorology, and motion of celestial objects, as well as the physical cosmology....
, stellar evolution is the sequence of changes that a star
Star

A star is a massive, luminous ball of Plasma that is held together by its own gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth....
 undergoes during its lifetime; the hundreds of thousands, millions or billions of years during which it emits light and heat. Over the course of that time, the star will change radically.

Stellar evolution is not studied by observing
Observation

Observation is either an activity of a living being , consisting of receiving knowledge of the outside world through the senses, or the recording of data using scientific instruments....
 the life cycle of a single star—most stellar changes occur too slowly to be detected even over many centuries. Instead, astrophysicists
Astrophysics

Astrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of astronomical objects such as galaxy, stars, planets, exoplanets, and the interstellar medium, as well as their interactions....
 come to understand how stars evolve by observing numerous stars, each at a different point in its life cycle, and simulating stellar structure
Stellar structure

Stars of different mass and age have varying internal structures. Stellar structure models describe the internal structure of a star in detail and make detailed predictions about the luminosity, the stellar classification and the stellar evolution of the star....
 with computer models.

Birth of stars is discussed in Main article: Star Formation
Star formation

Star formation is the process by which dense parts of molecular clouds collapse into a ball of Plasma to form a star. As a branch of astronomy star formation includes the study of the interstellar medium and giant molecular clouds as precursors to the star formation process and the study of young stellar objects and planet formation as its i...


Stellar evolution begins with a giant molecular cloud
Dark nebula

A dark nebula is a type of interstellar cloud that is so dense that it obscures the light from the background emission nebula or reflection nebula or that it blocks out background stars ....
 (GMC), also known as a stellar nursery. Most of the 'empty' space inside a galaxy
Galaxy

A galaxy is a massive, gravitation system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and cosmic dust, and an important but poorly-understood component tentatively dubbed dark matter....
 actually contains around 0.1 to 1 particle per cm³, but inside a GMC, the typical density is a few million particles per cm³. A GMC contains 100,000 to 10,000,000 times as much mass as our Sun
Sun

The Sun , a G V star, is the star at the center of the Solar System. The Earth and other matter orbit the Sun, which by itself accounts for about 98.6% of the Solar System's mass....
 by virtue of its size: 50 to 300 light-year
Light-year

A light-year or light year is a Units of measurement of length, equal to just under ten orders_of_magnitude_%28numbers%29#1012 kilometres....
s across.

Very small protostars never reach temperatures high enough for nuclear fusion
Nuclear fusion

In nuclear physics and nuclear chemistry, nuclear fusion is the process by which multiple like-charged atomic nuclei join together to form a heavier nucleus....
 of hydrogen to begin; these are brown dwarf
Brown dwarf

Brown dwarfs are sub-star objects with a mass below that necessary to maintain hydrogen-burning nuclear fusion reactions in their cores, as do stars on the main sequence, but which have fully convective surfaces and interiors, with no chemical differentiation by depth....
s of less than 0.1 solar mass. Brown dwarfs heavier than 13 Jupiter
Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the Solar system by size planet within the Solar System. It is two and a half times as massive as all of the other planets in our Solar System combined....
 masses do fuse deuterium
Deuterium

Deuterium, also called heavy hydrogen, is a stable isotope of hydrogen with a natural abundance in the oceans of Earth of approximately one atom in 6500 of hydrogen ....
, and some astronomers prefer to call only these objects brown dwarfs, classifying anything larger than a planet but smaller than this a sub-stellar object. Both types, deuterium-burning or not, shine dimly and die away slowly, cooling gradually over hundreds of millions of years. The central temperature in more massive protostars, however, will eventually reach 10 megakelvins, at which point hydrogen
Hydrogen

Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the chemical symbol H. At standard temperature and pressure, hydrogen is a colorless, odorless, nonmetallic, tasteless, highly combustion and explosive Diatomic molecule gas with the molecular formula H2....
 begins to fuse by way of the proton-proton chain reaction
Proton-proton chain reaction

The proton-proton chain reaction is one of several nuclear fusion reactions by which stars convert hydrogen to helium, the primary alternative being the CNO cycle....
 to deuterium and then to helium
Helium

Helium is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert monatomic chemical element that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table and whose atomic number is 2....
. The onset of nuclear fusion leads over a relatively short time to a hydrostatic equilibrium
Hydrostatic equilibrium

Hydrostatic equilibrium occurs when compression due to gravity is balanced by a pressure gradient which creates a pressure gradient force in the opposite direction....
 in which energy released by the core prevents further gravitational collapse. The star thus evolves rapidly to a stable state.

New stars come in a variety of sizes and colors. They range in spectral type from hot and blue to cool and red, and in mass from less than 0.5 to more than 20 solar masses. The brightness and color of a star depend on its surface temperature, which in turn depends on its mass.

A new star will fall at a specific point on the main sequence
Main sequence

The main sequence is a continuous and distinctive band of stars that appear on plots of stellar Color index versus brightness. These color-absolute magnitude plots are known as Hertzsprung-Russell diagrams after their co-developers, Ejnar Hertzsprung and Henry Norris Russell....
 of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram
Hertzsprung-Russell diagram

The Hertzsprung-Russell diagram shows the relationship between absolute magnitude, luminosity, stellar classification, and effective temperature ofstars....
. Small, cool red dwarf
Red Dwarf

Red Dwarf is a United Kingdom science fiction television situation comedy Media franchise, primarily comprising eight series of a television sitcom that ran on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999 and gained a cult following....
s burn hydrogen slowly and may remain on the main sequence for hundreds of billions of years, while massive hot supergiant
Supergiant

Supergiants are among the most massive stars. In the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram they occupy the top region of the diagram. In the spectral classification supergiants are class Ia or Ib ....
s will leave the main sequence after just a few million years. A mid-sized star like the Sun will remain on the main sequence for about 10 billion years. The Sun is thought to be in the middle of its lifespan; thus, it is on the main sequence. Once a star expends most of the hydrogen
Hydrogen

Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the chemical symbol H. At standard temperature and pressure, hydrogen is a colorless, odorless, nonmetallic, tasteless, highly combustion and explosive Diatomic molecule gas with the molecular formula H2....
 in its core, it moves off the main sequence.

MaturityAfter millions to billions of years, depending on its initial mass, the continuous fusion of hydrogen into helium will cause a build-up of helium in the core.

