Astronomy 104 Stellar Astronomy Dr. M. P. Kertzman
Fall 2002 232 JSMC
Group 1 Lab, Q kertzman@depauw.edu
acad.depauw.edu/~kertzman/astro104f02/a104f02.htm
1) To learn to observe the night sky with your eyes, binoculars, and a telescope.
2) To gain an understanding of the objects you observe in the night time sky
3) To learn of the methods and techniques used by astronomers to learn about the universe
4) To gain an understanding of the underlying physics concepts that are essential to astronomy.
5) To practice your quantitative reasoning, analytical, and mathematical skills.
6) To become familiar with astronomy resources on the Internet (e.g. astronomy news, images, observatories, etc. )
7) To use the Internet to learn about current research in astronomy.
8) To become familiar with the content of popular astronomy magazines such as Sky and Telescope and Astronomy, and with astronomy articles in Scientific American, Science and Nature.
9) To become more comfortable with the kinds of calculations used by astronomers in measuring and discussing properties of stars, galaxies, and the universe.
-Astronomy Today, fourth edition, Chaisson and McMillan, Available at DPU bookstore.
-Class/lab Folder: Cost: $10. This cost will be directly billed to your student account.
-Calculator
-Lab kit (cross staff, quadrant and compass): A $10 lab deposit is required, and will be refunded when you return the instruments at the end of the semester. The lab deposit will be charged to your student account. At the end of the semester, when you return the lab kit, your account will be credited for the amount of the deposit, minus any cost for missing equipment.
OTHER MATERIALS:
Clear plastic ruler (metric, clear)
Compass
Protractor
Pencils for lab (not pens)
A loose-leaf notebook is preferred for this course. There will be many handouts and in-class activities which would be best kept integrated with your notes in a loose-leaf binder.
Always bring a calculator to class and lab. It is best to always have one with you. It does not need to be fancy, but should have trigonometric functions.
Always bring a ruler (metric, clear) and a protractor to lab.
On most activities in class and lab I prefer you to use a pencil, so please be sure to have a pencil and an eraser at all times.
The course consists of three parts, each four to five weeks long. Hour exams will follow parts 1 and 2. The final exam will be roughly 50% on part 3 and 50% on parts 1 and 2.
Part 1: Basic Astronomy (5 weeks)
In part 1 we cover the fundamentals you need to know, including properties of light, atomic structure, spectra, Newton's law of gravity, Kepler's laws of planetary motion (as applied to stars), spectral classification of stars, the HR diagram, stellar properties, binary stars, star clusters, celestial coordinates, and how to use a star chart and a telescope. Our focus in this part is on stellar properties that we can measure or deduce from measurements.
Part 2: Stellar Evolution (5 weeks)
In Part 2 we will learn what a star is, how stars are formed, how they produce energy, how they evolve, and how they die. Topics included in this part are planetary nebula, red giants, supergiants, white dwarfs, neutron stars, pulsars, magnetars, black holes, nova, and supernova (type II and type Ia).
Part 3: Galaxies and Cosmology (4 weeks)
In part 3 we will look at the overall structure of our galaxy, types of galaxies, formation, location and distribution of galaxies. Topics include: the Milky Way, galactic structure, classifying galaxies, galactic rotation, dark matter, the Hubble Law, and distribution of galaxies. We will finish the semester with a study of cosmology. How did the universe begin? How does it evolve with time? What will happen to it in the future? Topics include: the Big Bang, large scale structure of the universe, microwave background radiation, the geometry of space-time, the destiny of the universe, and the conditions in the very early universe.
A tentative schedule for the semester is on the class web page. There will be a detailed schedule for each week posted on the web page by Friday of the preceding week. The weekly schedule will have detailed readings assignments from the text and other sources, announcements, and assignments due that week.
