Cosmology can include many other sciences like rocket science and physics. The difference between "astronomy" (literally "law of the stars" in Greek) and "astrophysics" (derived from the words Greek words for "star" and "physics") comes from what the two disciplines are trying to accomplish. I have the impression, though, that cosmology is more concerned with the structure of spacetime and universe models while astrophysics is more concerned with stellar life cycles, physical properties of stars, galaxies etc. Nature of Discipline. What is the basic difference between Astrophysics and Astronomy? In this series, we will discuss the major aspects of astrophysics one by one in a simple way. Astronomers are mainly concerned with the instrumentation, collection and subsequent analysis of astronomical data. Astrophysics is a branch of astronomy and is one part that makes up cosmology. But we will see that these two subjects actually differ from one another. If it's graduate school we're talking about, I've seen the "space physics" label thrown around quite a bit on a few department sites like UNH and it seems to refer to plasma/magnetospheric, particle astrophysics, and solar/heliospheric physics.

– Astrophysics only studies the scope of physics of celestial objects and systems. What I understood is space is the empty space that is formed because of the expansion of the universe. These are some of the oldest sciences of all times. A broad education in physics will let you specialize later. Most of these fields overlap significantly, and different people will draw the boundaries in different places. Difference Between Astrophysics and Astronomy Scope. Astronomers are mainly concerned with the instrumentation, collection and subsequent analysis of astronomical data.

It is a beautiful subject that I want you to understand as a hobby, if not professionally. Astronomy describes the discipline of observing celestial objects.. Astrophysics describes the application of the laws of physics to describe astronomical observations.. If it's the latter, then as eri said, a degree in physics will give you the necessary background. In both cases, the goal … Cosmology is the bigger subject and contains many other little sciences within it.
But most astrophysics majors don't include as much physics as a regular physics major, and leave you less prepared for a graduate program in astronomy as a result - since those programs require the physics GRE and expect you to be ready to take graduate level physics courses. Key difference: Astronomy is the science of the positions and movements of the celestial bodies in space.Cosmology studies the structure, origin, and evolution of the universe as a whole. Asked by: Subrata Chakraborty Answer According to the Oxford University physics dictionary: Astronomy is the study of the universe beyond the earth's atmosphere. I hope this article has given a taste of the subject. The difference between cosmology and astrophysics is more obscure to me. What are the Main Differences Between Cosmology, Astronomy, and Astrophysics? If it's graduate school we're talking about, I've seen the "space physics" label thrown around quite a bit on a few department sites like UNH and it seems to refer to plasma/magnetospheric, particle astrophysics, and solar/heliospheric physics. Author’s Message. Difference Between Astrophysics and Astronomy Scope. The main branches are astrometry, celestial mechanics, and astrophysics. So this makes clear the difference between Astronomy, Astrophysics, and Cosmology. – Astrophysics is actually a branch of astronomy, which studies the physics of “astro” bodies. Astronomy describes the discipline of observing celestial objects.. Astrophysics describes the application of the laws of physics to describe astronomical observations.. Astrophysics deals with nature and properties of stars and their origin and material,kinetics and physics,as a sibling science to astronomy that studies about movement of stars,and cosmology which studies about large astrphysical structures. Astronomy is one of the oldest sciences and its origin can be traced back to the dawn of human appearance. Astronomy vs. Astrophysics vs. Space Science.