The later years and death of stars:

Low-mass star Some stars may fuse helium in core hot-spots, causing an unstable and uneven reaction as well as a heavy solar wind
Solar wind

The solar wind is a Electric current—a Plasma —ejected from the stellar atmosphere of the sun. It consists mostly of electrons and protons with energies of about 1 electron volt....
. In this case, the star will form no planetary nebula
Planetary nebula

A planetary nebula is an emission nebula consisting of a glowing shell of gas and Plasma formed by certain types of stars when they die. The name originated in the 18th century because of their similarity in appearance to gas giants when viewed through small optical telescopes, and is unrelated to the planets of the solar system....
 but simply evaporate, leaving little more than a brown dwarf
Brown dwarf

Brown dwarfs are sub-star objects with a mass below that necessary to maintain hydrogen-burning nuclear fusion reactions in their cores, as do stars on the main sequence, but which have fully convective surfaces and interiors, with no chemical differentiation by depth....
. But a star of less than about 0.5 solar mass will never be able to fuse helium even after the core ceases hydrogen fusion. There simply is not a stellar envelope massive enough to bear down enough pressure on the core. These are the red dwarf
Red Dwarf

Red Dwarf is a United Kingdom science fiction television situation comedy Media franchise, primarily comprising eight series of a television sitcom that ran on BBC Two between 1988 and 1999 and gained a cult following....
s, such as Proxima Centauri
Proxima Centauri

Proxima Centauri is a red dwarf star approximately 4.2 light-years distant in the constellation of Centaurus. It was discovered in 1915 by Robert Innes, the Director of the Union Observatory in South Africa....
, some of which will live thousands of times longer than the Sun. Recent astrophysical models suggest that red dwarfs of 0.1 solar masses may stay on the main sequence for almost six trillion years, and take several hundred billion more to slowly collapse into a white dwarf
White dwarf

A white dwarf, also called a degenerate dwarf, is a small star composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. Because a white dwarf's mass is comparable to that of the Sun and its volume is comparable to that of the Earth, it is very density....
. (S&T, 22)

Mid-sized stars Once a medium-size star (between 0.4 and 3.4 solar masses) has reached the red giant
Red giant

A red giant is a luminous giant star of low or intermediate mass that is in a late phase of stellar evolution. The outer atmosphere is inflated and tenuous, making the radius immense and the surface temperature low, somewhere from 5,000 K and lower....
 phase, its outer layers continue to expand, the core contracts inward, and helium begins to fuse into carbon. In stars of less than 1.4 solar masses, the helium fusion process begins with an explosive burst of energy generation known as a helium flash
Helium flash

A helium flash is the sudden beginning of helium nuclear fusion in the core of intermediate mass stars of less than about 2.25 solar masses, or on the surface of an Accretion white dwarf star....
.

Helium burning reactions are extremely sensitive to temperature, which causes great instability. Huge pulsations build up, which eventually give the outer layers of the star enough kinetic energy
Kinetic energy

The kinetic energy of an object is the extra energy which it possesses due to its motion. It is defined as the mechanical work needed to accelerate a body of a given mass from rest to its current velocity....
 to be ejected as a planetary nebula
Planetary nebula

A planetary nebula is an emission nebula consisting of a glowing shell of gas and Plasma formed by certain types of stars when they die. The name originated in the 18th century because of their similarity in appearance to gas giants when viewed through small optical telescopes, and is unrelated to the planets of the solar system....
. At the center of the nebula remains the core of the star, which cools down to become a small but dense white dwarf
White dwarf

A white dwarf, also called a degenerate dwarf, is a small star composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. Because a white dwarf's mass is comparable to that of the Sun and its volume is comparable to that of the Earth, it is very density....
, typically weighing about 0.6 solar masses, but only the volume of the Earth.

White dwarfs Main article: white dwarf
White dwarf

A white dwarf, also called a degenerate dwarf, is a small star composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. Because a white dwarf's mass is comparable to that of the Sun and its volume is comparable to that of the Earth, it is very density....
s
White dwarfs are stable because the inward pull of gravity is balanced by the degeneracy pressure of the star's electrons. (This is a consequence of the Pauli exclusion principle
Pauli exclusion principle

The Pauli exclusion principle is a quantum mechanics principle formulated by Wolfgang Pauli in 1925. It states that no two identical particles fermions may occupy the same quantum state simultaneously....
.) With no fuel left to burn, the star radiates its remaining heat into space for thousands of millions of years. In the end, all that remains is a cold dark mass sometimes called a black dwarf
Black dwarf

A black dwarf is a List of hypothetical astronomical objects, created when a white dwarf becomes sufficiently cool to no longer emit significant heat or light....
. However, the universe is not old enough for any black dwarf stars to exist.

Supermassive stars After the outer layers of a star greater than five solar masses have swollen into a gigantic red supergiant
Supergiant

Supergiants are among the most massive stars. In the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram they occupy the top region of the diagram. In the spectral classification supergiants are class Ia or Ib ....
, the core begins to yield to gravity and starts to shrink. As it shrinks, it grows hotter and denser, and a new series of nuclear reactions begin to occur. These reactions fuse progressively heavier elements, temporarily halting the collapse of the core.

Neutron stars Main article: neutron star
Neutron star

A neutron star is a type of compact star that can result from the gravitational collapse of a massive star during a Type II supernova, Type Ib and Ic supernovae supernova event....
It is known that in some supernovae, the intense gravity inside the supergiant forces the electron
Electron

The electron is a subatomic particle that carries a negative electric charge. It has elementary particle and is believed to be a point particle....
s into the atomic nuclei, where they combine with the proton
Proton

The proton is a subatomic particle with an electric charge of +1 elementary charge. It is found in the nucleus of each atom but is also stable by itself and has a second identity as the hydrogen ion, H+....
s to form neutron
Neutron

The neutron is a subatomic particle with no net electric charge and a mass slightly larger than that of a proton.Neutrons are usually found in atomic nucleus....
s. The electromagnetic forces keeping separate nuclei apart are gone (proportionally, if nuclei were the size of dust motes, atoms would be as large as football stadiums), and the entire core of the star becomes nothing but a dense ball of contiguous neutrons or a single atomic nucleus.

Black holes Main article: black hole
Black hole

In general relativity, a black hole is a region of space in which the gravitational field is so powerful that nothing, including electromagnetic radiation , can escape its pull after having fallen past its event horizon....
s
It is widely believed that not all supernovae form neutron stars. If the stellar mass is high enough, the neutrons themselves will be crushed and the star will collapse until its radius is smaller than the Schwarzschild radius
Schwarzschild radius

The Schwarzschild radius is a characteristic radius associated with every mass. It is the radius for a given mass where, if that mass could be compressed to fit within that radius, no known force or Degenerate matter could stop it from continuing to collapse into a gravitational singularity....
. The star has then become a black hole.

