SOUTHWESTERN COLLEGE
Principles of Astronomy - Astr 100 - Sec 60 - Summer 2015 - Class No: 97126
Instructor: Dr. R. Thomas Skelton; EMail: rskelton@swccd.edu.
Course Meets: Mon/Tue/Wed/Thu 5:00-6:25 Rm 301 Jun 15 to Aug 06, 2015.
This is a double-paced course; stay up to date.
Final Exam: Th Aug 06, regular class time.
Units: 3
Website: http://home.sandiego.edu/∼rskelton/astr100 (all lower-case)
Office Hours: Tu/Th 4:30 to 4:55 in Rm 301; or by appointment. College students are expected to
show self-direction and initiative.
Catalog Description: Introduction to the concepts and methods developed in astronomy to describe
and understand the physical nature and processes of astronomical phenomena. Topics include the sky,
the solar system, stars and stellar evolution, nebulae, the Milky Way Galaxy, galaxies, and cosmology.
Transfers to: D; CSU; UC; see a counselor.
Student Learning Outcomes:
• Students will collect and assemble physical principles and methods of analysis and subsequently
be able to defend their assessments and evaluations of the universe around them.
• Students will effectively communicate their ideas with others by assessing and contrasting
physical principles and methods of analysis.
Participation policy: More than three missed classes is cause for being dropped from the course.
Missing an exam (not made up) counts as 2 absences. It is your responsibility to drop the course if
you so desire. Do not count on being dropped by me. Failure to withdraw by the withdrawal deadline
will result in the assignment of an evaluative letter grade.
Key dates: Refund: 17 June; Add: 22 June; Drop: 22 June; Withdraw: 23 July.
Grading: Homework: 10%; 3 Exams: 20% each; Final Exam: 30%. But: your lowest Mid-Term
Exam will be averaged with your score on the Final Exam, if this helps you.
Grade Scale: A: 90; B: 80; C: 65; D: 50.
Exams: Exams will be mostly multiple choice, with some essay and calculational questions, and some
questions about astronomical terms. I will provide scantrons. Closed book/notes, except that you are
permitted one page (one-sided, standard size) of notes in your original handwriting, or typed by you.
No photocopies, no official homework solutions. Two pages are allowed for the final exam. Makeup
exams are given only with a Dean’s excuse or prior arrangement with me.
Course text: Discovering the Universe, by Wm. J. Kaufmann III and Neil F. Comins, 10th edition.
The 9th edition is OK. The lecture will not exceed the level of the text, and will be in less depth for
some topics. A double-paced class is not the time to save $10 by ordering this via slow-boat-fromChina.
Homework: Homework automatically includes reading the assigned chapters. Study and be prepared
on exams for all assigned problems, but turn in the ones indicated to be turned in. Preferably get the
questions from the website, as I modify some of them.
Academic Dishonesty: Academic dishonesty of any type by a student provides grounds for disciplinary action
by the instructor or college. In written work, no material may be copied without proper quotation marks or
other appropriate citation. If you collaborate extensively with another student on homework, note names of
collaboraters.
Student Responsibilities: Students are expected to participate in the course, including class activities.
Pursuant to SWCCD Rules, the instructor has the authority to issue a one-day suspension, which will become
unexcused absence. Cell phones and off-task activities may be interpreted as disruptive.
Accomodations for Students with Disabilities: Southwestern College recommends that students with
disabilities discuss academic accommodations with the professor within the first two weeks of class. An alternate
form of the syllabus and other material is available on request. DSS may be contacted in person in room S-108
or by phone at (619) 482-6512 (voice) or (619) 482-6470 (TTY) or DSS@swccd.edu.
Academic Success Center Referral: To further your success, reinforce concepts, and achieve the stated
learning objectives for this course, I may refer you to Academic Success Center learning assistance services. You
will automatically be enrolled in NC 3: Supervised Tutoring, a free non-credit course which will not appear on
your transcript. Services are located in ASC (420), the Writing Center (420D), the Reading Center (420), Math
Center (426), the Library/LRC Interdisciplinary Tutoring Lab. Mesa, special on-campus School tutoring labs,
the HEC, and Online Writing Lab (OWL) are available at www.swccd.edu/∼asc.
Astronomy – Tentative Course Schedule – Summer 2015
Southwestern College - ASTR 100 - Sec 60 - Class No 97126
Date
Chap
Subject
Mon 15 Jun
1
Night Sky (and Day Sky)
Tue 16 Jun
Wed 17 Jun
1
1/2
Gravitation and the Motion of the Planets
Thu 18 Jun
2
Mon 22 Jun
Tue 23 Jun
2/3
3
Light and Telescopes
Wed 24 Jun
Thu 25 Jun
5
5
Formation of the Solar System
Mon 29 Jun
Tue 30 Jun
6
Exam 1 - Chapters 1–3
Earth and Moon
Wed 01 Jul
Thu 02 Jul
6
-
Holiday
Mon 06 Jul
Tue 07 Jul
7
8
Terrestrial Planets
Outer Planets
Wed 08 Jul
Thu 19 Jul
9
9
Vagabonds of the Solar System
Mon 13 Jul
Tue 14 Jul
4
4
Atomic Physics and Spectroscopy
Wed 15 Jul
Thu 16 Jul
10
Exam 2 - Chapters 5–9
The Sun
Mon 20 Jul
10/11
Characterizing Stars
Tue 21 Jul
Wed 22 Jul
11
12
Life Cycles of Stars
Thu 23 Jul
Mon 27 Jul
12/13
13
Deaths of Stars
Tue 28 Jul
Wed 39 Jul
14
15
Relativity and Black Holes
The Milky Way Galaxy
Thu 30 Jul
Mon 03 Aug
16
-
Galaxies
Exam 3 - Ch 4, 10–14
Tue 04 Aug
Wed 05 Aug
18
19
Cosmology
Astrobiology/Review
Thu 06 Aug
-
Final Exam - Chapters 1–16, 18