Schedule for Fall 2014 SCI 103 Introductory Astronomy

Monday, Wednesday and Friday Sections

Wk / Day / Date / Topic / Pre-Class Reading
1 / 01 / Aug25 / Course Intro and Ratios / Astronomy Notes
Chptr 1 Introduction to Astronomy
Introductory Comments , A Sense of Scale, Size. , Time.
Chptr 3: Astronomy without a Telescope
Introduction, Celestial Sphere Defined, Angles, Reference Markers
02 / Aug 27 / Math Review
03 / Aug 29 / Finish Math Review: Proportions
2 / Sep 01 / No Class: Labor Day / Chptr 3: Astronomy without a Telescope
Motion of Our Star the Sun, Coordinates , Time and Seasons, Solar and Sidereal Day, Solar and Sidereal Time as Viewed from Space, Motions of the Moon , Phases and Eclipses
04 / Sep 03 / The Apparent Motions of the Stars I
05 / Sep 05 / The Apparent Motion of the Sun
3 / 06 / Sep 8 / The Apparent Motion of the Moon and Lunar Phases / Chptr 3: Astronomy without a Telescope
Planetary Motions, We will rely heavily on class notes this week.
Chptr 4: History of Astronomy
Introduction, Philosophical Backdrop , Plato's Homework Problem, Renaissance
07 / Sep 10 / The Apparent Motion of the Planets
08 / Sep 12 / Angular Size Relation
4 / 09 / Sep 15 / Exam #1 / Chptr 4: History of Astronomy
Battle with the Church, Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion
10 / Sep 17 /
The Copernican Revolution
11 / Sep 19 /
Kepler
5 / 12 / Sep22 /
Galileo
/ Chptr 5: Newton’s Law of Gravity
Introduction, Universal Law of Gravity, Mass vs. Weight, Inverse Square Law, A Closer Look at Newton's Gravity, Orbits, Kepler's Third Law
13 / Sep 24 / Gravity I: Universal Law and Orbital Velocity
14 / Sep 26 / Gravity II: Escape Velocity and Mass of Central Object
6 / 15 / Sep 29 / The Bulk Character of the Solar System
16 / Oct 01 / The Formation of the Solar System
17 / Oct 03 / The Formation of the Solar System
7 / 18 / Oct 06 / Planets around Other Stars
19 / Oct 08 / Planets around Other Stars
20 / Oct 10 / Review and Distribute Take-Home Exam #2
8 / Oct 13 / No Class: Fall Break
21 / Oct 15 /
An Introduction to Light: EM Spectrum
22 / Oct 17 /
The Blackbody Spectrum, Wien’s Law
9 / 23 / Oct 20 / The Bulk Structure of the Sun
24 / Oct 22 / Energy Production in the Sun
25 / Oct 24 / Energy Production in the Sun
10 / 26 / Oct 27 / Stellar Nomenclature
27 / Oct 29 / Stellar Nomenclature
28 / Oct 31 / Stellar Distances and Masses
11 / 29 / Nov 03 /
Stefan-Boltzmann Law
30 / Nov 05 / The HR Diagram
31 / Nov 07 / Stellar Evolution Overview & Star Formation
12 / 32 / Nov 10 / Exam #3
33 / Nov 12 / Star Formation & Properties of main Sequence Stars
34 / Nov 14 / Origin of Giant Stars and the Future of the Sun
13 / 35 / Nov 24 / Supernova
36 / Nov 26 / Star Clusters
Nov 28 / No Class: Thanksgiving Break
14 / 37 / Dec 01 / Discovering the Milky Way
38 / Dec 03 / 21-cm Radiation and the Galactic Rotation Curve
39 / Dec 05 / The Core of the Milky Way and its Spiral Arms
15 / 40 / Dec 08 / Hubble Classification of Galaxies
41 / Dec 10 / Poor and Rich Galaxy Clusters
42 / Dec 12 / Galaxy Collisions
16 / 43 / Dec 15 / Hubble’s Law

Important Dates

Last day to add a class Sun, Aug 31

Registration for Spring begins Mon, Nov 17

Last day to withdraw with a grade of W in person Wed, Nov 26