Non-Earth Planetary Science


Solar System
Planetary Processes, General includes Planetary science
Planetary science

Planetary science, also known as planetology and closely related to planetary astronomy, is the science of planets, or planetary systems, and the solar system....
, Planets, Extrasolar Planet
Extrasolar planet

An extrasolar planet, or exoplanet, is a planet beyond the Solar System, orbiting a star other than the Sun. As of February 2009, 342 exoplanets are listed in the Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia....
, Dwarf Planets, Comets, Asteroid
Asteroid

Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets or planetoids, are small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun, smaller than planets but larger than meteoroids....
s and others.

Geophysics is the study of the Earth
Earth

Earth is the third planet from the Sun. Earth is the largest of the terrestrial planets in the Solar System in diameter, mass and density. It is also referred to as the World and Wiktionary:Terra.Note that by International Astronomical Union convention, the term "Terra" is used for naming extensive land masses, rather...
 by quantitative physical
Physics

Physics is the natural science which examines basic concepts such as energy, force, and spacetime and all that derives from these, such as mass, charge, matter and its Motion ....
 methods, especially by seismic
Reflection seismology

Reflection seismology is a method of exploration geophysics that uses the principles of seismology to estimate the properties of the Earth's subsurface from reflection seismic waves....
, electromagnetic
Electromagnetic

Electromagnetic may refer to:* Electromagnetic radiation* Electromagnetism...
, and radioactivity methods, therefore Planetary Geophysics is the study of the planets by quantitative physical
Physics

Physics is the natural science which examines basic concepts such as energy, force, and spacetime and all that derives from these, such as mass, charge, matter and its Motion ....
 methods, especially by seismic
Reflection seismology

Reflection seismology is a method of exploration geophysics that uses the principles of seismology to estimate the properties of the Earth's subsurface from reflection seismic waves....
, electromagnetic
Electromagnetic

Electromagnetic may refer to:* Electromagnetic radiation* Electromagnetism...
, and radioactivity methods. It includes the branches of: Seismology
Seismology

Seismology is the scientific study of earthquakes and the propagation of Linear elasticity#Elastic waves through the Earth. The field also includes studies of earthquake effects, such as tsunamis as well as diverse seismic sources such as volcanic, tectonic, oceanic, atmospheric, and artificial processes ....
 (earthquake
Earthquake

An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes are recorded with a seismometer, also known as a seismograph....
s and elastic wave
Wave

A wave is a disturbance that propagates through space and time, usually with transference of energy. While a mechanical wave exists in a medium , waves of electromagnetic radiation can travel through vacuum, that is, without a medium....
s), planetary gravity, geodesy
Geodesy

Geodesy , also called geodetics, a branch of earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the Earth, including its gravitational field, in a three-dimensional time-varying space....
,Tectonophysics
Tectonophysics

Tectonophysics, a branch of geophysics, is the study of the physical processes that underlie plate tectonics. In particular, the field of tectonophysics encompasses the spatial patterns of stress, strain, and differing rheology in the lithosphere and asthenosphere of the Earth, and the relationships between these patterns and the observed pat...
 (geological processes in the planets), Mineral Physics and others. Geophysics can be both a part of physics and a part of Geology.

Geodesy of The Solar System, also called geodetics of the solar system, is the scientific discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the planets of the Solar System, their gravitation
Gravitation

Gravitation is a natural phenomenon that gives weight to objects. In everyday life, attraction due to gravity is the result of the presence of relatively large bodies, such as the Earth and the Moon....
al fields and geodynamic phenomena (polar motion
Polar motion

Polar motion is the movement of Earth's Earth's rotation axis across its surface. This is measured with respect to a reference frame in which the solid Earth is fixed ....
 in three-dimensional, time-varying space. The science of geodesy has elements of both astrophysics and planetary sciences. The shape of the Earth is to a large extent the result of its rotation, which causes its equatorial bulge, and the competition of geologic processes such as the collision of plates and of vulcanism
Volcano

A volcano is an opening, or rupture, in a planet's surface or Crust , which allows hot, molten rock, ash, and gases to escape from below the surface....
, resisted by the Earth's gravity field. These principles can be applied to the solid surface of Earth (orogeny
Orogeny

Orogeny refers to natural mountain building, and may be studied as a tectonic structural event, as a geographical event, and a chronological event: orogenic events cause distinctive structural phenomena and related tectonic activity, affect certain regions of rocks and crust, and happen within a specific period of time....
; Few mountains are higher than 10 km, few deep sea trenches deeper than that because quite simply, a mountain as tall as, for example, 15 km, would develop so much pressure
Pressure

Pressure is the force per unit area applied to an object in a direction surface normal to the surface. Gauge pressure is the pressure relative to the local atmospheric or ambient pressure....
 at its base, due to gravity, that the rock there would become plastic
Plastic

Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic chemistry solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products....
, and the mountain would slump back to a height of roughly 10 km in a geologically insignificant time. Some or all of these geologic principles can be applied to other planets besides Earth. For instance on Mars, whose surface gravity is much less, the largest volcano, Olympus Mons
Olympus Mons

Olympus Mons is the tallest known volcano and mountain in the Solar System. It is located on the planet Mars at approximately 18?N 133?W / 18, -133....
, is 27 km high at its peak, a height that could not be maintained on Earth. The Earth geoid
Geoid

The geoid is that equipotential surface which would coincide exactly with the mean ocean surface of the Earth, if the oceans were in equilibrium, at rest, and extended through the continents ....
 is essentially the figure of the Earth abstracted from its topographic features. Therefore the Mars geoid is essentially the figure of Mars abstracted from its topographic features. Surveying
Surveying

Surveying or land surveying is the technique and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional space position of points and the distances and angles between them....
 and mapping
Mapping

Mapping may refer to:*The making of maps, as in cartography, surveying, and photogrammetry;In biology and neuroscience:*Gene mapping, the assignment of DNA fragments to chromosomes...
 are two important fields of application of geodesy.

Physics is the underlying physical science of any planet, yet many aspects of planets are not best described through their physics. Planetary science is the general term for ALL physical sciences that can be applied to planets in the Universe or else to a particular planet. Planetary science of the Earth is the overall physical science containing all the physical sciences related directly to our Earth. Planetary Science can be broadly divided into several major sciences: Geology, Oceanography and Atmospheres.

