Courses

"From Black Holes to undiscovered worlds" - a journey through our fascinating universe. Ever wondered about the universe? What you see in the night sky? How stars get born and how they die? How Black holes work? And if there is life out there in the universe? Join us for a journey through our fascinating universe from Black Holes to undiscovered worlds through the newest discoveries. We are made of stardust. Ad Astra.  

Full details for ASTRO 1101 - From New Worlds to Black Holes

Provides a "hands-on" introduction to observational astronomy intended for liberal arts students. High school mathematics is assumed, but otherwise there are no formal prerequisites. The course objective is to learn how we know what we know about the Universe, and to learn how to observe with moderate cost amateur telescopes. There are two lectures and one evening laboratory per week. Typically, labs consist of 4-5 observing sessions using the Fuertes Observatory 12" telescope and a set of Meade 8" telescopes, a trip to Mount Pleasant to look through its 25" telescope and, on cloudy nights, 4-5 in-class experiments, the highlight of which is collecting micrometeorites for study.

Full details for ASTRO 1195 - Observational Astronomy

Writing course designed to develop an understanding of modern solar system exploration. Discussion will center on describing our home planet as a member of a diverse family of objects in our solar system. In addition to studying what we have learned of other planets and satellites from unmanned spacecraft, we will also discuss the missions themselves and describe the process of how they are selected and developed. Guest lecturers will include political advocacy experts, NASA officials, and science team members of active NASA/ESA missions. Participants will study, debate, and learn to write critically about important issues in science and public policy that benefit from this perspective. Topics discussed include space policy, the potential for life in the ocean worlds of the outer solar system, the search for extrasolar planets and extraterrestrial intelligence, and the exploration of Mars.

Full details for ASTRO 2202 - A Spacecraft Tour of the Solar System: Science, Policy and Exploration

Course surveying the evolution of the universe from the Big Bang onwards: what happens in the first few minutes of the universe's life; star formation, structure, and evolution; the physics of white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes; galaxy formation and structure; and cosmology. The roles of quantum physics, particle physics, and relativity in astrophysics are discussed (no prior knowledge of these is assumed). The course is more in-depth than ASTRO 1101. All course materials are made available online.

Full details for ASTRO 2211 - Astronomy: Stars, Galaxies, and Cosmology

Introduces Mathematica and modern symbolic manipulator programs to students in quantitative disciplines. The course will cover language concepts, programming tools and techniques and draw examples from a wide variety of fields including mathematics, astronomy, physics, engineering, biology, statistics, finance, and the general topic of big data. For the final project the student will apply the capabilities to an individual area of interest. Both undergraduates and graduates may register.

Full details for ASTRO 3340 - Symbolic and Numerical Computing

The course covers methods in optical and radio astronomy and selected topics in astrophysics. Major experiments use techniques chosen from charge-coupled device (CCD) imaging, optical photometry, optical spectroscopy, radiometry and radio spectroscopy. Observations use the Hartung-Boothroyd Observatory's 24-inch telescope and a 3.8-meter radio telescope on the roof of the Space Sciences Building. The course covers the fundamentals of astronomical instrumentation and data analysis applied to a wide range of celestial phenomena: asteroids, main-sequence stars, supernova remnants, globular clusters, planetary nebulae, the interstellar medium, OH masers, and galaxies. Methods include statistical data analysis, artifact and interference excision, Fourier transforms, heterodyned receivers, and software-defined radio.

Full details for ASTRO 4410 - Multiwavelength Astronomical Techniques

Major topics include: the structure and evolution of stars; solar neutrino astronomy; stellar seismology; the physics of white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes; the physics of low mass stars and connection to planets. Basic ideas in atomic and molecular physics, condensed matter physics, nuclear and particle physics, fluid mechanics and general relativity are introduced in a practical fashion that emphasizes concepts useful for understanding astrophysical phenomena.

Full details for ASTRO 4431 - Physics of Stars, Neutron Stars and Black Holes

An introduction to theoretical and observational cosmology aimed at interested science and engineering majors. Topics include an introduction to general relativity as applied to the cosmos; the cosmic expansion history and how it relates to the nature of matter in the universe; processes in the early universe; how galaxies and clusters of galaxies form; current and prospective cosmological surveys of galaxies, galaxy clusters, gravitational lensing, and the cosmic microwave background. The material is at a less technical level than the graduate cosmology course ASTRO 6599.

Full details for ASTRO 4433 - Introduction to Cosmology

One-semester introduction to general relativity that develops the essential structure and phenomenology of the theory without requiring prior exposure to tensor analysis. General relativity is a fundamental cornerstone of physics that underlies several of the most exciting areas of current research, including relativistic astrophysics, cosmology, and the search for a quantum theory of gravity. The course briefly reviews special relativity, introduces basic aspects of differential geometry, including metrics, geodesics, and the Riemann tensor, describes black hole spacetimes and cosmological solutions, and concludes with the Einstein equation and its linearized gravitational wave solutions. At the level of Gravity: An Introduction to Einstein's General Relativity by Hartle.

Full details for ASTRO 4445 - Introduction to General Relativity

Individuals work on selected topics. A program of study is devised by the student and instructor.

Full details for ASTRO 4940 - Independent Study in Astronomy

This course covers telescope design, optics design and instrumentation for wavelengths from optical to radio and their relation to current research needs. Adaptive optics, interferometry, aperture synthesis, and beam forming will be covered. Instrumentation discussions will include CCD and IR/submillimeter detector arrays, heterodyne systems and phased array feeds at radio wavelengths as well as camera designs, cryogenic systems, spectrographs/spectrometers and interferometric correlators. Sensitivity issues, observing techniques, polarimetry and data analysis will be discussed. Course work includes observations with the Hartung-Boothroyd optical telescope on Mount Pleasant and a radio telescope on the roof of the Space Sciences Building.  Data from these observations will be processed using modern analysis techniques implemented primarily in Python.

Full details for ASTRO 6525 - Multiwavelength Astronomical Techniques

A graduate-level introduction to Planetary Science with an emphasis on the application of basic physical principles. Topics to be covered include: planetary dynamics, including satellite orbits, tidal interactions, resonances and ring dynamics; an introduction to the theory of planetary interiors, gravitational fields, heat sources and rotational mechanics; reflected and thermal radiation; radiative transfer and equilibrium structure dynamics of planetary atmospheres.

Full details for ASTRO 6570 - Physics of the Planets

Guided reading and seminars on topics not currently covered in regular courses.

Full details for ASTRO 6940 - Advanced Study and Research

Introduces Mathematica and modern symbolic manipulator programs to students in quantitative disciplines. The course will cover language concepts, programming tools and techniques and draw examples from a wide variety of fields including mathematics, astronomy, physics, engineering, biology, statistics, finance, and the general topic of big data. For the final project the student will apply the capabilities to an individual area of interest. Both undergraduates and graduates may register.

Full details for ASTRO 7340 - Symbolic and Numerical Computing

Course on forefront questions on current issues in exoplanetary science. Topics vary by semester.

Full details for ASTRO 7672 - Seminar: Topics of Planetary Science

This course is a reading seminar where graduate students will gain astronomy breadth, practice public speaking, and distill important results from seminal astronomy research papers.

Full details for ASTRO 7683 - Seminar: Astronomy and Planetary Science