Astronomy 135
ELEMENTARY ASTRONOMY LABORATORY II
Course Syllabus - Spring 2013
INSTRUCTOR:
E-MAIL:
PHONE:
OFFICE:
OFFICE HOURS:
Diane Friend
diane.friend@umontana.edu
243-4299
CHCB 129 (inside the Physics/Astronomy dept. office)
M 1-2, T 3-4, W 10-11, Th 3-4
Please feel free to stop by or make an appointment for other times.
Required supplies:
You will need a calculator capable of doing scientific notation and a small flashlight
or headlamp for the nighttime observing.
Moodle:
Astronomy 135 Common Area
Course announcements, lab exercises, and many extremely useful links and
resources will be posted on Moodle in the Astronomy 135 Common Area. You must
print out each lab exercise, read the introductory material before class, and bring
the appropriate lab write-up with you to each class meeting.
Astronomy 135 section specific course supplement
Course quizzes and all grades will be posted on Moodle in an Astronomy 135
Moodle course supplement specific to the section you are enrolled in.
COURSE CONTENT
This course will give you an introduction to some of the METHODS astronomers use to study the universe. You will
have a chance to see deep-sky objects through a telescope, use modern computer software to explore deep-sky
objects and analyze astronomical data, and discover HOW astronomers gather information about the stars, the
galaxy in which we live, and the universe at large.
By the time
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A detailed
you finish this course you should
know how to find your way around the night sky
know where and how to look up information on any object in the sky you are curious about
be able to predict the motions of celestial objects and understand why they appear to move the way
they do
have gained a fundamental knowledge of the properties of light and the information that can be gleaned
from it
understand the role of gravity in the motion of celestial objects and the evolution of structure in the
universe
understand the basic nature of stars (including our Sun) and how they evolve over time
know the basic characteristics of our home galaxy, the Milky Way
understand how galaxies can differ from one another, how they evolve over time, and what they can tell
us about the evolution of the universe
have gained experience with some of the techniques that have enabled us to discover some amazing
things about the universe we live in!
list of specific learning objectives is given in the Course Schedule.
Please note:
The labs will expand on material presented in Astronomy 132, so it is very
important that you attend the lectures and keep up with any readings or
activities in that class before coming to lab!
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Past students of the lab have found that the more in-depth, practical experience of the laboratory course really helps
their understanding of the material presented in the lecture. Take advantage of laboratory time to explore topics,
think critically, and ask good questions!
Although cloudy skies severely limit the amount of observing that we can do, we will try very hard to give everyone
a chance to do some telescopic observing. We encourage you to take advantage of this to explore whatever is of
interest to you! Please feel free to bring friends or relatives to our observing sessions if you wish.
Throughout the course you will be expected to:
1. Read through the introductory material in the labs before the start of class. Make sure you understand the
material from the lecture which relates to the lab.
2. Ask questions and come prepared to enter into discussion. If there are concepts that you are having trouble
understanding, please come prepared to ask questions at the beginning of class. As you work through the
labs, make sure that you understand the big picture, not just the procedural details.
3. Do your own work. Even when you collaborate with others on lab exercises, YOU will need to acquire a deep
understanding of the material to do well on the lab quizzes that are the basis for much of your grade.
GRADING
There will be 13 labs over the course of the semester. You grade will be based on 12 of those. You can drop any
ONE lab and the quiz based on that lab. Use this drop wisely! There will be NO make-ups for missed labs or
quizzes. If you wish to do all 13 labs, I will drop your lowest lab and quiz score at the end of the semester when
computing your grade. Missing more than one lab will have a sizeable impact on your grade! If you have an unusual,
legitimate emergency, bring in documentation explaining your absence and I will be happy to work something out
with you. If you have a legitimate reason for missing a lab and can tell me ahead of time, I may be able to get you in
to one of the other lab sections for that one week.
Your grade for this course will consist of two parts:
Lab write-ups completed each week in class
Moodle quizzes on each lab
50%
50%
Lab write-ups: Before you leave lab, you must submit your lab write-up to your instructor to be checked off.
Check + (100%)
Check
(80%)
Check - (60%)
Zero
(0%)
If you come to class each week
course.