Geology of Solar System Planets contains Geology of Mercury
Geology of Mercury

The surface of Mercury is dominated by impact craters, and lava plains similar in some respects to the lunar maria. Other notable features include scarps and mineral deposits inside craters at the poles....
, Geology of Venus
Geology of Venus

Venus has striking surface characteristics. The majority of what we know today about its surface stems from radar observations, mainly images sent by the Magellan probe probe from August 16, 1990, until the end of its sixth orbital cycle in September 1994....
, Geology of the Moon
Geology of the Moon

The geology of the Moon is quite different from that of the Earth. The Moon lacks a significant Celestial body atmosphere and any body of water, which eliminates erosion due to weather; it does not possess any form of plate tectonics, it has a lower gravitation, and because of its small size, it cools more rapidly....
, Geology of Mars
Geology of Mars

The geology of Mars, also known as areology , refers to the study of the composition, structure, physical properties, history, and the processes that shape the planet Mars....
, Geology of Jupiter
Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the Solar system by size planet within the Solar System. It is two and a half times as massive as all of the other planets in our Solar System combined....
,Geology of Saturn
Saturn

Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn, along with Jupiter, Uranus and Neptune, is classified as a gas giant....
, Geology of Uranus
Uranus

Uranus is the seventh planet from the Sun and the third-largest and fourth most massive planet in the Solar System. It is named after the ancient Greek deity of the sky Uranus the father of Kronos and grandfather of Zeus ....
 Geology of Neptune
NEPTUNE

=Overview=The project, along with sister project, VENUS, offers a unique approach to ocean science. Traditionally, ocean scientists have relied on infrequent ship cruises or space-based satellites to carry out their research....
, Geology of Pluto
Pluto

Pluto , Minor planet names Pluto, is the second-largest known dwarf planet in the Solar System and the tenth-largest body observed directly orbiting the Sun....


Geology of Other Planets Planetary geology
Planetary geology

Planetary geology, alternatively known as astrogeology or exogeology, is a planetary science discipline concerned with the geology of the celestial bodies such as the planets and their moons, asteroids, comets, and meteorites....
 (sometimes known as Astrogeology) refers to the application of geologic principles to other bodies of the solar system. However, specialised terms such as selenology (studies of the Moon
Moon

The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite and the List of natural satellites by diameter satellite in the Solar System. The average centre-to-centre distance from the Earth to the Moon is km, about thirty times the diameter of the Earth....
), areology (of Mars), etc., are also in use. Most of the geological sciences related to the Earth can be directly applied to the study of non-Earth planets: Geology Fields or related disciplines Structural geology
Structural geology

Structural geology is the study of the three-dimensional distribution of Rock units with respect to their deformational histories. The primary goal of structural geology is to use measurements of present-day rock geometries to uncover information about the history of deformation in the rocks, and ultimately, to understand the stress field t...
, Geomorphology
Geomorphology

Geomorphology is the scientific study of landforms and the processes that shape them. Geomorphologists seek to understand why landscapes look the way they do: to understand landform history and dynamics, and predict future changes through a combination of field observation, physical experiment, and numerical mathematical model....
., Economic geology
Economic geology

Economic geology is concerned with earth materials that can be utilized for economic and/or industrial purposes. These materials include precious and base metals, nonmetallic minerals, construction-grade stone, petroleum minerals, coal, and water....
, Mining geology
Mining

Mining is the extraction of value minerals or other geology materials from the earth, usually from an ore body, vein or seam. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, Sodium chloride and potash....
, Geodetics, Geomorphology
Geomorphology

Geomorphology is the scientific study of landforms and the processes that shape them. Geomorphologists seek to understand why landscapes look the way they do: to understand landform history and dynamics, and predict future changes through a combination of field observation, physical experiment, and numerical mathematical model....
, Geophysics
Geophysics

Geophysics, a major discipline of the Earth sciences, is the study of the Earth by the quantitative observation of its physical properties, especially by Seismology, Electromagnetism, Radioactive decay, galvanic and potential field methods....
, Historical geology
Historical geology

Historical geology is the use of the principles of geology to reconstruct and understand the Geological history of Earth . It focuses on geologic processes that change the Earth's surface and subsurface; and the use of stratigraphy, structural geology and paleontology to tell the sequence of these events....
, Hydrogeology
Hydrogeology

Hydrogeology is the area of geology that deals with the distribution and movement of groundwater in the soil and rock of the Earth's crust , ....
 or geohydrology, Mineralogy
Mineralogy

Mineralogy is an Earth Science focused around the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical properties of minerals. Specific studies within mineralogy include the processes of mineral origin and formation, classification of minerals, their geographical distribution, as well as their utilization....
, Paleoclimatology
Paleoclimatology

Paleoclimatology is the study of climate change taken on the scale of the entire history of Earth. It uses records from ice sheets, tree rings, sediment, and rock s to determine the past state of the climate system on Earth....
, Sedimentology
Sedimentology

Sedimentology encompasses the study of modern sediments such as sand, mud , and clay, and understanding the processes that deposit them. Sedimentologists apply their understanding of modern processes to interpret geologic history through observations of sedimentary rocks and sedimentary structures....
, Seismology
Seismology

Seismology is the scientific study of earthquakes and the propagation of Linear elasticity#Elastic waves through the Earth. The field also includes studies of earthquake effects, such as tsunamis as well as diverse seismic sources such as volcanic, tectonic, oceanic, atmospheric, and artificial processes ....
, Stratigraphy
Stratigraphy

Stratigraphy, a branch of geology, studies rock layers and layering . It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary rock and layered volcanic rocks....
, Structural geology
Structural geology

Structural geology is the study of the three-dimensional distribution of Rock units with respect to their deformational histories. The primary goal of structural geology is to use measurements of present-day rock geometries to uncover information about the history of deformation in the rocks, and ultimately, to understand the stress field t...
, Volcanology
Volcanology

Volcanology is the study of volcanoes, lava, magma, and related geology and geophysical phenomena. The term volcanology is derived from the Latin language word Vulcan , the Roman mythology of fire....
,Hydrology. Geothermometry (heating of the earth, heat flow, volcano
Volcano

A volcano is an opening, or rupture, in a planet's surface or Crust , which allows hot, molten rock, ash, and gases to escape from below the surface....
logy, and hot springs), Hydrology
Hydrology

Hydrology is the study of the movement, distribution, and quality of water throughout the Earth, and thus addresses both the hydrologic cycle and water resources....
 (ground and surface water, sometimes including glaciology
Glaciology

Glaciology is the study of glaciers, or more generally ice and natural phenomena that involve ice.Glaciology is an interdisciplinary earth science that integrates geophysics, geology, physical geography, geomorphology, climatology, meteorology, hydrology, biology, and ecology....
).

Extrasolar Geology is currently a young science because only recently have extrasolar planets been found.

