Aims and scope

Announcement

We are pleased to announce that Earth, Moon, and Planets became fully open access (OA) on 1 January 2024 and moved into our Discover series as Discover Space. As a result, all submissions are subject to an article publication charge (APC) if accepted (unless a waiver is applied) and will be published in Discover Space. Please see our FAQs journal update for more information on APCs, funding options, and waivers. 

Discover Space is a fully open access, peer-reviewed journal that supports multidisciplinary research and policy developments across all fields relevant to space sciences. The journal aims to be a resource for researchers, policy makers and the general public for recent advances in space sciences, diffusion of knowledge and its uses in research development and society. As a fully open access journal, we ensure that our research is highly accessible, being instantly and globally available to everyone, while maintaining the high-quality standards of the Springer Nature publishing house. 

Topics
Topics welcomed at Discover Space include but are not limited to the following:

• Astrochemical processes in interstellar and planetary environments
• Biosignatures and their detection techniques
• Chemistry of protoplanetary disks and planet formation
• Comparative planetology between exoplanets and solar system bodies
• Detection and characterization of exoplanets
• Exoplanet atmospheres, climates, and habitability
• Exoplanet formation, evolution, and dynamics
• Extremophiles and their environments
• Habitability of exoplanets and moons
• Life detection missions and instruments
• Organic compounds in space and on celestial bodies
• Origins of life in the universe
• Search for extra-terrestrial intelligence

• Asteroids, comets, and meteoroids
• Astrometry and celestial coordinate systems
• Celestial mechanics and orbital dynamics
• Dynamics and evolution of celestial systems (stars, galaxies, clusters, etc.)
• Earth observation from space
• Earth atmosphere from space and balloons
• Formation and evolution of planetary rings
• Interactions between celestial bodies (e.g., gravitational interactions, collisions)
• Observational and theoretical studies of celestial objects (stars, galaxies, nebulae, etc.)
• Planetary science (including geology, atmospheres, and surfaces of planets and moons)
• Solar system formation and evolution

• Active galactic nuclei and quasars
• Alternative cosmologies, actual controversies and tensions
• Black holes and their astrophysical manifestations
• Cosmic inflation and the Big Bang theory
• Cosmic microwave background radiation
• Cosmic ray astrophysics
• Dark matter and dark energy and alternatives
• Dynamics and evolution of galaxies and galaxy clusters
• Galactic dynamics and structure
• Galaxy formation and evolution
• Gamma and X-ray astrophysics
• Gravitational astrophysics
• Gravitational lensing and cosmological distortions
• High-energy astrophysics (e.g., gamma-ray bursts, cosmic rays)
• Large-scale structure of the universe
• Neutrino astrophysics
• Neutron stars, pulsars, and magnetars
• Radio-astronomy
• Stellar structure, evolution, and nucleosynthesis
• Theoretical models of the early universe

• Basic laws in physics (e.g., equivalence principle, Lorentz and Poincaré symmetries, Maxwell laws)
• Electro-magnetism and extended theories (massive, non-linear theories, Standard-Model) including  observations and experiments 
• Foundations of physics (history and perspectives, theory)
• General relativity
• Gravitation and extended theories including observations and experiments
• Observations, predictions  and tests (e.g., black holes and strong fields, fast Radio bursts, gravitational waves and self-force, plasma measurements, pulsars)
• Quantum mechanics and quantum field theory in observations and experiments
• Space missions (e.g., GP-A, GP-B, Ulysses, Cassini-Huygens, LAGEOS, Microscope, ACES, LISA, STE-QUEST etc., future missions) 
• Standard-Model of particles, strong and weak interactions
• Technologies for fundamental physics in space (e.g., atomic clocks, drag-free, electric propulsion,  interferometry, radio-science)

• Magneto-hydrodynamics
• Plasma instabilities and waves in the solar environment
• Plasma processes in the heliosphere and interplanetary space
• Plasma processes in the solar atmosphere
• Solar and space physics missions and data analysis
• Solar dynamo theory and magnetic reconnection
• Solar flares, coronal mass ejections, and solar energetic particles
• Solar influences on planetary atmospheres and magnetospheres
• Solar irradiance variability and its effects on Earth's climate
• Solar magnetic fields and their evolution
• Solar physics in the context of stellar astrophysics
• Solar physics instrumentation and observation techniques
• Solar surface phenomena (sun-spots, faculae, granulation, etc.)
• Solar wind dynamics and variability
• Solar-terrestrial interactions and space weather
• Theory of plasma physics

• Design, development, and testing of spacecraft and related technologies
• Emerging technologies and innovations in space engineering and related fields
• International and national space agencies, industries and universities
• Payload design and technologies
• Planet Earth defence
• Rocket design, operations and technology
• Space ethics and societal implications of space exploration
• Satellite debris
• Small satellites and constellations
• Space law and its application to space exploration and utilisation
• Space mission planning, execution, and management
• Space policy, regulations, and international cooperation in space activities
• Space robotics and autonomous systems for space exploration
• Space sciences in higher education
• Spacecraft sub-systems (antennae, attitude and orbital control, avionics, mechanical structure, power generation and distribution, propulsion, thermal control subsystem, telemetry, tracking and command)

Content types

Discover Space welcomes a variety of article types – please see our submission guidelines for details. The journal also publishes guest-edited Topical Collections of relevance to all aspects of space science and its applications. For more information, please follow up with our journal publishing contact.