Syllabus for ASTR 1403
Stellar Astronomy with Lab
Class # 39291 7:05 – 9:45 Tuesday and Thursday
Instructor: James (Jim) Heath
Office Hours: Rio Grande Room 338 MW 9:30 – 10:30 AM
MW 4:00 – 4:30 PM
Northridge Portable T-Th 2:45 - 4:00 PM
Friday Afternoons by appointment
Office Phone: 223-3295
E-mail: jheath@austincc.edu
Class Website: http://www2.austincc.edu/jheath (Click on “The Starry Site”)
Texts: Astronomy Today , 6th Edition by Chaisson and McMillan (Prentice Hall)
We will only be using Volume 2: Stars and Galaxies
Lecture-Tutorials for Introductory Astronomy, by Adams, Prather and Slater
Optional: Nightwatch: A Practical Guide to Viewing the Universe by Terence Dickson (Firefly)
Course Overview:
After a brief introduction to the history and terminology of astronomy, basic laws of physics will be discussed which are essential to the study of stars and galaxies. Then we will discuss the external properties of stars, followed by a discussion of the internal processes that give rise to these properties. The star that we know best, the Sun, will be our example. Finally, the "life histories" of stars will be presented as we examine the changes a star undergoes from its "birth", throughout its "life", to its inevitable "death".
Next, we will expand our scale outward to investigate the stellar "neighborhood" we live in, the Milky Way. The properties and make-up of our galaxy will be discussed, as will its origin and evolution. But our galaxy is just one of many, and we will discover many other shapes, sizes and types of “island universe” as we expand our sight further to encompass the entire Universe. Some galaxies will be "normal" like the Milky Way, but others will be strange indeed, and could contain keys to the scale of the Universe. Finally, will we discuss the Universe as a single object, where it came from, what it is now, and what it will become.
This course is also intended as an introduction to the basics of observing the sky. Our emphasis will be on naked-eye observations of the Sun, Moon, planets and stars that anyone can do from a reasonably dark location. Students will also be introduced to the use of telescopes for casual observation, and get a taste of “real” scientific observations via computer simulations.
Instructional Methodology and Course Rationale:
This course is a laboratory-based course which includes lecture and discussions. The emphasis during the lab sessions will be on hands-on, active learning, individually and in groups. Some of the activities will be student-driven and take place outside the classroom. Computer programs will also be used to simulate observations made by professional astronomers. The course will include at least two field trips. This course will be used by many students for transfer credit to four-year institutions; therefore, the course will be taught at the university level.
Purpose of this Course:
I've heard it said that the purpose of education is to give people the ability to tell when someone is "talking rot" and when they are making sense. This skill is becoming even more important in the modern day, surrounded as we are by science and technology. Con-artists and opportunists are learning to wrap themselves up in technology to better deceive people: astrologers are starting to carry around laptop computers, for example. I believe that science courses should help give people the tools they need to become "scientifically literate," and be able to evaluate "scientific claims" in their lives as consumers and voters. It is my hope that this course can serve part of that purpose.
Goals and Objectives:
The simplest and most obvious goal for this course is to convey to you the basic concepts of stellar astronomy. I realize that only a few of you would even consider a career in astronomy, so this course is not necessarily "pitched" to future scientists. I hope to be able to give you enough of a background in the "facts" and theories of astronomy to be able to understand claims made by astronomers in the popular media, and maybe even enjoy astronomy as a hobby.
A deeper goal for this course is to give you practice in "thinking scientifically." In-class material, as well as most graded activities, are intended to help you improve your abilities to organize, reason, make conclusions based on evidence, and otherwise think logically. Other activities will help you practice other aspects of a scientific mind, such as creativity, ability to observe, and the practice of examining your own attitudes and "biases." These are skills that employers are looking for, and skills a scientifically aware citizen should have. Everyone has these skills inside them, and part of my job is to help you sharpen these skills.
One of the problems with most of the astronomy courses offered at ACC is that students have very few opportunities to actually observe the sky. The primary goal of this course is to attempt to rectify that situation. In this course, you will use some of the most basic techniques for making sense of the sky – some of them thousands of years old! Hopefully this experience will make you see and understand the sky in a whole new way.
