Syllabus
ASTR 122: Stars and Galaxies
Spring 2015
(v1.0)
Instructors
Instructor
Prof. Athol Kemball
Office Astronomy 203
Email
akemball@illinois.edu
Tel.
333-7898
Office hours Fri, 2-3 pm, or by appointment [AD8]
TA
K.-Y. Huang
Office Astronomy 132
Email
khuang33@illinois.edu Tel.
Office hours Tue 11am-12pm & Thu 11am-12pm [AD1,AD2,AD3]
TA
S. Adhikari
Office Astronomy 130
Email
sadhika2@illinois.edu
Tel.
Office hours Mon 3-4 pm & Wed 3-4 pm [AD4, AD5, AD6]
Course catalog description
Credit: 3 hours.
Introduction to celestial objects and phenomena beyond the solar system, and the
governing basic physical principles; galaxies, quasars, and structure of the universe; dark
matter and dark energy; the Big Bang and the fate of the universe; the Milky Way; the
interstellar medium and the birth of stars; distances, motions, radiation, structure,
evolution, and death of stars, including neutron stars and black holes. Emphasis will be
placed on problem-solving and scientific methods. Two lectures and one discussion each
week, and observing sessions during the term.
Credit is not given for ASTR 122 if credit in either ASTR 100 or ASTR 210 has been
earned. Students with credit in PHYS 212 are encouraged to take ASTR 210.
ASTR 121 and ASTR 122 cover the same topics as ASTR 100, but the material and
topics are covered in much more depth over two semesters instead of one. ASTR 121 and
ASTR 122 are independent offerings and can be taken in any order. While ASTR 121 and
ASTR 122 are for non-science majors, problems solving with basic algebra is required.
Science and astronomy majors should take ASTR 210.
This course satisfies the General Education Criteria in Spring 2015 for a
UIUC: Physical Sciences course , and UIUC: Quant Reasoning II course
Learning objectives
The goals of this course are to:
• Understand the key properties of the universe beyond the solar system: stars
and galaxies
• Understand the scientific method, with examples in Astronomy.
• Be able to perform quantitative calculations and apply problem solving
methods in Astronomy.
Textbook and course materials
The required materials for this course are:
Textbook: “Universe: Stars and Galaxies”. 5th Ed.
2015, Freedman & Kaufmann (W.H. Freeman and
Company: New York), ISBN-13: 978-1-4641-3527-9.
Additional online textbook resources are available at:
http://bcs.whfreeman.com/universe10e
An i-clicker 2. Please register your i-clicker at:
http://iclicker.com/support/registeryourclicker/
Use your UIUC netid as Student ID on this web page.
Please note that the older i-clicker v1 does not provide
the full capabilities required for this class.
Course requirements
The course contains the following required elements and associated grade contributions.
Requirement
Points Grade %
Class participation
100
10
Homework assessments 10 x 35
35
Observing report
50
5
Planetarium report
50
5
Two 1-hour exams
2 x 100
20
Final exam
250
25
Total
1000
100
A list of optional extra credit assignments will be posted on the class webpage. These
assignments are available to encourage students to explore issues covered in the course in
more detail, to participate as an undergraduate in current research, and learn more about
the role of Astronomy in society, technology, and physical science. These assignments
are optional but will allow students to significantly improve their grades over the
semester.
•
•
•
•
•
Class participation: Attendance at lectures and discussion sections is expected
and required in order to learn all the material covered in the syllabus. I-Clickers
will be used to conduct multiple-choice surveys to vote on key topics and
questions during the lectures. Credit will be given both for I-Clicker participation
and for getting the correct answer in an I-Clicker survey. Discussion sections will
be used to review course material, homework solution methods, extra credit
assignments, and to allow open discussion. The class participation grade will be
composed from the lecture I-Clicker grades, participation in on-line discussion
boards, and attendance and participation at discussion sections.
Homework assessments: Ten homework assessments will be assigned during
the course. These are designed to increase your understanding of material in the
course and to help you prepare for the term and final examinations. These will
consist of both multiple-choice and short-answer questions. Assignments will be
given approximately each week and will be due in Compass on the Sunday at
midnight of the week in which the homework assessment is due. Compass will
not allow late homework to be submitted.