Atmospheres of Solar System Planets refers to the application of meteorological principles to other bodies of the solar system including the application of: Atmospheric electricity
Atmospheric electricity

Atmospheric electricity is the regular Diurnal phase shift variations of the Earth's Earth's atmosphere Electromagnetism electrical network . The Continent, the ionosphere, and the atmosphere is known as the global atmospheric electrical circuit....
 and terrestrial magnetism
Earth's magnetic field

Earth's magnetic field is approximately a magnetic dipole, with one magnetic pole near the north pole and the other near the geographic south pole ....
 (including ionosphere
Ionosphere

The ionosphere is the uppermost part of the Earth's atmosphere, distinguished because it is ionized by solar radiation. It plays an important part in atmospheric electricity and forms the inner edge of the magnetosphere....
, Van Allen belts
Van Allen radiation belt

The Van Allen radiation belt is a torus of energy charged particles around Earth, held in place by Earth's magnetic field. Earth's geomagnetic field is not uniformly distributed around its surface....
, telluric current
Telluric current

A telluric current is an electric current which moves underground or through the sea. Telluric currents result from both natural causes and human activity, and the discrete currents interact in a complex pattern....
s, Radiant energy
Radiant energy

Radiant energy is the energy of electromagnetic waves. The quantity of radiant energy may be calculated by Integral radiant flux with respect to time and, like all forms of energy, its SI unit is the joule....
, etc.), Meteorology
Meteorology

Meteorology is the interdisciplinary scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere that focuses on weather processes and forecasting . Studies in the field stretch back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not occur until the eighteenth century....
 and Climatology
Climatology

Climatology is the study of climate, scientifically defined as weather conditions averaged over a period of time, and is a branch of the atmospheric sciences....
. Aeronomy
Aeronomy

Aeronomy is the science of the upper region of the atmosphere, where dissociation and ionization are important. The term aeronomy was introduced by Sydney Chapman, and the above definition stems from 1960....
 the study of the physical structure and chemistry of the atmosphere. Atmosphere of Planets of The Solar System includes http://www.astronomy.org/astronomy-survival/outer.html Mars Atmosphere includes Mars Atmosphere
Atmosphere of Mars

Mars, the fourth planet from the Sun, has a very different celestial body atmosphere from that of Earth's atmosphere. There has been much interest in studying its composition since the recent detection of a small amount of methane, which may signal life on Mars; it could also be a Geochemistry process or the result of Volcano or hydrothermal activi...
, Venus Atmosphere
Venus

Venus is the second-closest planet to the Sun, orbiting it every 224.7 Earth days. The planet is named after Venus , the Roman mythology goddess of love....
. Jupiter Atmosphere Jupiter Atmosphere
Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the Solar system by size planet within the Solar System. It is two and a half times as massive as all of the other planets in our Solar System combined....
Great Red Spot Great Red Spot
Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the Solar system by size planet within the Solar System. It is two and a half times as massive as all of the other planets in our Solar System combined....
  http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/galileo/mess44/promysso.html, Atmosphere on Jupiters-Moons, Atmosphere on Saturn http://www.nasm.si.edu/ceps/rpif/saturn/saturn.html http://www.physics.purdue.edu/astr263l/SStour/saturn.html http://www.abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s872839.htm. Atmosphere on Urnaus http://www.physics.purdue.edu/astr263l/SStour/uranus.html

Atmospheres of Extrasolar Planets is currently a young science because only recently have extrasolar planets been found. Astronomers are currently theorizing that the recently discovered extrasolar Jupiter-sized planets have continuous surface winds of many thousands of miles per hour caused by their highly elliptical orbit which brings them close to their parent star.

Exobiology / Extraterrestrial Life

Silane
Earth telescopes can resolve some surface features of the nearby planets and so far, no life can be seen through the telescopes. However, Earth telescopes cannot resolve the surface features of any planet outside the solar system, so the search for life on other planets continues. While no incontestable evidence has been found for life outside of Earth, the scientific study of the theoretical basis for life on other bodies is progressing. Some scientists are trying to theorize which kinds of stars would have planets that hold life. Because life has overall fragile parameters for survival the general consensus is that only older stars would have planets circling them with life. From this they theorize which sections of our Milky Way Galaxy would most likely hold life. Other scientists theorize the quantity of civilizations that might exist in a galaxy and others are actually listening for the possible radio chatter of extraterrestrial technical civilizations. These sub-sciences of exobilogy can be categorized as follows:

Habitable Zone Astrobiology is discussed in Galactic Habitable Zone and Solar System Habitable Zone.

Astrobiochemistry Exogenesis
Exogenesis

Exogenesis can have several meanings:* Exogenesis is the hypothesis that life originated elsewhere in the universe and was spread to Earth. * "Exogenesis ", an episode of the science-fiction TV series Babylon 5...
 Most scientists hold that if extraterrestrial life exists, its evolution
Evolution

In biology, evolution is change in the heritability trait of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. These changes are caused by a combination of three main processes: variation, reproduction, and selection....
 would have occurred independently in different places in the universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
. An alternative hypothesis, held by a minority, is panspermia
Panspermia

Panspermia is the hypothesis that "seeds" of life exist already all over the Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds", and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies....
, which suggests that life in the universe could have stemmed from a smaller number of points of origin, and then spread across the universe, from habitable planet
Planetary habitability

Planetary habitability is the measure of a planet's or a natural satellite's potential to develop and sustain life. As the existence of extraterrestrial life is currently uncertain, planetary habitability is largely an extrapolation of conditions on Earth and the characteristics of the Sun and solar system which appear favorable to life's f...
 to habitable planet. These two hypotheses are not mutually exclusive
Mutually exclusive

In simple terms, two events are mutually exclusive if they cannot occur at the same time ....
. Alternative biochemistry includes Alternative Carbon Biochemistry where water is not the Solvent of Carbon Chains: Life forms based in ammonia
Ammonia

Ammonia is a chemical compound with the chemical formula nitrogenhydrogen. It is normally encountered as a gas with a characteristic pungent odor....
 rather than water are also considered, though this solution appears less optimal than water. Also included is Alternative Non-Carbon Biochemistry: Non-carbon based chemistry Silicon
Silicon

Silicon is the most common metalloid. It is a chemical element, which has the symbol Si and atomic number 14. The atomic mass is 28.0855....
 is usually considered the most likely alternative to carbon, though this remains improbable. Silicon life forms are proposed to have a crystalline morphology, and are theorized to be able to exist in high temperatures, such as planets closer to the sun.

Astrobiosphere is the entire area of a planet that supports life and includes Biosphere
Biosphere

The biosphere is the global sum of all ecosystems. From the broadest Geophysiology point of view, the biosphere is the global ecology system integrating all living beings and their relationships, including their interaction with the elements of the lithosphere, hydrosphere, and Earth's atmosphere....
, Theory of Biosphere, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Planetary_habitability Planetary Habitability Extrasolar planets Astronomers also search for extrasolar planets that would be conducive to life, especially those like OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb
OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb

OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb is a 'super-Earth' extrasolar planet orbiting the star OGLE-2005-BLG-390L, which is situated 21,500 Plus-minus sign 3,300 light years away from Earth, near the center of the Milky Way galaxy....
 which have been found to have Earth-like qualities.

