Outline of Astronomy - Nature of Astronomy

Nature of Astronomy

Astronomy can be described as all of the following:

  • An academic discipline: one with academic departments, curricula and degrees; national and international societies; and specialized journals.
  • A scientific field (a branch of science) – widely-recognized category of specialized expertise within science, and typically embodies its own terminology and nomenclature. Such a field will usually be represented by one or more scientific journals, where peer reviewed research is published.
    • A natural science – one that seeks to elucidate the rules that govern the natural world using empirical and scientific methods.
      • A branch or field of space science –

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