In addition, we also want this course to give you a taste of what professional astronomers must do to gather data and test their theories in the modern day. To that end, computer simulations of astronomical data gathering with virtual “telescopes” will be an important part of this class. Perhaps by seeing how astronomers gather information, you can understand better the conclusions they reach.
Of course, another important goal in this class is to have fun. Astronomy is an exciting field that is changing every day, and a fun hobby to pursue. Hopefully this class will familiarize you enough with amateur astronomy that you will want to curl up with an issue of Sky and Telescope on a cloudy night, and get out under the stars when it’s clear! Remember that a lot of the responsibility for this rides on you: you can only have as much fun as you allow yourself to have. Be involved in the class! Be energetic!
Grading System:
I. Tests
To evaluate student progress in the course, four tests will be given, approximately one every month. Each test will be worth 15% of the final grade, for 60 % total. The tests will NOT be comprehensive (but there will be certain concepts that will recur throughout the semester, so don't forget everything too quickly!), and there will be no final or midterm exams. Exams will consist of definitions and essay questions, some of which can be chosen from lists. Since I realize that many students have "math anxiety," no required essay question will be mathematical in nature. This math deficiency will be compensated for on the homework assignments.
The exams will be mostly essay because I am interested in testing your understanding of the material, not just your raw knowledge. The emphasis will be on the ability to analyze (break things apart) and synthesize (put things together), rather than your ability to memorize facts. Accordingly, I will focus more on whys and wherefores in my lectures, instead of throwing a stream of trivia at you, which would bore all of us. However, I do NOT want my own words regurgitated back at me on the tests. You will be expected to explain things in your own words, and in plain English. I also prefer essay questions because I am a believer in partial credit.
Research Paper -- Since anyone can have a bad day, any student wishing to do so may submit a short paper (approximately 1000 words/five pages) on a topic appropriate to the course. To insure that only the latest information is used, the references for the paper are required to be magazine articles from the past five years; no books allowed. Internet articles may also be used, but they may not outnumber magazine articles! There must be at least 5 different references. The grade received on this paper will take the place of the WORST test grade received during the semester. The point of the paper is to go beyond what is discussed in class, so papers that just repeat what is said in class will not receive good grades! In the interest of time and sanity (both mine and yours), please try to decide on a topic and discuss it with me by November 24 at the latest and have it turned in by December 8.
II. Homework Assignments
In addition, five homeworks will be given over the course of the semester, each 3 questions in length. Each will be worth 2% of the final grade, for 10% total. As answers will be posted to the Website the day homeworks are due, no late homework will be accepted. Students are allowed to cooperate on homeworks, but deliberate copying will be severely punished! I am a great believer in rewarding effort, so partial credit will be happily given to people who attempt the problems, but for some reason or another, can't follow through to the end. Thus, I encourage you to show all your work on the homeworks. Answers without explanation will receive NO CREDIT!
My philosophy behind homeworks is as follows. Many times we read a fact in a textbook, like "the density of Saturn is so small it would float in water" or "the mass of Jupiter is such-and-such", and blindly accept it. Such blind acceptance, both in science and in "real life", is dangerous. The purpose of the homeworks is to get you to confirm these "facts" for yourselves. Many of the great computations of astronomy can be done by non-science majors using high school freshman algebra and a calculator!
High-school algebra is a pre-requisite for this class, so I will not (and should not be expected to) take up class time to re-teach it. Please go over the section of the Website on Basic Math; I will be glad to discuss it with you during my office hours. I generally discuss homeworks only briefly in class, but I will happily discuss problems in detail during my office hours.
Finally, I often hear students (especially fine arts students) complain that they are not "mathematically inclined", whatever that means. I look upon such remarks with the same displeasure as I would look upon a computer jock's whinings about not being "artistically" or "linguistically inclined". Art, mathematics, philosophy, etc., are all integral parts of the human experience, and the total person should have some proficiency in all of them. Science is not the exclusive purview of fat, balding, old males with German-sounding names; far too many people that do not fit this description sell themselves short, just like society tells them to. Such beliefs are not allowed in my class. You can all do it!
