Not offered 2007-2008
ASTR 104 The Milky Way Galaxy and the Universe Beyond
It has been only about 85 years since the Sun was discovered not to be at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy, and only 80 years since our Milky Way Galaxy was determined to be only one of countless "island Universes" in space. A host of technological advances is enabling us to understand even more clearly our place in the universe and how the universe began. For example, the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, and the Chandra X-ray Observatory bring clearer images and cover a wider range of the spectrum than have ever been obtainable before; they are speeding up progress on determining the past and future of the Universe. In addition, the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe spacecraft's study of the early Universe and large-scale mapping programs are giving clues into how the Universe's currently observed structure arose. They are confirming and enlarging our understanding of the Big Bang. Astronomy 104, a non-major, general introduction to part of contemporary astronomy comprising the study of galaxies and the Universe, explores the answers to questions like: What is the Milky Way?; Why are quasars so luminous?; Is the Universe made largely of "dark matter" and "dark energy"?; What determines the ultimate fate of the Universe? This course is independent of, and on the same level as Astronomy 101 and 102, though students who have taken those courses are welcome.
Observing sessions will include use of the 24" telescope and other telescopes for observations of stars, star clusters, planets and their moons, nebulae, and galaxies, as well as daytime observations of the Sun.
Format: lectures (three hours per week), observing sessions (scattered throughout the semester), afternoon labs (five times per semester), and a planetarium demonstration. Evaluation will be based on two hour tests, a final exam, an observing portfolio, and laboratory reports.
No prerequisites. No enrollment limit (expected: 30). Non-major course.
J. PASACHOFF