Aeronautics (from Greek ὰήρ āēr which means

"air" and ναυτική nautikē which means

"navigation, seamanship", i.e. "navigation of the
air") is thescience involved with the study, design,
and manufacturing of flight-capable machines, or
the techniques of operating aircraft. While the
term—literally meaning "sailing the air"—
originally referred solely to the science
of operating the aircraft, it has since been
expanded to include technology, business and
other aspects related to aircraft.[1]
One of the significant parts in aeronautics is a
branch of physical science called aerodynamics,
which deals with the motion of air and the way
that it interacts with objects in motion, such as an
aircraft. Aviation is a term sometimes used
interchangeably with aeronautics, although
"aeronautics" includes lighter-than-air craft such
as airships, while "aviation" does not.[1]
Aerospace engineering is the branch
of engineering behind the design, construction
and science of aircraft andspacecraft.[1] It is
broken into two major and overlapping
branches: aeronauticalengineering
and astronauticalengineering. The former deals
with craft that stay within Earth's atmosphere, and
the latter deals with craft that operate outside of
Earth's atmosphere.
Aerospace engineering deals with the design,
construction, and science behind the forces and
physical properties of aircraft, rockets, flying
craft, and spacecraft. The field also covers
theiraerodynamic characteristics and
behaviors, airfoil, control surfaces, lift,drag, and
other properties. Aerospace engineering is not to
be confused with the various other fields of
engineering that go into designing these complex
craft. For example, the design of aircraftavionics,
while certainly part of the system as a whole,
would rather be considered electrical engineering,
or perhaps computer engineering. Thelanding
gear system on an aircraft may fall into the field
of mechanical engineering, and so forth. It is
typically a large combination of many disciplines
that makes up aeronautical engineering.
While aeronautical engineering was the original
term, the broader "aerospace" has superseded it
in usage, as flight technology advanced to include
craft operating in outer space.[2]Aerospace
engineering, particularly the astronautics branch,
is often informally called "rocket science".[3][4]