III. Laboratory Activities
What sets this class apart from other astronomy classes is the laboratory activities, designed to get you looking at the sky and better understanding how astronomers past and present have gathered data. To this end, 30% of your grade will be tied to the laboratory activities we will be doing. That 30% will be determined like so:
7% Project #1 – Making a Star Chart
7% Project #2 – Computer Simulation
6% Subject matter test
5% In-class tutorials and other activities
5% Star Parties (2)
Star Parties:
Note that these are two Star Parties scheduled during class time, and two scheduled on Saturdays. Note that attendance for the ENTIRE event is required for your grade. The star parties during class time will be held at Wild Basin Wilderness out on Loop 360, starting at about 7:00. You may not bring guests to these star parties, as they are official ACC class meetings.
Naturally, it may be too cloudy to have a star party. The “go or no go” decision will be made between 6:15 and 6:30 on that day. Therefore, on the day of a star party, call my office between 6:15 and 6:30 to see if the star party will go on. I will change the message on my phone to reflect the star party decision.
IF THERE IS NO STAR PARTY, WE WILL STILL HAVE THE REGULAR CLASS MEETING AT 7:05 AT THE NORTHRIDGE CAMPUS! We will try and make the star party up the following class session at Wild Basin, with the same procedure for cancellation. If a star party does happen on a class night, it will end between 9:30 or 10:00. During the week of a star party, the day we do NOT have a star party will be a double lecture period, to make up the time.
The Saturday Star Parties are at St. Stephen’s Academy, also on Loop 360. They are not official class meetings, and are open to the public. As a general guideline, if the sky is more that about half cloudy, these events will not happen. If they do occur, we will still have class the next regular class session!
Directions to various sites can be found on the class website, under “Events.” Star Parties are subject to change, and others may be added!
Work Nights:
Note that some classes are designated “Work Nights.” These will be times when students can bring in things to work on, and make up work missed due to absences. We may need to use these for star parties, if the weather is miserable early in the semester. Attendance will not be taken for these sessions, so that students can work at home if they wish, and the instructor will leave if no one shows up after a half-hour or so. HOWEVER, a student that does not take advantage of these Work Nights will not get a sympathetic ear if he or she complains that there is not enough time to complete assignments!
Summary of Grading System:
Tests (4 @ 15% apiece) 60%
Homeworks (5 @ 2% apiece) 10%
Project #1 7%
Project #2 7%
Subject Matter Test 6%
In-class Tutorials 5%
Star Parties (2) 5%
Total 100%
Students can get up to 5% extra credit by submitting an extra project.
Course Policies:
Withdrawals and Incompletes – In compliance with Physical Sciences Task Force Policy, I will not grant incompletes, except in the most extreme circumstances. In all circumstances, extensive documentation of reasons will be required. The withdrawal date for this class is November 23. You are responsible as an adult learner to withdraw yourself if you wish.
Scholastic Dishonesty – Standard ACC Policy: Acts prohibited by the college for which discipline may be administered, including but not limited to cheating on an exam or quiz, plagiarizing, unauthorized collaboration with another in preparing outside work. Academic work submitted by students shall be the result of their thought, research, or self-expression. Academia is defined as, but not limited to tests, quizzes, whether taken electronically or on paper; projects, either individual or group; classroom presentations and homework.
A Note on Cheating:
I expect and demand that everything you do in this class will be your own work. Studies have shown that increasing numbers of college students think that cheating is acceptable, and it simply is not. Claiming someone else's work as your own is plagiarism, and both the college and I have a very low tolerance for it. Please take pride in your work, and be honest. Note that this does not forbid students from working together. If you are doubtful about where the line is between collaboration and plagiarism, talk to me, and we'll work it out before you turn things in.
Academic Freedom – Students are free to disagree with instructors on matters of opinion or personal philosophy, and will incur no penalty from doing so. However, instructors will judge student work based upon its relation to the current state of mainstream scientific fact and theory.