Everything completed and basic understanding of topic demonstrated
Some missing pieces and/or major misconceptions
Deficient (significant omissions and/or limited critical thinking displayed)
Absent, or you forgot to submit your lab write-up for grading
and actively participate, you should be able to do very well on this part of the
Quizzes: Quizzes for each lab will be online and taken outside of class. You will have from the end of your lab
period to the following Tuesday at noon to complete each week’s quiz. Each quiz will have 10 questions and you will
have 40 minutes to complete it. You will only get one attempt for each quiz. Immediately following submission of
your answers you will receive your quiz score. Quiz answers and feedback will be available after the quiz closes.
Quizzes are to be done alone, not with other students from the class. Most of the quiz questions will be directly
related to what you did in lab, but there will also be some questions that ask you to synthesize what you have
learned, or apply your knowledge to a slightly different situation. Those who think carefully about the lab topics,
including their implications and broader applications, will do well on these questions. Your ability to think critically,
ask good questions in class, and use what you have learned to make new predictions will be the discriminating factor
between an “A” student and a “C” student in this class. Quiz responses will be graded and reported in the grade
book (along with lab write-up grades) in each section specific Moodle course supplement. Please note that quiz
credit will NOT be given unless you have attended the corresponding lab.
You can check your grade anytime during the semester by finding the simple average of your current grades and
applying the traditional grading curve: 90-100% A, 80-89% B, 70-79% C, 60-69% D, less than 60% F.
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LAB SCHEDULE
WEEK
DATES
1
Jan 29-31
EXPERIMENT
Lab 1
Course introduction;
Star Maps: Part I; Planetarium
Check out some of the many observing
links under the Lab 1 tab in Moodle!
2
Feb 5-7
Lab 2
Sky Simulation Software
2
Feb 4-6
For backup
dates, see the
Astronomical
Observing tab
In Moodle.
3
Feb 12-14
Backup
observing
dates
4
Feb 19-21
Know what is currently up
in the night sky, the basic
motions of stars and planets,
and how to use a star chart to
locate objects and investigate
how they move.
Sky simulation
software
If you have a laptop, you may want to load
SkyGazer or Stellarium (see link in Moodle)
onto your computer and bring it
to class with you.
(evening)
QUIZ
LOCATION
The night sky and star CHCB 13
charts
Night Sky Observing
CHCB 13
You will need to be able to
use the software to find out
what is in the sky at any date
and time, discover where and
when objects can be seen,
and understand the motion
and appearance of objects
over time as seen from
different locations.
NO QUIZ for this lab. Skaggs Roof
You will have some choice as to which date and
time to attend. Sign-ups are available on
Moodle. Sign up early to get the best choice of
times. If your section is cancelled due to
weather, sign-up again as soon as possible for
one of the make-up dates. For all nighttime
observing labs, call 243-4299 one hour before
the start of your observing session for an update
on sky conditions and whether or not the lab will
be held. Do not call more than one hour before
the start of your lab as weather can change
rapidly and we will not necessarily make a
decision prior to that.
Lab 3
Gravity and Orbits
IMPORTANT NOTE:
Your entire grade for this lab
will be based on a careful lab
write-up that you will turn in
to be graded.
Gravity and orbits
Feel free to load My Solar System onto your
laptop and bring it to class with you.
Link:
http://phet.colorado.edu/sims/my-solarsystem/my-solar-system_en.html
You will need a thorough
understanding of Kepler’s
Laws, know how gravity
depends on mass and
distance, and be comfortable
modeling orbits for 2-4 bodies
using the PhET My Solar
System simulation.
Lab 4
Light, Color, and Spectra
Light, Color, and
Spectra
Understand emission,
absorption, transmission, and
reflection/scattering.
Understand the composition
of white light and how colors
of light can be added or
subtracted. Know why color
filtering is so useful in
astronomy. Be able to
distinguish continuous and
emission line spectra and
know how spectra can be
used to determine the
composition of a gas.
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meet outside
east entrance
to Skaggs
observing
session times
are posted on
Moodle
CHCB 13
CHCB 13
5
6
Feb. 26-28 No Lab this week!
Mar 5-7
Lab 5
The Sun
The Sun
Read through some of the many interesting
links and background material posted on
Moodle under the Lab 7 tab.
