Physical science is an encompassing term for the branches of natural science, and science, that study non-living systems, in contrast to the biological sciences. However, the term "physical" creates an unintended, somewhat arbitrary distinction, since many branches of physical science also study biological phenomena. Basic physical science topics include:

Astronomy - the study of the universe beyond the atmosphere of the Earth
Chemistry - the science dealing with the composition of substances, their interactions with energy and each other
Many of the earth sciences, including:

• Geology - the study of the planetary structure of Earth and the physical processes which shape it (the broader subject of planetary science studies the structure of planets other than Earth)
  Hydrology - the study of the movement and distribution of water across the Earth's surface
  Meteorology - the study of Earth's weather patterns and other atmospheric phenomena (the broader subject of atmospheric sciences studies the structure of atmospheres in general rather than specifically Earth's)
  Oceanography - the study of the ocean as a physical system
  Soil science - the study of the pedosphere
  Physics - the quantitative science dealing with matter and energy Basic principles of astronomy
  Chemistry is the science of matter mainly at the micro-level. Its studies include the following:
  
  Atomic theory
  
  
  
  • Principles of quantum mechanics
    The discovery and classification of pure elements
    Dmitri Mendeleev's creation of The Periodic Table of Chemical Elements showing the relationship of chemical elements
    Properties of groups, especially metals, and nonmetals
    Water and its properties
    
    
    
    • Structure of the water molecule
      Properties of water solutions, such as acids, bases, acid-base reaction theories, and salts
      Chemical elements, chemical reactions, and energy transformations
      
      
      
      • Chemical bonds
        Chemical formula based on chemical notation developed by Jöns Jakob Berzelius's
        Chemical compounds
        Chemical equations
        Chemical thermodynamics
        Nuclear chemistry
        
        
        
        • The nature of the atomic nucleus
          Characterization of radioactive decay, originally discovered by Henri Becquerel
          Organic chemistry, considered to have started in 1828 with the synthesis of urea by Friedrich Woehler
          
          
          
          • Hydrocarbons
            Hydrocarbon derivatives
            Organic chemistry functional groups Basic principles of earth science
            Physics is the "fundamental science" because the other natural sciences (biology, chemistry, geology, etc.) deal with systems that obey the laws of physics. The physical laws of matter, energy, and the forces of nature govern the interactions between particles (such as molecules, atoms, or subatomic particles). Some basic principles of physics are:
            
            Describing and measuring motion
            
            
            
            • Newton's laws of motion
              Forces, weight, and mass
              Momentum and conservation of momentum
              The theory of gravity
              Energy, work, and power
              
              
              
              • Motion, position, and energy
                Energy forms
                
                
                
                • Energy conservation, conversion, and transfer.
                  Energy sources
                  Kinetic Molecular Theory
                  
                  
                  
                  • Phases of matter and phase changes
                    Temperature and thermometers
                    Energy and heat
                    Heat flow: conduction, convection, and radiation
                    The Three Laws of thermodynamics
                    The principles of waves and sound
                    The principles of electricity, magnetism, and electromagnetism
                    The principles, sources, and properties of light