Plants On Other Planets includes Extremophiles
Panspermia

Panspermia is the hypothesis that "seeds" of life exist already all over the Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds", and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies....
, Theoretical Astrobotany, Life On Jupiter
Jupiter

Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the Solar system by size planet within the Solar System. It is two and a half times as massive as all of the other planets in our Solar System combined....
, Life on Mars scientific theory
Life

Life is a characteristic of organisms that exhibit certain biological processes such as chemical reactions or other events that results in a transformation....
, Independently in 1996 structures resembling bacteria were reportedly discovered in a meteorite, ALH84001
ALH84001

Allan Hills 84001 is a meteorite found in Allan Hills, Antarctica on December 27, 1984 by a team of US meteorite hunters from the ANSMET project....
, thought to be formed of rock ejected from Mars. This report is also controversial and scientific debate continues. (See Viking biological experiments
Viking biological experiments

The two Viking program each carried four types of biological experiments to the surface of Mars in the late 1970s. These were the first Mars landers to carry out experiments to look for biosignatures of life on Mars....
.) Humanoids-On-Other-Planets includes Humanoids-On-Other-Planets Origins- Speculations And Scientific Theory Panspermia
Panspermia

Panspermia is the hypothesis that "seeds" of life exist already all over the Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds", and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies....
. Extraterrestrial life along with the biochemical basis of extraterrestrial life, there remains a broader consideration of evolution
Evolution

In biology, evolution is change in the heritability trait of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. These changes are caused by a combination of three main processes: variation, reproduction, and selection....
 and morphology
Comparative anatomy

Comparative anatomy is the study of similarities and differences in the anatomy of organisms. It is closely related to evolutionary biology and phylogeny ....
.

Humanoids-On-Other-Planets Technical Civilizations includes Humanoids-On-Other-Planets Technical-Civilizations, Speculation And Theory.

Humanoids-On-Other-Planets Technical-Civilizations, Migrations Most scientists hold that if extraterrestrial life exists, its evolution
Evolution

In biology, evolution is change in the heritability trait of a population of organisms from one generation to the next. These changes are caused by a combination of three main processes: variation, reproduction, and selection....
 would have occurred independently in different places in the universe
Universe

The universe is defined as everything that physically exists: the entirety of space and time, all forms of matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and physical constants that govern them....
. An alternative hypothesis, held by a minority, is panspermia
Panspermia

Panspermia is the hypothesis that "seeds" of life exist already all over the Universe, that life on Earth may have originated through these "seeds", and that they may deliver or have delivered life to other habitable bodies....
, which suggests that life in the universe could have stemmed from a smaller number of points of origin, and then spread across the universe, from habitable planet
Planetary habitability

Planetary habitability is the measure of a planet's or a natural satellite's potential to develop and sustain life. As the existence of extraterrestrial life is currently uncertain, planetary habitability is largely an extrapolation of conditions on Earth and the characteristics of the Sun and solar system which appear favorable to life's f...
 to habitable planet.

Humanoids-On-Other-Planets Technical-Civilizations, Quantity of Drake Equation
Drake equation

The Drake equation is a famous result in the speculative fields of exobiology and the SETI .This equation was devised by Frank Drake in 1960, in an attempt to estimate the number of extraterrestrial life civilizations in our galaxy with which we might come in contact....


Humanoids-On-Other-Planets-Civilizations On Local Stars includes Search For Humanoids-On-Other-Planets-Civilizations On Local-Stars, SETI
SETI

Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence is the collective name for a number of activities to detect intelligent extraterrestrial life. The general approach of SETI projects is to survey the sky to detect the existence of interstellar communication from a civilization on a distant planet ? an approach widely endorsed by the scientific...


Space Exploration Through Space Travel

Orion Iss (sept 2006)
Astronomy is exploration of space through instruments based on Earth. Space Exploration through space travel is exploration of space by travel through it, either in person or by drone. Closely associated with Space travel is Space Station, either manned or unmanned. All man-made satellites are a form of unmanned or manned space stations.

Unmanned Space travel includes the sciences of Spacecraft Propulsion
Spacecraft propulsion

Spacecraft propulsion is any method used to accelerate spacecraft and artificial satellites. There are many different methods. Each method has drawbacks and advantages, and spacecraft propulsion is an active area of research....
, Rocket launch technology, Rocket
Rocket

A rocket or rocket vehicle is a missile, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust by the Reaction of the rocket to the ejection of fast moving fluid exhaust from a rocket engine....
, Astrodynamics
Astrodynamics

Orbital mechanics or astrodynamics is the application of celestial mechanics to the practical problems concerning the motion of rockets and other spacecraft....
, Unmanned space missions, and others.

Manned Space travel further includes the sciences of Microgravity environment
Microgravity environment

A micro-g environment is one where the acceleration induced by gravity has little or no measurable effect, gravity itself does not change. The only three methods of creating a micro-g environment are to travel far enough into deep space so as to reduce the effect of gravity by attenuation, by Free-fall, and by orbiting a planet....
, Space transport
Space transport

Space transport is the use of spacecraft to transport people or cargo through outer space. In human spaceflight, the people transported are the crew who operate the spacecraft, and occasionally Space tourism ....
, Manned space missions, Interplanetary travel
Interplanetary travel

Interplanetary spaceflight or interplanetary travel is travel between planets within a single planetary system. In practice, spaceflights of this type are confined to travel between the planets of the Solar System....
, Interstellar travel
Interstellar travel

Interstellar space travel is unmanned or manned travel between stars. The concept of interstellar travel in starships is a staple in science fiction....
 and Generation ship
Generation ship

A generation ship is a hypothetical starship that travels across great distances between stars at a speed much slower than speed of light . Since such a ship might take from as little as below a hundred years to tens or even hundreds of thousands of years to reach even nearby stars, the original occupants might either grow old or die during t...
.

