Syllabus
ASTR 122H: Stars and Galaxies
Fall 2015
(v1.0)
Instructors
Instructor
Prof. Athol Kemball
Office Astronomy 203
Email
akemball@illinois.edu Tel.
333-7898
Office hours Wed, 10-11am, or by appointment at other times
Grader
Email
Office hours
Office
Tel.
Course catalog description
Credit: 3 hours.
This course is an introductory survey of the Universe beyond the Solar System. It will
include the natures of the stars, their births and deaths, neutron stars and black holes, the
Galaxy, the natures of other galaxies, and cosmology – the examination of the structure
and evolution of the Universe at large. Emphasis will be placed on the origins of the
Universe and of the stars around us, including our own Sun, to show the ultimate origins
of our Earth. The course will also stress the nature of astronomical research as well as its
historical and current significance. The course material is similar to that covered in
regular Astronomy 122 sections except honors students will cover it in greater depth and
probe individually into specific aspects through research projects.
General Education credit: Physical Sciences and Quantitative Reasoning II.
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.
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.
 Acquire experience with contemporary research issues 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 25
25
Observing report
50
5
Research project
300
30
Two 1-hour exams
2 x 100
20
Final exam
100
10
Total
1000
100
Additional extra-credit opportunities will be posted throughout the course.






Class participation: Attendance at lectures and discussion sections is expected
and required to cover all the material 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, and these composite scores will be used to
directly compute the class participation grade.
Homework assessments: Eleven 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. Assignments
will be given approximately each week and will be due in class on Friday in
which the homework assessment is due. Late homework will not be accepted in
order to be fair to all students. Grades from the best ten homework assessments
will be used for each student.
Observing field trip or project: The class will include an observing field trip or
project with an associated worksheet.
Research project: The class will include group research projects on issues of
contemporary importance and relevance in Astronomy. These will involve
developing a group research report and making a final presentation at the end of
the semester. Both will be used to derive a total grade for the research project.
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 Dec 15th,
2015 from 1:30pm to 4:30pm.
Grading
The grading scale used in the course is shown below.
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.
Absences or missed deadlines
This class adheres to the policies on class attendance described in the Student Code of
Conduct at http://www.odos.uiuc.edu/studentAssistance/absence/revised_code.asp.
Absences with supporting evidence or documentation may be excused for illness or
injury, serious illness of immediate family members, religious observances, volunteer
emergency work, death of a family member, official field trips, participation in
University athletic competitions, or compelling circumstances beyond a student’s control.
If you will miss any deadlines for these reasons please contact me by email or in person,
and I will let you know if an extension will be granted for the particular instance.
Please contact the Student Assistance Center of the Office of the Dean of Students for a
letter (http://www.odos.uiuc.edu/studentAssistance/index.asp) for illnesses beyond three
days duration, or the cases listed in the Student Code above. 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.
24 Aug 15
26 Aug 15
3.
28 Aug 15
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
31 Aug 15
2 Sep 15
4 Sep 15
7 Sep 15
9 Sep 15
11 Sep 15
14 Sep 15
16 Sep 15
18 Sep 15
21 Sep 15
23 Sep 15
25 Sep 15
28 Sep 15
30 Sep 15
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
2 Oct 15
5 Oct 15
7 Oct 15
9 Oct 15
12 Oct 15
14 Oct 15
16 Oct 15
19 Oct 15
21 Oct 15
23 Oct 15
26.
27.
-
26 Oct 15
28 Oct 15
30 Oct 15
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Date
Topic
Reading
Introduction
p.1-8
Coordinates & constellations p.8-17
p.21-23
p.25-26
Motions of Earth
p.24-25
p.27-29
Solar motions and time
p.29-40
Eclipses and the Moon
p.47-62
Orbits of the planets
p.69-78
Labor day
Kepler’s & Newton’s Laws
p.79-87
Newtonian gravity
p.88-100
Properties of light
p.105-116
Light and energy
p.116-125
Astronomical spectroscopy
p.126-135
Telescope properties
p.141-156
Telescopes & space missions p.156-166
The solar system
p.171-191
Origin of the solar system
p.199-214
Exoplanets & the Sun’s
p.214-221
interior
p.433-445
First hour exam
The active Sun
p.445-460
Stellar properties
p.465-479
Stellar classification: I
p.479-484
Stellar classification: II
p.484-497
The birth of stars
p.505-527
Stellar evolution
p.533-557
The death of stars: I
p.563-572
The death of stars: II
p.572-586
Neutron stars and compact
p.586-593
objects
Special relativity
p.603-608
General relativity
p.608-612
Second hour exam
Homework (due)
HW #1 (9/4)
HW #2 (9/11)
HW #3 (9/18)
HW #4 (9/25)
HW #5 (10/9)
HW #6 (10/16)
HW #7 (10/23)
11.
12.
13.
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
2 Nov 15
4 Nov 15
6 Nov 15
9 Nov 15
11 Nov 15
13 Nov 15
16 Nov 15
35.
36.
18 Nov 15
20 Nov 15
21 Nov 15–
29 Nov 15
30 Nov 15
2 Dec 15
4 Dec 15
7 Dec 15
9 Dec 15
15 Dec 15
14.
15.
16.
17.
37.
-
Black holes
Our galaxy
External galaxies
Galaxy clusters & formation
Quasars and active galaxies
Cosmology
Cosmic microwave
background
Dark energy
The early universe
Thanksgiving break
p.612-629
p.635-660
p.667-681
p.682-697
p.703-717
p.721-728
p.729-733
Extraterrestrial life
Research preparation
Research preparation
Research presentations
Research presentations
Final exam: 1:30-4:30 pm
p.785-799
p.735-747
p.755-779
HW #8 (11/6)
HW #9 (11/13)
HW #10 (11/20)
HW#11 (12/4)
Class
Class