A schedule for the entire semester is available online here. The full schedule gives you an overview of the entire semester. It also lists corresponding readings from the text, as well as exam and major assignment dates. Detailed weekly schedules will also be posted on the full schedule page. These schedules list topics day by day, as well as text readings, any additional readings, and any due assignments. Links to study questions for each week are given as well. I prefer the course to be flexible and to take extra time on a topic if needed, or allow time for relevant current events in astronomy. However, as a consequence of being flexible, the schedule may vary. In particular, the detailed weekly schedules should not be considered final until 5:00 p.m. on the previous Friday. Any weekly schedule with the label "preliminary" is just that: a preliminary estimate of where I think we will be. At the end of each week, I will adjust the next weeks detailed schedule as needed to accommodate what we actually did in class. The same is true for study questions. The posted study questions for each week may not exactly match the material, if we spend extra time on a topic. However, is there are a few study questions posted for one week and we didn't quite get to the material, be assured that we will get to the material the next week. By the time of an exam, we will have covered everything reflected in the study questions.
My office hours this semester are 1:30 - 3:30 Monday and Wednesday. I am also available by appointment. Check with me in class to make an appointment if these office hours do not fit your schedule. If you find that this policy is not working for you please tell me so I can change it. When you come to my office, I ask that you come prepared with your questions organized and readily available.
Q CERTIFICATION: Certain labs and homework assignments are designated as "Q". Parts of the exams and lab exams will also be "Q". To achieve "Q" certification, you must have an average of "C" or better on all designated "Q" work AND have a "C" grade for the course. It is possible to pass the course but not receive a "Q"; it is not possible to fail the course and receive a "Q".
COURSE WEB SITE:
I have set up a web site for this class: acad.depauw.edu/~kertzman/astro104f02/a104f02.htm
It contains links to astronomy sites that will be useful in this class. Be sure to look for the free Milky Way poster from NASA!
Your final grade is determined from the following scale:
90% - 100% A
80%- 89% B
70% - 79% C
60% - 69% D
<60% F
Your final course grade is based on the following factors:
Exam 1: 20%
Exam 2: 20%
Lab: 20%
Assignments: 20%
Final Exam: 20%
Plus a class bonus (see below for details).
Twenty percent of your course grade will be determined by several assignments throughout the semester. There are three major components to this category, collectively worth 60% to 80% of the "assignment@ grade. (The range represents uncertainty in the number of smaller assignments that will actually be done). The three main assignments are:
1) "Constellation Guide@: a 2 -4 page guide to a constellation (20 % - 25%) (Due: Friday, Sept. 20)
2) "Star Stories@: a 4 - 8 page paper relating what you can observe in the sky to stellar evolution (30% - 40%) (Due: Friday Nov. 15)
3) "Current Events@: a 2 -3 page summary of an article reporting on some current event in astronomy research (10% - 15%). (Due Friday Dec. 6)
Details, deadlines, and grading criteria will be handed out separately for each of these three assignments. The remaining percentage of the assignment grade will be based on other short assignments and graded homework problems.
There are two mid semester exams and a three hour comprehensive final exam. The format of the exams will be discussed in detail in advance of the first exam. There are no makeups for exams except in the most extreme situations (e.g. hospitalization, serious injury etc). The exam dates given below are fixed.
Exam 1: Friday, Sept. 27
Exam 2: Monday, Nov 4
Final Exam: Thursday, Dec. 12, 8:30 - 11:30 a.m.