Observing report: Attendance at one night observing session at the Campus
Observatory is required as part of this course, along with completion of an
associated worksheet. These sessions are described here:
http://www.astro.illinois.edu/academics/courses/nightobs/
Planetarium report: Attendance at one of a series of special shows scheduled at
Staerkel Planetarium at Parkland College Campus Observatory is required as part
of this course and completion of a summary report. These sessions are described
here: http://www.astro.illinois.edu/academics/courses/planetarium/
One-hour examinations: Two one-hour term examinations will be given in class
on the dates indicated in the course schedule.
•
Final examination: The three-hour final examination will take place on May
14th, 2015 from 1h30 pm to 4h30 pm.
Grading
The grading scale used in the course is shown below. Please note the cutoff points used
for minor grade letters.
Grade
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
Range
990-1000
910-989
900-909
890-899
810-889
800-809
790-799
710-789
700-709
690-699
610-679
600-609
0-599
Grades will be adjusted on a curve when necessary.
Academic integrity and collaborative work
Violations of academic honesty and integrity, as defined in the University of Illinois
student code (http://admin.illinois.edu/policy/code/article1_part4_1-401.html) will be
enforced in this course following UIUC rules and procedures. Example violations
described in the Student Code include cheating, fabrication, enabling breaches of
academic integrity by others, representing the words or ideas of another as your own
(plagiarism), academic tampering or interference, and unauthorized use of University
resources or computing facilities. Penalties will be applied in accord with University
rules concerning academic integrity.
Collaborative discussion of course material with fellow students is encouraged, but each
student is required to do their own work. The issues behind homework questions may be
discussed with classmates but the submitted answers and work must be your own. For
examinations, all answers and work must be your own.
Accessibility statement
To insure that disability-related concerns are properly addressed from the beginning,
students with disabilities who require assistance to participate in this class are asked to
see me as soon as possible.
Illness, family emergencies, and related events
If you will miss any deadlines due to illness or emergency please contact me by email. I
will need a letter of absence to adjust grades or grant an extension. Please contact the
Student Assistance Center of the Office of the Dean of Students for such a letter
(http://www.odos.uiuc.edu/studentAssistance/index.asp). The Dean on Duty at the
Student Assistance Center can be reached by email at Helpdean@illinois.edu. This Office
of the Dean of Students will keep the underlying reason for the absence confidential
between the student and their office.
Course schedule
Week
Lecture
1.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
-
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
-
Date
Topic
Reading
20 Jan 15
22 Jan 15
27 Jan 15
29 Jan 15
3 Feb 15
5 Feb 15
10 Feb 15
12 Feb 15
17 Feb 15
19 Feb 15
24 Feb 15
26 Feb 15
3 Mar 15
5 Mar 15
10 Mar 15
12 Mar 15
17 Mar 15
19 Mar 15
23-27 Mar 15
31 Mar 15
2 Apr 15
7 Apr 15
9 Apr 15
14 Apr 15
16 Apr 15
21 Apr 15
23 Apr 15
28 Apr 15
30 Apr 15
5 May 15
14 May 15
Introduction
The night sky
Celestial motions
Eclipses and the Moon
Orbits of planets
Newtonian gravity
The nature of light
Matter and light
Telescopes
The solar system
First hour exam
Origin of the solar system
The Sun
Stellar properties
Stellar classification
The birth of stars
Stellar evolution
The death of stars: I
Spring break
The death of stars: II
Relativity
Second hour exam
Black holes
Galaxies: I
Galaxies: II
Quasars and active galaxies
Cosmology: I
Cosmology: II
The early universe
Extraterrestrial life
Final exam:
1h30 pm -4h30 pm
Ch. 1
Ch. 2
Ch. 2
Ch. 3
Ch. 4
Ch. 4
Ch. 5
Ch. 5
Ch. 6
Ch. 7
Ch. 8
Ch. 16
Ch. 17
Ch. 17
Ch. 18
Ch. 19
Ch. 20
Ch. 20
Ch. 21
Ch. 21
Ch. 22
Ch. 23
Ch. 24
Ch. 25
Ch. 25
Ch. 26
Ch. 27
Homework (due)
HW #1 (2/1)
HW #2 (2/8)
HW #3 (2/15)
HW #4 (2/22)
HW #5 (3/8)
HW #6 (3/15)
HW #7 (4/5)
HW #8 (4/19)
HW #9 (4/26)
HW #10 (5/3)