14 courses with the subject ASTR, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
ASTR 101Solar System Astronomy1.00
Deals with the exploration of the solar system through ground-based observations and spacecraft missions. Topics include motions of solar system objects, properties of the solar system, origin and evolution of the solar system, uncovering the nature of objects in our solar system through comparative planetology, detection techniques and characteristics of planets orbiting other stars, and the possibility of life elsewhere in the universe. Evening observing and Ho Tung Visualization Lab sessions supplement lectures. When Offered: Fall semester only Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: None Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: Confronting Collective Challenges or Quantitative and Algorithmic Reasoning Core Component: None
Explores our modern view of the universe. Building on several basic observational techniques and physical principles, students demystify the science of astronomy and illuminate the evidence that establishes our physical understandings of stars and planetary systems, galaxies, and the universe. Students seek evidence-based answers to questions including: Of what stuff are stars made? What powers the Sun and other stars? How do stars and planetary systems form and evolve? Do other Earth-like planets exist? What determines the distribution and nature of galaxies in the universe? How did the universe begin and what is its future? Ho Tung Visualization Lab and observing sessions supplement lectures. When Offered: Spring semester only Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: None
The last 20 years is often characterized as the Golden Age of modern astronomy due to the number of paradigm-shifting discoveries that have revolutionized our vision and understanding of the universe. This course explores several of these ground-breaking discoveries in great detail by focusing on the physical concepts and observations as well as the historical narrative that traces the progression of the scientific endeavor that made these discoveries possible. This course is distinctly different from ASTR 101 and 102, and allows for the interested non-science student to delve more deeply into the many discoveries that lead us to conclude that the universe is 13.77 +/- 0.059 billion years old; a number, by cosmological standards, that is staggeringly precise. No prior course work in physics, astronomy, or mathematics is required for this course. Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: No Senior Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: None Core Component: None
ASTR 210Intermediate Astronomy and Astrophysics1.00
A discussion of the fundamental physical principles of astronomy and astrophysics emphasizing topics of current interest such as stellar structure, evolution, neutron stars, black holes, and the interstellar medium. When Offered: Fall semester only, in alternate years C- or better; PHYS 233 may be taken concurrently) Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: None Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: Quantitative and Algorithmic Reasoning Core Component: None
(MATH 161 or MATH 162 or MATH 163) and PHYS 233 (All pre-reqs must have a grade of
Corequisite
None
ASTR 220Deciphering the Sky: Practical and Historic Astronomy1.00
An investigation of the observed motions of the stars, Sun, Moon and planets in the celestial sky. Study of the physical models that explain these motions. The historic and cultural development of our understanding of celestial motions will be considered. Using the planetarium capabilities of the Ho Tung Visualization Laboratory, observations will be made of the night sky from different locations on Earth over time intervals ranging from minutes to centuries. Basic algebra, trigonometry and graphs will be used to quantify and visualize these motions. Additional outdoor observing sessions will supplement the class instruction.
A laboratory course introducing students to basic astronomical observations, methods of data acquisition and reduction using the university's 16-inch telescope, CCD electronic camera, and image-processing workstation. Students are instructed in methods of astronomical imaging including detector calibration and atmospheric effects; in fundamentals of photometric reductions, including obtaining a light curve for a selected variable star; and in astronomical spectroscopy and spectral classification. When Offered: Fall semester only, in alternate years Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: None Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: Quantitative and Algorithmic Reasoning Core Component: None
Required corequisite to ASTR 312. When Offered: Fall semester only, in alternate years Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: None Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: None Core Component: None
Study of the solar system with emphasis on physical processes. Topics include formation of the solar system, planets, moons, asteroids, comets, meteorites, orbital mechanics, tides, atmospheric structure, planetary surfaces and interiors, impact cratering, and rings. Although challenging in breadth, this course is intended to be accessible to juniors and seniors majoring in physics, astronomy-physics, astrogeophysics, chemistry, or geology.
Opportunity for individual study in areas not covered by formal course offerings, under the guidance of a member of the faculty. Credits: variable Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: None Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: None Core Component: None
Opportunity for research-based individual study in areas not covered by formal course offerings, under the guidance of a member of the faculty. This course does not count towards the upper-level course requirement for the physics or Astronomy-physics majors or for honors. Credits: variable Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: Only Junior Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: None Core Component: None
Predominantly a study of stellar atmospheres and interiors, students develop a fundamental understanding of stars and their evolution through the application of basic principles found in atomic physics, electricity and magnetism, Newtonian mechanics, statistical mechanics, and quantum mechanics. Topics include stellar formation and death, energy generation and transport, equations of stellar structure, and stellar remnants (e.g., white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes). When Offered: Spring semester only, in alternate years
Study of the astronomical techniques, methods, and fundamental data relating to the Milky Way Galaxy and objects located outside our galaxy, such as normal galaxies, radio galaxies, and quasars. Topics include galactic stellar populations, large-scale structure and rotation of the galaxy, the structure and content of other galaxies, galaxy classification, clusters of galaxies, active galactic nuclei, quasars, and the large-scale structure of the universe. The physical processes responsible for the radio, infrared, visual, and x-ray radiation from these objects are studied in detail. When Offered: Spring semester only, in alternate years Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: No First-year, Sophomore Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: Quantitative and Algorithmic Reasoning Core Component: None
Opportunity for individual study in areas not covered by formal course offerings, under the guidance of a member of the faculty. Credits: variable Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: None Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics Liberal Arts Practices: None Core Component: None
Opportunity for research-based individual study in areas not covered by formal course offerings, under the guidance of a member of the faculty. This course does not count towards the upper-level course requirement for the physics or Astronomy-physics majors or for honors. Credits: variable Major/Minor Restrictions: None Class Restriction: Only Senior Area of Inquiry: Natural Sciences & Mathematics
