Astronomy 101, Fall 2013
COURSE OUTLINE AND SYLLABUS
Reading: Please do
all assigned reading before the
class in which it will be discussed; that way, you derive maximum benefit from
reading and lectures. Check
http://www.williams.edu/astronomy/ for the syllabus and
http://astronomy.brookscole.com/cosmos3 & http://tinyurl.com/3xt2ttl for the
textbook's aids. Prof.
Pasachoff's chapter-by-chapter podcasts are at feed://drm.williams.edu/cdm4/pcpod/feeder.php?id=COSMOS
date topic reading
R 9/4 (Wed) Introduction Cosmos Ch 1
T 9/10 Light and the Spectrum Cosmos Ch 2
R 9/12 Observatories Cosmos Ch 3
T 9/17+lab Space Telescopes Cosmos Ch 3
R 9/19 Observing the Sky Cosmos Ch 4
T 9/24+lab History of Astronomy through Tycho Cosmos Ch 5
R 9/26 The Quiet and Active Sun Cosmos Ch 10
T 10/1 The Quiet and Active Sun Cosmos Ch 10
R 10/3 Stars
and their Spectra Cosmos
Ch 11
T 10/8 First Hour Exam (through Ch 10) [10/6-11 DPS Denver]
R 10/10 Stars
and their Spectra Cosmos
Ch 11
T 10/15 Fall reading period; no class
R 10/17 Double and Variable Stars; Clusters Cosmos Ch 11
T 10/22+lab The Sun and Solar Eclipses Cosmos Ch 4 & 10
R 10/24 Stellar Energy Cosmos Ch 12
T 10/29+lab Stellar
Energy, Neutrino Astronomy Cosmos
Ch 12
R 10/31 Red
Giants and White Dwarfs Cosmos
Ch 13
Sunday, 11/3
total solar eclipse across Africa; some partial phases in Williamstown at
sunrise
T 11/5 Second Hour Exam
(through Ch 12)
R 11/7 Sky
Surveys (SDSS, etc.) Cosmos
Ch 13,16
T 11/12 Death
of Stars Like the Sun Cosmos
Ch 13
R 11/14 Neutrino Experiment; Supernovae Cosmos Ch 13
W,
11/20, 8 pm special lecture: Dava Sobel,
"Copernicus and the search for a more perfect heaven"
T 11/19+lab Pulsars
R 11/21 Black
Holes Cosmos
Ch 14
T 11/26 Black Holes inside and outside our Galaxy Cosmos Ch 14
R 11/28 Thanksgiving; no class Cosmos Ch 14
T 12/3 Exoplanets Cosmos Ch 9
R 12/5 Transits of Venus: Last One from Earth Until 2117
December 7—10, Saturday through
Tuesday, Reading Period
Final Exam to be self scheduled during
Wednesday-Monday, December 11-16