(My answer on Quora)
Space science is an amalgamation of scientific ideas and concepts that emerge from physics, chemistry and mathematics. Our initial understanding of planetary motion relies heavily on the work of Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Newton, Lagrange, Laplace and Euler. Such thinking has its origin in the Renaissance but extends into the Age of Reason and the Scientific Enlightenment (essentially the period that spans the 15th to the 18th centuries).
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky (1857–1935) source: New World Encyclopedia
Rocket Science (yes it is a real subject) though as a discipline in and of itself owes much to the pioneering work of Russian thinker Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in the late 19th and early 20th century. Tsiolkovsky wrote the foundational texts on Rocket propulsion and space flight. He was a visionary who even spoke about the notion of space stations, air locks and future colonization efforts. He formulated the famous Tsiolkovsky Equation associated with Rocket propulsion that is shown below.
source: Relativity and science calculator
Tsiolkovsky was without doubt the Father of Modern Space Science and deserves a tremendous amount of credit for his foresight. He understood the significance of multi-stage rockets and the importance of fuels such as liquid oxygen and hydrogen. His work influenced later designers that included Robert Esnault-Pelterie , Robert Goddard and Hermann Oberth.
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