Basics of Astronomy June 2005 Class as well as for July 2005 Class. Books - "
Children's Night Sky Atlas" (referred to as Atlas) and "Universe" (referred to as ...
Syllabus Basics of Astronomy June 2005 Class
as well as for
July 2005 Class
Books - "Children's Night Sky Atlas" (referred to as Atlas) and "Universe" (referred to as Universe)
Week One •
Class meets and introductions are made; books distributed and discussed; overview topics 1. 1st hour - What the Universe IS, and is NOT! 2. 2nd hour - How to use telescopes and the many types of telescopes a) Universe Pgs 6-7 Universe overview; Pgs 16-17 Telescopes b) Atlas Pgs 92-93 Looking at Universe; Pgs 8-9 How to use…Atlas Reading assignments for week twoAtlas - Pgs 6-7 "Looking at Night Sky" Constellation - Pgs 48-49 Big Dipper (U Ma) Pgs 74-75 Inner Planets; Pgs 80-81Giant Planets; Pgs 86-87 Small…Worlds Universe - Pgs 18-19 Our Corner of the Universe; Pgs 22 thru 41 Planets (all) Exercise - Watch the waxing crescent moon, evening-by-evening, until next class period Week Two •
Observing w/o telescopes - the near sky and watching day-to-day, week-to-week, and monthto-month events; motions of the moon, motions of the planets; Beginning STARS 1. 1st hour - rev. reading assignments planets; lunar phases; Ursa Major 2. 2nd hour - Beginning Stars; What are they? Sizes / colors of stars; Stellar Spectra a) Universe Pgs 20 & 21, "Our Local Star" b) Atlas Pgs 62 & 63, "The Sun" Reading assignments for week threeAtlas - Pgs 26-27 "…Lives of Stars"; Pgs 32-33 "Star Types"; Pgs 38-39 "Measuring Stars" Universe - Pgs 10-11 "How the Universe Works"; Pgs 42-43 "Distant Suns"; Pgs 44-45 "Variety of Stars" Exercise - Find the Big Dipper and Ursa Major each clear night of the week Week Three •
The Stars in Our Universe - Star Formation 1. 1st hour - rev. Stars, types of, colors of, etc. 2. 2nd hour - Lecture ONLY Star Formation; Types of Nebulae - stellar nurseries; planetary and supernova remnants Reading assignments for week fourUniverse - Pgs 48-49 "Star Birth"; Pgs 46-47 "Clusters and Nebulae"; Pgs 50-51 "Star Death" Atlas - Pgs 26-27 "The Lives of Stars"; Pgs 44-45 "Clouds in Space" Constellation - Scorpius Pgs 60-61 Plus - Leo (chart pg 19) Exercise - Watch Saturn sink towards horizon each clear night. Venus and Mercury are also in view. On June 27th, all three are close, but Venus and Mercury are within 0.1 arc-minute apart
Week Four •
Milky Way - Our Galaxy; distant galaxies and galaxy clusters; Intro to Black Holes, Neutron Stars and White Dwarfs 1. 1st hour - rev. Stellar Birth and Death 2. 2nd hour - Lecture ONLY Black Holes; Our Milky Way; Other galaxies and clusters of galaxies Reading assignment for final weekAtlas - Pgs 50-51 "The Milky Way" Pgs 56-57 "Galaxies"; Pgs 78-79 "Andromeda" Universe - Pgs 52-53 "Pulsars and Black Holes"; Pgs 54-55 "The Milky Way"; Pgs 56-57 "Neighbors"; Pgs 58-59 "Galaxies Galore"; Pgs 60-61 "Quasars and other active galaxies"; Constellation - Sagittarius (Pg 66-67) Cygnus (Pg 72-73)
Week Five •
Wrap-up and Constellation Identification 1. 1st hour - rev. Black holes, Pulsars, Galaxies 2. 2nd hour - questions and answers for the course as well as for anything not covered directly from either of the books Constellations - Lyra, Sagitta, Bootes, Virgo, Ursa Minor, Andromeda, Perseus (pg 84-85)
Observing through at least two large telescopes will take place after each week's class for up to 2 hours, from 8 pm to10 pm.
