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I have this vague idea that Astrophysics morphed out of Astronomy as a field of study and research. I am curious if this is true and when did Astrophysics become separate from Astronomy as a field of study (if it is separate).

I was an undergrad physics major in the 1960s and I do not remember the term Astrophysics ever being mentioned. In fact, I remember when I first heard of it well after school, I thought it was all about rockets and satellites only. That was likely my own ignorance though.

So when did the name Astrophysics become separate from Astronomy and how much do they overlap. Would one call Astronomy (today) a specialization of Astrophysics?

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    $\begingroup$ Wikipedia's Astrophysics: history traces its birth to the atomic explanation of dark lines in the Solar spectrum by Kirchhoff and Bunsen in 1859. Hale and Keeler established The Astrophysical Journal in 1895. $\endgroup$
    – Conifold
    Commented Feb 17, 2019 at 9:54

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