Unmanned Space Station

There are Astronomical satellites, Biosatellite
Biosatellite

A biosatellite is an artificial satellite designed to carry life in outer space.NASA also launched three satellites specifically named Biosatellite between 1966 and 1969....
s, Communications satellite
Communications satellite

A communications satellite is an artificial satellite stationed in space for the purposes of telecommunications. Modern communications satellites use a variety of orbits including geostationary orbits, Molniya orbits, other elliptical orbits and low Earth orbits....
s, Miniaturized satellites, Navigation satellites, Reconnaissance satellites, Earth observation satellite
Earth observation satellite

Earth observation satellites are satellites specifically designed to observe Earth from orbit, similar toreconnaissance satellites but intended for non-military uses such as natural environmental monitoring, meteorology, map making etc....
s, Earth observation satellite
Earth observation satellite

Earth observation satellites are satellites specifically designed to observe Earth from orbit, similar toreconnaissance satellites but intended for non-military uses such as natural environmental monitoring, meteorology, map making etc....
s and others. There are many different kinds of orbits possible for these devices.

Manned Space Station includes the sciences of Space Station
Space station

A space station is an artificial structure designed for humans to live in outer space. So far only low earth orbit stations are implemented, also known as orbital stations....
 and Floating cities.

Further information can be found at Library of Congress Classifications TL787-4050 Astronautics, TL780-785.8 Rocket propulsion, TL787-4050 Space travel.

Space Colonization



Space colonization is a colossal science that includes all of the scientific disciplines needed to be able to build colonies on non-Earth planets and planetoids.

Space Colonization Justification includes the sciences of Space and survival
Space and survival

Space and survival is the relationship between outer space and the long-term survival of the human species and civilization. It is based on the observation that space colonization and space science could prevent many human extinction scenarios....
.

Space Colony Research And Development Man can practice living on other worlds by building permanently inhabitable cities in extremely hostile environments of the Earth: The poles and the deserts. This is discussed in the articles Biosphere 2
Biosphere 2

Biosphere 2 is a structure originally built to be an closed ecological system in Oracle, Arizona, Arizona by Space Biosphere Ventures, a joint venture whose principal officers were John P....
 and BIOS-3
BIOS-3

BIOS-3 was a Closed ecological system at the Institute of Biophysics in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, in what was then the Soviet Union.Construction began in 1965, and was completed in 1972....
. Currently manned Earth hostile-environment stations include Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station
Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is a Science and technology in the United States at the South Pole, in Antarctica....
, Devon Island
Devon Island

One of the larger members of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Devon Island is the second-largest of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, Nunavut, Canada, the List of islands by area and List of Canadian islands by area....
, Mars Arctic Research Station
Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station

The Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station is a project operated by the Mars Society to conduct geological and microbiological exploration under conditions similar to those found on Mars, to develop field tactics based on those explorations, to test habitat design features, tools, and technologies, and to assess crew selection protocols....
, Mars Desert Research Station
Mars Desert Research Station

The Mars Desert Research Station is one of four planned simulated Martian habitats maintained by the Mars Society. The station is in the San Rafael Swell of Utah....
, climate
Climate

Climate encompasses the temperatures, humidity, atmospheric pressure, winds, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and numerous other Meteorology elements in a given region over long periods of time, as opposed to the term weather, which refers to current activity of these same elements....
, underwater structures for planets with oceans or very heavy atmospheres and others.

Space Colony Location is the science of figuring out the best planets and the best locations on those planets for colonization. Because water is such a necessity for human survival most searches are for locations close to some kind of water. These issues and other related issues are discussed in the articles Colonization of Mars
Colonization of Mars

Mars is the focus of much speculation and serious study about possible human colonization. Its surface conditions and the availability of water make it arguably the most hospitable of the planets in this solar system, other than Earth....
, Mars Society
Mars Society

The Mars Society is an international space advocacy non-profit organization dedicated to encouraging the exploration and settlement of Mars . Founded by Robert Zubrin and others in mid-1998 and attracting the support of notable science fiction writers and filmmakers , the organization is dedicated to convincing the public and governments of...
, Colonization of Mercury
Colonization of Mercury

Mercury has been suggested as one possible target for space colonization of the inner solar system, along with colonization of Mars, colonization of Venus, the colonization of the Moon and the asteroid belt....
, Colonization of Venus
Colonization of Venus

The colonization of Venus has been a subject of much speculation and many works of science fiction since before the dawn of spaceflight, and is still much discussed....
, Venusian terraforming, Colonization of the Moon
Colonization of the Moon

The colonization of the Moon is the proposed establishment of permanent human communities on the Moon. Science fiction writers and advocates of space exploration have seen Settler of the Moon as a logical step in the expansion of humanity beyond the Earth....
, Artemis Project
Artemis Project

The Artemis Project was a Capitalism venture to establish a permanent, Colonization of the Moon on the Moon by 2002. It was named after Artemis, the goddess of the Moon and twin sister of Apollo ....
, Europa
Europa (moon)

'Europa' is the Moons_of_Jupiter#Table Natural satellite of the planet Jupiter. Europa was discovered in 1610 by Galileo Galilei , and named after a mythical Phoenician noblewoman, Europa , who was courted by Zeus and became the queen of Crete....
, Phobos
Phobos (moon)

'Phobos' is the larger and closer of Mars ' two small natural satellites, the other being Deimos . It is named after the Greek mythology Phobos , a son of Ares ....
, Colonization of the asteroids
Colonization of the asteroids

The asteroids or, more properly, the minor planets, have long been suggested as possible sites for human colonization. Asteroids_in_fiction#Colonization is popular in science fiction....
 and others.

Space Colonization Habitat science includes Space habitat
Space habitat

A space habitat, also called space colony, orbital colony, space city, or space settlement is a space station intended as a space colonization rather than as a simple waystation or other specialized facility....
, Human adaptation to space
Human adaptation to space

Human physiological adaptation to the conditions of Outer space is a challenge faced in the development of human spaceflight.The fundamental engineering problems of escaping Earth's gravity well and developing systems for in-space propulsion have been examined for well over a century, and millions of man-hours of research have been spent on them....
, Manmade closed ecological system, Planetary habitability
Planetary habitability

Planetary habitability is the measure of a planet's or a natural satellite's potential to develop and sustain life. As the existence of extraterrestrial life is currently uncertain, planetary habitability is largely an extrapolation of conditions on Earth and the characteristics of the Sun and solar system which appear favorable to life's f...
, Domed city
Domed city

A domed city is a kind of fictional structure that encloses a large urban area under a single roof. In most descriptions, the dome is airtight and pressurized, creating a habitat that can be controlled for air temperature and quality....
, Ocean colonization, Underground city
Underground city

An underground city is a network of tunnels that connect buildings beneath street level. These may include office blocks, shopping malls, train station and metro stations, theatres, and other attractions....
 and other sub-sciences. Further reading is available at Space Industrialization Dewy 629.44.