7
8
9
Mar 12-14
Mar 19-21
Mar 26-28
Lab 6
Exoplanets
Exoplanets
Apr 1-5
Apr 9-11
CHCB 13
Lab 7
Determining Age and Distance of
Star Clusters
H-R Diagrams of Star CHCB 13
Clusters
Lab 8
Black Holes
Black Holes
You should understand how
exoplanets are detected, how
various properties of these
planets can be deduced, and
have a general idea of what
has been discovered.
Explore some of the fascinating links posted
on Moodle!
10
11
CHCB 13
You should have a basic
knowledge of solar activity
and an understanding of its
underlying cause. Know how
physical conditions change
with height above the solar
“surface”, the basic layers and
features of the solar
atmosphere, and which
features are related and why.
SPRING BREAK
Lab 9
The Milky Way Galaxy
You should know- in detail,
how to create, use, and
interpret H-R diagrams. You
should also have a good
understanding of the
importance and use of cluster
color magnitude diagrams to
our current understanding of
stellar evolution. Be able to
determine a cluster’s age and
distance from its color
magnitude diagram.
The Milky Way
Have a clear idea of the kinds
of objects that populate the
Milky Way, their distribution
within our galaxy, and what
their distribution tells us about
how the galaxy has evolved
over time, as well as our
position in it. You should be
able to reproduce an accurate
3D model of our galaxy.
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CHCB 13
Quantitatively understand the
relationship between wave
velocity, frequency, and
wavelength. Understand
escape speed, how it differs
from orbital speed, and how it
is used to define the event
horizon of a black hole.
Understand how the
gravitational influence of a
black hole can be used to
indirectly determine its
existence and measure its
mass. Know what is meant
by gravitational redshift and
be able to describe its effects
on light and time.
CHCB 13
12
13
Apr 16-18
Apr 30 –
May2
Lab 10
Galaxies
Galaxies
Lab 11
Spiral Galaxies and Dark Matter
Galactic Rotation
Curves
CHCB 13
You should be able to explain
some differences between
spiral galaxies and elliptical
galaxies. How did you decide
which was which? How can
we estimate the size of spiral
galaxies? How can we
determine how far away the
galaxy is? Know how to
determine a galaxies motion
with respect to us.
CHCB 13
Understand the basics of
circular motion. Be able to
critically compare rotation
curves for solid bodies,
planetary systems, and
galaxies and be able to use
these curves to determine the
distribution of mass. Why do
galaxy rotation curves provide
evidence for dark matter?
What is the winding dilemma
for spiral galaxies?.
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15
16
Apr 23-25
Lab 12
Hubble’s Law and the Age of the
Universe
Hubble’s Law
CHCB 13
What striking trend becomes
visible when we plot recession
speed versus distance for a
large number of galaxies?
What is Hubble’s Law? What
is it telling us? How can we
use it to find distances? How
can we use it to find the age
of the universe? How would a
changing expansion rate
affect these estimates?
May 7-9
Final week of classes- no labs
May 14-16 Finals week - Course grades will be posted on Moodle
What’s happening in the night sky:
We will post announcements of any especially interesting or unusual night sky events on Moodle.
Moon phases this semester
Meteor showers
New moon: Feb. 9, Mar. 11, Apr. 10, May 9
Full moon: Jan. 26, Feb. 25, Mar. 27, Apr.25
Lyrids: peak the night of April 21/22
Eta Aquarids: May 5/6
Academic conduct statement:
All students must practice academic honesty. Academic misconduct is subject to an
academic penalty by the course instructor and/or a disciplinary sanction by the University. All students need to be familiar with
the Student Conduct Code. The Code is available for review online at http://life.umt.edu/vpsa/student_conduct.php.
ADD/DROPS: The last day to add/drop on Cyber Bear is Friday, February 15. The last day to use a Drop/Add form to drop
or change grading option, with the signatures of your instructor and advisor is Monday, April 8. A drop, or change of grading
option after April 8 requires the signature of the Dean and written documentation of exceptional circumstances.
EQUAL ACCESS: A fair and inclusive learning environment benefits us all. I encourage students from different cultural
backgrounds, students for whom English is not their native language, and/or any student who has a disability that may adversely
affect their academic performance to contact me within the first few days of class to discuss appropriate accommodations. If
you think you may have a disability and have not registered with DSS, please contact them in Lommasson 154, call (406) 2432243, or view the DSS website at http://life,umt.edu/dss. The folks at DSS are very helpful!
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