I will give a brief introduction to the field of space plasma physics and its relationship to plasma physics and astrophysics. I will describe some interesting new results from the Minnesota group on relativistic electron acceleration, structure of shock waves, reconnection and energy transport via Alfven waves. I will briefly review current and upcoming projects that can involve graduate students.

A lot of new evidence has emerged in the past few years that provides clues to the formation of the Galactic halo. The Λ CDM model, so succesful in the cosmological context,
failed spectacularly when initially applied to this problem, but recent work has largely resolved these discrepancies. I will discuss the newly emerging view of the relationship between the
dwarf spheroidal satellites of the Milky Way, the Galactic globular cluster system, and the stellar halo of our galaxy.