Space Colonization Health (Space Medicine Dewey 616.9)

Space Colonization Agriculture includes Biosphere 2
Biosphere 2

Biosphere 2 is a structure originally built to be an closed ecological system in Oracle, Arizona, Arizona by Space Biosphere Ventures, a joint venture whose principal officers were John P....
 and BIOS-3
BIOS-3

BIOS-3 was a Closed ecological system at the Institute of Biophysics in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, in what was then the Soviet Union.Construction began in 1965, and was completed in 1972....
 and others.

Space Colonization Food Processing includes Space food
Space food

Space food are food products, specially created and Food processing for consumption by astronauts in outer space....
 and others.

Space Colonization Housing includes International Space Station
International Space Station

The International Space Station is a research facility Assembly of the International Space Station in outer space. On-orbit construction of the station began in 1998, and is scheduled to be complete by 2011, with operations continuing until around 2015....
.

Space Colonization Clothing includes Space suits

Space Colonization Construction includes Orbital Megastructures
Megastructure

A megastructure is a structure#Built_structure typically at least 1,000 kilometers in length -- in other words, at least 1 megameter, hence the name....
, station-keeping
Orbital stationkeeping

In astrodynamics orbital station-keeping is a term used to describe a particular set of orbital maneuvers used to keep a spacecraft in assigned orbit, either low earth orbit , or geostationary orbit ....
, Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station
Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station

The Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station is a Science and technology in the United States at the South Pole, in Antarctica....
, Devon Island
Devon Island

One of the larger members of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Devon Island is the second-largest of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, Nunavut, Canada, the List of islands by area and List of Canadian islands by area....
, Mars Arctic Research Station
Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station

The Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station is a project operated by the Mars Society to conduct geological and microbiological exploration under conditions similar to those found on Mars, to develop field tactics based on those explorations, to test habitat design features, tools, and technologies, and to assess crew selection protocols....
, Mars Desert Research Station
Mars Desert Research Station

The Mars Desert Research Station is one of four planned simulated Martian habitats maintained by the Mars Society. The station is in the San Rafael Swell of Utah....
, climate
Climate

Climate encompasses the temperatures, humidity, atmospheric pressure, winds, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and numerous other Meteorology elements in a given region over long periods of time, as opposed to the term weather, which refers to current activity of these same elements....
, underwater structures for planets with oceans or very heavy atmospheres and others.

Space Colonization Transportation includes Lunar rover
Lunar rover

File:Apollo15LunarRover.jpgThe Lunar Roving Vehicle or lunar rover was a type of surface exploration rover used on the Moon during the Apollo program....


Space Colonization Materials includes Recycling
Recycling

Recycling involves processing used materials into new products in order to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virg...


Space Colonization Energy includes Renewable energy
Renewable energy

Renewable energy is energy generated from natural resources—such as sunlight, wind, rain, tidal energy and geothermal energy—which are Renewable resource ....


Space Colonization General Manufacturing includes Space Manufacturing
Space manufacturing

Space manufacturing is the production of manufactured goods in an environment outside a planetary Celestial body atmosphere. Typically this includes conditions of microgravity and hard vacuum....


Space Colonization Economics includes Space Frontier Foundation
Space Frontier Foundation

The Space Frontier Foundation is a small but influential space advocacy organization that promotes increased involvement of the private sector, rather than governments, in the exploration and development of space....
 , Private spaceflight
Private spaceflight

Private spaceflight is flight above Earth altitude conducted by and paid for by an entity other than a government. In the early decades of the Space Age, the government space agency of the Soviet Union and United States pioneered space technology in collaboration with affiliated design bureaus and private enterprises....
 and space tourism
Space tourism

Space tourism is the recent phenomenon of Tourism paying for Human spaceflight into space pioneered by Russia.As of 2009, orbital space tourism opportunities are limited and expensive, with only the Russian Space Agency providing transport....
, solar power satellites, Asteroid mining
Asteroid mining

Raw resources and minerals could be Mining from an asteroid in space using a variety of methods. Even a relatively small asteroid with a diameter of 1 km can contain billions of metric tons of raw materials....
, space manufacturing
Space manufacturing

Space manufacturing is the production of manufactured goods in an environment outside a planetary Celestial body atmosphere. Typically this includes conditions of microgravity and hard vacuum....
,

Space Colonization Operations includes space agencies, Space advocacy
Space advocacy

Space advocacy can be described as the general position supporting, pleading or arguing for the idea or cause of space exploration and settlements....
, Colonize the Cosmos, Artemis Project
Artemis Project

The Artemis Project was a Capitalism venture to establish a permanent, Colonization of the Moon on the Moon by 2002. It was named after Artemis, the goddess of the Moon and twin sister of Apollo ....
 , National Space Society
National Space Society

The National Space Society is an international nonprofit 501, educational, and scientific organization specializing in space advocacy. NSS is a member of the Independent Charities of America, and an annual participant in the Combined Federal Campaign....
, Planetary Society
Planetary Society

The Planetary Society is a large, publicly supported, non-government and non-profit organization that has many research projects related to astronomy....
, robotic exploration , search for extraterrestrial life
SETI

Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence is the collective name for a number of activities to detect intelligent extraterrestrial life. The general approach of SETI projects is to survey the sky to detect the existence of interstellar communication from a civilization on a distant planet ? an approach widely endorsed by the scientific...
, Space Settlement Institute, Students for the Exploration and Development of Space
Students for the Exploration and Development of Space

Students for the Exploration and Development of Space is an international student organization whose purpose is to promote space exploration and development through educational and engineering projects....
, NASA
NASA

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an agency of the Federal government of the United States, responsible for the nation's public list of space agencies....
, ESA, Project Constellation
Project Constellation

Constellation is a NASA program with the stated goal of gaining significant experience in operating away from Earth's environment, developing technologies needed for opening the space frontier and conducting fundamental science....


Space Colonization Law and Protection includes Space Law
Space law

Space law is an area of the law that encompasses national and international law governing activities in outer space. International lawyers have been unable to agree on a uniform definition of the term "outer space," although most lawyers agree that outer space generally begins at the lowest altitude above sea level at which objects can orbit...


Space Defense



Space Defense is the science of defending the Earth from natural or unnatural threats from Space. Natural threats include Near Earth Asteroids and similar. Other issues are discussed in Missile Defense Command, United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command
United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command

The United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command is a specialized major command within the United States Army. The SMDC is an organization composed of several components:...
, Department of Defense Manned Space Flight Support Office
Department of Defense Manned Space Flight Support Office

The Department of Defense Manned Space Flight Support Office coordinates all United States Department of Defense contingency support to the United States manned space flight programs....
, European Aeronautic Defense & Space and Joint Defense Space Research Facility.

Further information can be found at Library of Congress Classifications UG1500-1530 Military astronautics, 0UG1500-1530 space warfare, (Dewey 358).

See also