Class Bonus: There will be approximately 10 short (1-2 page) assignments. Many of these will be Internet assignments, or assignments based on reading from astronomy journals. There are several purposes for these assignments. Some will be discussed directly in class. Others give you additional information or background on a class topic. Others give will serve as a background or starting point for a graded assignment. In general, these assignments are pass/fail: you either do then or you don=t. I use a 3 point grading system for these assignments. Doing the minimum requirement of the assignment will earn 3 points. This corresponds to passing the assignment. If you turn in work that is above and beyond the minimum, you could earn 4 or 5 points. If you turn in work that does not even reach the minimum, you earn 2 or 1 points. If you don=t turn in the assignment on time, you get 0 points. At the end of the semester, if you have received all 3's or better, your course grade computed from exams etc. will be increased by 2%. If you have 2 scores of 0 (meaning you didn't turn in two of these assignments), your grade will not be affected. If you are missing 3 assignments, your grade will be lowered by 1%. The following table shows total assignment points and corresponding bonus points assuming there are a total of 10 of these short assignments. Note that the bonus is added to your final grade computed from exams etc. For example, lets say that based on your exams, lab grade, etc, you have an 85%, a B, and you did all the short assignments, receiving 3 points on each for a total of 36 points. That corresponds to an overall bonus of +2, giving you an 87, or B+ for the course.
Total assignment points Course Bonus
36 - 38 +4
33 - 35 +3
30 - 32 +2
27 - 29 +1
24 - 26 0
21 - 23 -1
18 - 20 -2
etc.
Late assignments will not be accepted!
Lab meets at McKim Observatory or 229 JSMC, Tuesday, 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.
The lab has two major purposes. First, it strives to help you become familiar with the nighttime sky. Becoming familiar with the night time sky includes learning to identify and find constellations, observing the motions of stars, learning how to measure locations in the sky, and observing stellar properties (e.g. color and brightness). This is also your chance to learn to use a telescope. Secondly, the lab is a time to explore material from class in a different context, and to learn some of the methods used by astronomers to study the objects in our universe.
Lab is Tuesday evening, 7:00 - 10:00 pm. Lab will meet outdoors at McKim Observatory as often as possible. Since we need clear skies to observe, the weather will determine what we do for lab. In addition, some observing labs require perfectly dark, moonless skies, while others can be done with a small amount of cloudiness or a small amount of moonlight. What we do on any particular night will depend entirely on the sky conditions. At 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays (or as announced in class), I will send out e-mail with instructions on where to go for lab. You can also check a link on the main class page for lab update information.
During the first part of the semester, it is not dark enough for observing until after 8:30. For the first week, lab will be indoors, regardless of the weather. The next two or three weeks lab will start indoors at 7:00, and then head out for observing after dark if the sky is clear. Then for a couple of weeks, outdoor labs will start at 7:45 or 7:30 (exact times will be announce by e-mail). By mid October, outdoor labs will start at 7:00.
Your lab grade is based on lab participation and lab proficiency. The proficiency grade is based on two lab exams, graded lab homework, independent observing project reports, and any formal lab reports (there will be between 0 and 5 formal lab reports.). Your participation grade is based on actively participating in lab and on turning in informal lab reports (these will usually be the data sheets or sample calculations, and will generally be turned it at the end of lab). Lab participation is graded on a - T+ system. Coming to lab, doing the activity, and turning in the informal report will earn a T. In general, assuming you did the lab and turned in the informal report, you should expect to receive a T. Substandard work (e.g. not completing the lab, missing points in the write up etc.) will receive a -. Occasionally there will be optional parts to a lab, which, if completed, may earn a +. The lab participation grade factors in to your overall lab grade as a bonus. (See below for more on the participation bonus). Note that in general you receive a T for coming to lab and participating, and a second T for the assignment.
Your lab grade is based on the following factors:
Graded lab work: 60%
Lab Exams: 40%
Plus the Lab Participation Bonus
Lab Participation Bonus: The lab participation bonus can raise or lower your lab grade calculated from the above factors. If you have received all T's, your lab grade will be increased by 2%. If you are missing two T, your lab grade will be unaffected. If you are missing three T's, your lab grade will be lowered 1%. If you are missing three T's, your lab grade will be lowered 2%, etc. Receiving grades of + and (T+) will help raise your grade. Receiving grades of - or (T-) will contribute to lowering your grade. Ask if you want to know the specific details of how I calculate this.
Important note: You must receive a C- or better in lab to receive a passing grade for the course.