astrofysiska

Astrofysiska, commonly known as astrophysics in English, is the scientific field that applies physics to study astronomical objects and phenomena. It seeks to understand the physical processes that govern the universe, from the interiors of stars to the largest cosmic structures. Researchers explore how matter and energy interact under gravity, thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, and relativity to explain observations of planets, stars, galaxies, black holes, and the cosmic radiation background. The field integrates data from across the electromagnetic spectrum and beyond, including radio, infrared, optical, ultraviolet, X-ray, and gamma-ray astronomy, as well as gravitational waves and neutrinos.

Historically, astrofysiska emerged from astronomy and spectroscopy in the 19th century and matured with theoretical ideas such as nuclear fusion in stars, stellar evolution, and cosmology. Major milestones include the development of spectroscopy, the realization that stars generate energy by nuclear fusion, the formulation of stellar evolution models, the discovery of the expanding universe, the cosmic microwave background, and the detection of exoplanets. The discipline continues to advance through increasingly detailed observations, computer simulations, and cross-disciplinary collaboration with physics, chemistry, and mathematics.

Subfields include observational, theoretical, and computational astrofysiska, as well as experimental astrochemistry and astroparticle physics. Methodologies combine modeling, numerical simulations, and data analysis, while instruments span ground-based and space-based telescopes and detectors across the electromagnetic spectrum, plus gravitational-wave and neutrino observatories. In its scope, astrofysiska addresses questions about the origin of elements, star formation and evolution, galaxy assembly, dark matter and dark energy, and the broader dynamics of the cosmos.