Attendance – A number of studies in science education have revealed that class attendance is a very important factor in determining the final grades of college science students. Attendance is even more important than the teacher, the textbook, the student’s GPA or even the student’s IQ! Yet these same studies reveal that some college students enjoy exercising the “freedom to miss class” that college affords, and their grades suffer as a result.
Class time is when you can interact with your fellow students and with the instructor. More pragmatically, class time is when you find out what’s going to be on the test! In this class, there will be nothing required on the test that is not discussed in class. Conversely, with the exception of a few personal anecdotes and historical vignettes to add flavor to the class, everything said in class will be on the test in one form or another. There is no substitute for coming to class. Coming to class is especially important in the summer, when things move so quickly.
Because attendance is so important to your success in this class, we will have the following attendance policy:
After FOUR (4) unexcused absences, I reserve the right to withdraw you from the class without further notice.
Notice that this doesn’t mean I will automatically withdraw you, merely that I reserve the right to do so. It is possible to get an absence excused, by one of two methods:
1. Producing a documented valid excuse. Valid excuses include, but are not limited to
a. Personal illness or other medical emergency
b. Illness or death of family member
c. Loss of transportation (one time only)
d. Work conflict (one time only)
e. Jury duty
f. National Guard duty
Valid excuses must come with written documentation (doctor’s note, mechanic’s receipt, etc.) to be counted. It is your responsibility to provide this documentation, and to notify me as quickly as possible of your absence, so that I won’t withdraw you!
2. An adequately detailed outline of the text reading for the missed class day. I will be the final arbiter of what constitutes an adequate amount of detail, and only one rewrite will be allowed per outline.
Attendance will be taken, either verbally, or by sign-in sheet, during class. Anyone not in roll is class when roll is called will be counted absent, and must have a valid excuse (see above) for not being there.
Student Discipline – Matters of student disciple will be adjudicated by the instructor on a case-by-case basis, in conjunction with the Task Force Leader or Dean. Students will want to consult with the Office of Student Services or the Associate Dean at their campus on such matters.
Students with Disabilities – Standard ACC Policy: Each ACC campus offers support services for students with documented physical or psychological disabilities. Students with disabilities must request reasonable accommodations through the Office for Students with Disabilities on the campus where they expect to take the majority of their classes. Students are encouraged to do this three weeks before the start of the semester.
Make-up Policy –As stated before, no late homeworks will be accepted. Tests missed may be made up out of class at times to be arranged if the student possesses an adequate excuse (see “Attendance” above). Extensions may be granted to papers in extreme circumstances.
A Note about Readings:
There is no substitute for reading the book. Research has shown that one of the keys to learning science is to have "hooks," called prior knowledge, that give you someplace to "hang" new knowledge. Your own life experiences will provide some of these hooks, and I hope you will share them in class discussions. Reading material in the book before class will provide you with more hooks, so that information discussed in class will not be entirely new. To best understand the things we will discuss, you will need to "see" it from as many angles as possible. The book provides you with one such angle.
Some truths about taking this class:
· It is not unreasonable for me to expect you to come to class on time every day that you are physically able.
· It is not unreasonable for me to expect you to take notes in class.
· It is not unreasonable for me to expect you to do all the assignments.
· It is not unreasonable for me to expect you to read the book.
All of the above are essential to your learning in this class, or any science class. You are all adult learners, and I will treat you like adults, responsible for your own learning. I provide the opportunities; you must provide the energy. If you think that any of the above are unreasonable, then you will have a difficult time in this class!
And remember, the only really stupid question is "Who cares?"
