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Talia Dan-Cohen, Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis and Carl Craver, Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis
(THE CONVERSATION) Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to [email protected].
Why is astronomy a science, but not astrology? – Katelyn, age 11, Arlington, Texas
Are you sure astrology isn’t a science?
Both astrology and astronomy are in the business of making predictions. The theories of astrology claim that the positions of the planets and the stars influence who you are and what happens to you: your job, your personality and your romantic partner. Astrologers make these predictions based on the positions of the planets at the time of your birth.
Astronomy, in contrast, makes predictions about such phenomena as the movements of planets and the expansion of galaxies. Astronomers explain their predictions with such properties as masses, distances and gravitational forces.
As a philosopher and an anthropologist who study what science means to society, we think it is important to separate the question of whether something is a science from the question of whether it is true or false.
Astrology makes scientific claims
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