Astrophysics and Interstellar Space

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ASTROPHYSICS AND INTERSTELLAR SPACE

Astrophysics means the study of the physical and chemical structure of stars and planets. In
simpler words, it is a branch of space science that applies the laws of physics and chemistry
to understand the universe and our place in the universe. It finds the answers to fundamental
questions about the origins, evolution and the behavior about objects present in our universe.
‘Inter’ means between and ‘stellar’ means stars and thus interstellar space means the space
between the stars. The study of interstellar space is also very crucial to find out new things.
There have been a number of reliable sources to understand astrophysics and interstellar
space. Like, ‘Interstellar’ by Christopher Nolan, which is science-fiction movie but is one of
the most scientifically accurate movie about space. It is about an ex-NASA pilot finding a
new planet for humans as Earth has become inhabitable. ‘Astrophysics for Physicists’ by
Arnab Rai Choudhuri is a book which helps us understand about astrophysics from the
basics. Also some journals related to Astrophysics like the ‘Astrophysical Journal’ which is a
journal about recent developments, discoveries and theories about astronomy and
astrophysics have contributed to our understanding of astrophysics and interstellar space and
also the ‘Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society’ which also present the
discoveries or new observation about astrophysics monthly.
Normally, to research about astrophysics, physicists use powerful telescopes like James
Webb Space Telescopes (JWST) by NASA to observe the planets, stars, galaxies, black
holes, etc and these telescopes are usually found in astronomical observatories. The
techniques used for researching are advanced data analysis, laboratory astrophysics, theories,
observations, etc. Scientists also use computer simulations to find out about something which
cannot be observed. These simulations are pretty accurate. Space organisations also send
satellites and conduct space probes to find out more about the celestial bodies present near
the Earth.
Researches have helped us to observe the formation, evolution and the behavior of distant
galaxies, the black holes, stars, star systems, nebulae and many more. They have resulted us
in knowing more about our universe and our place in the universe. Overall, researches have
contributed a lot by making us understand and learn more about astrophysics and interstellar
space. However there is a lot to research about our universe and our scientists are trying their
best to solve the mysteries related to our universe.
To conclude, astrophysics and interstellar space is a very vast and important topic.
Researches related to astrophysics and interstellar spaces have helped us understand more
about our universe. There have been notable contributions in the form of films, books or
journals like Interstellar, Astrophysical Journal, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical
Society and Astrophysics for Physicists which are related to astrophysics and interstellar
space and have improved our understanding. These have helped us to uncover the secrets of
the universe and we await for more mysteries to be discovered about our universe, so it is
important to keep researching in this field to learn more new things about space.

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Reference List:
1. Ariel Balter (2022), What is Astrophysics?, [Online], Available at
https://www.space.com/26218-astrophysics.html (Accessed on 14/9/23)
2. NASA, Where does Interstellar Space Begin?, [Online] Available at
https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/interstellar/en/#:~:text='Inter'%20means
%20between.,space%20that%20exists%20between%20stars.%E2%80%9D (Accessed
on 14/9/23)
3. NASA, Black Holes, [Online] Available at
https://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/focus-areas/black-holes#:~:text=Chandra
%20and%20NASA's%20Hubble%20Space,collide%2C%20producing%20another
%20black%20hole. (Accessed on 14/9/23)
4. Indeed Editorial Team(2023), What does an Astrophysicist do?, [Online], Available at
https://au.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/what-does-astrophysicist-
do#:~:text=Astrophysicists%20observe%20the%20planets%2C%20stars,how
%20new%20stars%20are%20created (Accessed on 14/9/23)
5. Caltech, Department of Astronomy, [Online], Available at
https://www.astro.caltech.edu/research#:~:text=Research%20techniques%20include
%20observations%2C%20theory,bridge%20these%20areas%20of%20inquiry
(Accessed on 14/9/23)
6. IMDb (2014), Interstellar, [Online], Available at
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0816692/ (Accessed on 14/9/23)
7. Physics Today, Astrophysics for Physicists, [Online], Available at
https://pubs.aip.org/physicstoday/article-abstract/64/1/57/413342/Astrophysics-for-
Physicists?redirectedFrom=fulltext (Accessed on 14/9/23)
8. IOP, The Astrophysical Journal, [Online], Available at
https://iopscience.iop.org/journal/0004-637X (Accessed on 14/9/23)
9. Oxford, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, [Online], Available at
https://academic.oup.com/mnras (Accessed on 14/9/23)

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