Why are astronomy observations usually made from far away rather than through direct experiments?

Astronomy is inherently an observational rather than an experimental science because it is subject to a major constraint: researchers must perform almost all measurements at great distances from the objects of interest. Consequently, astronomers have no control over physical quantities such as the temperature, pressure, or chemical composition of celestial bodies.1

While laboratory-based experiments are the foundation for validating the laws of physics used in theoretical astrophysics, applying these laws to the vast, complex phenomena of the universe often requires creating numerical models or computer simulations rather than direct manipulation.2

There are limited exceptions to this observational nature. Scientists can perform direct laboratory analysis on physical samples, such as meteorites, rock and soil returned from the Moon, and dust collected from comets or the stratosphere. Aside from these few instances, the field remains largely confined to gathering data through ground-based observatories, orbiting satellites, and long-range space probes, which are then interpreted through the lens of established physical theory.132