Prof. Jay M. Pasachoff Spring 2011

Astronomy 104 The Milky Way Galaxy and the Universe Beyond

1 W 2/2 Introduction; sense of scale Ch 1

2 T 2/8 Sense of scale; properties of light Ch 1

3 R 2/10 Light/energy (Prof. Marek Demianski) Ch 2

4 T 2/15 Light and Telescopes Ch 3

2/15-2/16 Lab I: Distances in Astronomy

5 R 2/17 movie: Journey to Palomar (3-page report on it due 2/22) Ch 3

6 T 2/22 Observing the Stars and Planets Ch 4

2/22-2/23 Lab II: The Virtual Sky

7 R 2/24 The Milky Way Ch 15

8 T 3/1 The Interstellar Medium Ch 15

9 R 3/3 Mapping Interstellar Space, & Spiral Structure Ch 15

10 T 3/8 Galaxies Ch 16

11 R 3/10 Cepheids, Hubble's Law, and the Scale of the Universe Ch 12, 16

reading about Cepheids: from Miss Leavitt's Stars by George Johnson; book or ereserves

12 T 3/15 Gravitational Lensing Ch 16

3/15-3/16 Lab III: Hubble's Law and the Expansion of the Universe

13 R 3/17 First Hour Exam (through Chapter 15 material)

Spring Break

14 T 4/5 Large-scale structure and the farthest galaxies Ch 16

15 R 4/7 Black holes Ch 14

16 T 4/12 Supermassive black holes Ch 14

17 R 4/14 Quasars Ch 17

18 T 4/19 Second Hour Exam (largely on Chapters 14 and 16 material)

4/19-4/20 Lab IV: Galaxies, Active Galaxies and Quasars

19 R 4/21 Quasars and active galactic nuclei Ch 17

20 T 4/28 The big bang and the early universe Ch 18

21 R 4/30 The cosmic background radiation Ch 19

22 T 5/3 The formation of the elements; fundamental forces Ch 19

23 R 5/5 Dark matter and the inflationary Universe Ch 19

24 T 5/10 Planets outside our solar system; searches for life Ch 9, 20

5/10-5/11 Lab V: Exploring Dark Matter

25 R 5/12 The Universe, an overview; future exoplanet searches Epilogue

May 14-17 Reading period; May 18-23 Exam period (exam scheduled by the Registrar)