Course Syllabus
|
Week
|
Day |
Lecture Topic |
Reading |
Lab Exercise |
What is Due |
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|
1
August 25, 27 |
Tuesday |
Introduction |
Ch 1, pp. 1-12 |
Introduction |
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Thursday |
The History of Stellar Astronomy |
Ch 2, pp. 36-51 |
Angular Measure |
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|
2
September 1, 3 |
Tuesday |
Isaac Newton |
Ch 2 |
The Cross Staff |
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Thursday |
The Nature of Light |
Ch 3, pp. 64-70 |
Constellations |
Constructed Cross Staff |
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|
3
September 8, 10 |
Tuesday |
The Electromagnetic Spectrum |
Ch 3 pp. 70-81 |
Star Charts |
|
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|
Thursday |
The Nature of Matter |
Ch 4 pp. 86-95 |
Celestial Co-ordinates |
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|
4
September 15, 17 |
Tuesday |
Spectroscopy |
Ch 4 pp. 95-103 |
Star Motions |
Homework #1 |
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Thursday |
TEST #1 |
WORK NIGHT
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5
September 22, 24 |
Tuesday |
STAR PARTY AT WILD BASIN (Weather Permitting – Rain date September 29)
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Thursday |
The Sun and Nuclear Fusion |
Ch 16 pp. 416-445 Ch 22 pp. 566-572 |
NONE – Double Lecture |
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|
6
September 29, October 1 |
Tuesday |
Parallax and Magnitude |
Ch 17 pp. 450-456 |
Magnitude Tutorials |
Data table for Project #1 |
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Thursday |
Stellar Temperatures |
Ch 17 pp. 456-463 |
Tempertaure Tutorials and Celestial Globes |
Homework #2 |
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|
7
October 6, 8 |
Tuesday |
The H-R Diagram |
Ch 17 pp. 464-469 |
HR Diagram Tutorials |
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Thursday |
Binaries and Stellar Masses |
Ch 17 pp. 469-474 |
Celestial Globe Exercises |
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Week
|
Day |
Topic |
Reading |
Lab Exercise |
What is Due |
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|
8
October 13, 15 |
Tuesday |
Telescopes |
Ch 5 pp. 108-139 |
WORK NIGHT
|
Homework #3 |
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Thursday |
TEST #2
|
WORK NIGHT |
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9
October 20, 22 |
Tuesday |
STAR PARTY AT WILD BASIN (Weather Permitting – Rain Date October 27)
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Thursday |
The Interstellar Medium and Star Formation |
Ch 18 pp. 480-493 Ch 19 pp. 502-517 |
GUEST SPEAKER |
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|
10
October 27, 29 |
Tuesday |
The Lives of Stars |
Ch 20 pp. 528-545 |
NONE – Double Lecture
|
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|
Thursday |
Stellar Explosions |
Ch 21 pp. 556-574
|
WORK NIGHT |
Project #1 |
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|
11
November 3, 5 |
Tuesday |
Pulsars and Neutron Stars |
Ch 22 pp. 580-591 |
Computer Simulation: Spectral Classification |
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Thursday |
Black Holes |
Ch 22 pp. 592-609 |
WORK NIGHT
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|
12
November 10, 12 |
Tuesday |
Star Clusters
Take Home Test handed out |
Ch 19 pp. 518-522 Ch 20 pp. 545-551 |
Computer Simulation: Photometry of the Pleiades |
Homework #4 |
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|
Thursday |
The Milky Way Galaxy |
Ch 23 pp. 618-644 |
WORK NIGHT
|
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|
13
November 17, 19 |
Tuesday |
Types of Galaxies
|
Ch 24 pp. 650-656 |
Phases of the Moon Tutorial |
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|
Thursday |
Galaxy Clusters |
Ch 24 pp. 657-661 |
WORK NIGHT
|
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|
Week
|
Day |
Topic |
Reading |
Lab Exercise |
What is Due |
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|
14
November 24, 26 |
Tuesday |
Galaxy Formation and the Extragalactic Distance Scale |
Ch 25 pp. 685-693
Ch 24 pp. 657-664 |
Computer Simulation: The Hubble Constant |
Take Home Test (TEST #3) |
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THANKSGIVING!
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15
December 1, 3 |
Tuesday |
Active Galaxies and Quasars |
Ch 24 pp. 664-676
Ch 25 pp. 693-697
|
Subject Matter Test |
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Thursday |
The Expanding Universe |
Ch 26 pp. 710-729 |
WORK NIGHT
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|
15
December 8, 10 |
Tuesday |
Cosmology |
Ch 27 pp. 734-755
|
Project #2 |
Homework #5 |
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Thursday |
TEST #4
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