LEAD 338 The Progress of Astronomy: Galileo through the Hubble Space Telescope (Same as Astronomy 338 and History of Science 338) (Not offered 2008-2009; to be offered 2009-2010) (W)

ASTR 338 The Progress of Astronomy: Galileo through the Hubble Space Telescope (Same as History of Science 338 and Leadership Studies 338) (Not offered 2008-2009) (W)
Our capabilities of understanding the Universe have progressed over the 500 plus years since Copernicus moved the sun into the center. Galileo's breakthrough observations of the sky with the new-fangled telescope led to hundreds of years of improving observations. In a seminar format, week by week, we will discuss each of the following topics (and look at original first-editions in the Chapin Library): Copernicus and rare-book variations and annotations; Galileo and his discoveries; mapping the sky and constellations 1540 to the present through star atlases; William and Caroline Herschel and the discovery of a new planet; asteroids from 1 Ceres to 5100 Pasachoff and beyond, contemporary surveys, the extinction of the dinosaurs, and possible dangers to the Earth and its inhabitants; astronomy teaching from when Williams College students first built its Hopkins Observatory through the Committee of Ten to the Journal of Astronomy Education Research; planetariums from pasted stars to optomechnical and digital 21st-century projection; woman astronomers and astronauts and their reception and roles; transits of Venus: from Horrocks and Capt. Cook through the 2004/2012 pair; the launch of Sputnik and the race to the Moon; the formation of NASA and its transformation through space shuttles and the International Space Station; the past, present, and future of the Hubble Space Telescope; NASA's "Great Observatories," including not only Hubble but also the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Spitzer Space Telescope; NASA's "Vision" of sending astronauts to the Moon and Mars; advances in ground-based observatories and telescopes; mapping the Universe through projects like the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and 2dF; and the discovery that the Universe's expansion is accelerating and its ramifications. We consider the role of individual leadership in the various topics.
Format: seminar, one three-hour meeting a week. Planetarium demonstration, with individual planetarium work on request. Evaluation will be based on two 10-page papers and participation in discussions.
No prerequisites. Enrollment limit: 19 (expected: 10). Preference will be given to juniors and seniors and to those with backgrounds in science, history of science, or philosophy. Non-major course. Does not count toward the Astrophysics, Astronomy, or Physics major.
J. PASACHOFF