ASTRONOMY 271

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Spring 2007

Astronomy 271 (and 270) is designed for people who want to learn about the Universe in more depth than is possible in Astro 101. While the fall 270 class concentrated on the Solar system, in the spring semester we will significantly broaden our perspective to include stars, galaxies and the Universe. This course will describe the hierarchical nature of the Universe starting with stars and working up through star clusters, galaxies, clusters of galaxies and superclusters. Black holes, dark matter, dark energy, the ever-expanding Universe, astrobiology and other fascinating astronomical topics will also be explored.

Time and place:	TR 11:00AM-12:15PM, Regener Hall 114
Instructor:	Prof. Y. Pihlström, phone 277-4492
Textbook:	Universe, Freedman and Kaufmann, 7th Edition. Additional material will be handed out during lectures.
Prerequisites:	Physics 151 or higher; Math 150 or 162
Exams and Grades:	Your final grade will be determined through two sectional exams (each 25% of the grade), homework (20%) and the final exam (30%). The exam dates are February 20 and March 27 for the mid-terms, and May 8 for the final. In general, make-up exams will NOT be given unless you have a very valid reason, and make-ups will be oral. NO make-ups will be given unless arranged before the exam.

Lecture schedule

Date	Topic	Chapter
T Jan 16	Introduction
R Jan 18	Angles & units, properties of light	1, 5
T Jan 23	Properties of light, The atmosphere of the Sun	5, 18
R Jan 25	The atmosphere of the Sun	18
T Jan 30	The Sun: Interior	18
R Feb 1	How to understand stars	19
T Feb 6	Stars: The H-R diagram. Homework 1 due.	19
R Feb 8	The ISM	20
T Feb 13	The formation of stars. Homework 2 due.	20
R Feb 15	Stellar evolution part I	21
T Feb 20	Exam 1	1, 5, 18-20
R Feb 22	Stellar evolution part II	21
T Feb 27	The deaths of low-mass stars	22
R Mar 1	The deaths of high-mass stars. Homework 3 due.	22
T Mar 6	Neutron stars	23
R Mar 8	Introduction to black holes. Homework 4 due.	24
T Mar 20	Black holes. Homework 5 due.	24
R Mar 22	Recap for exam.	21-24
T Mar 27	Exam 2	21-24
R Mar 29	The Milky Way	25
T Apr 3	Galaxies	26
R Apr 5	Active Galaxies, Radio Astronomy intro. HW6 due.	27
Su Apr 8	VLA tour	Leaving ABQ 8:00AM
T Apr 10	Active Galaxies	27
R Apr 12	Cosmology. HW7 due.	28
T Apr 17	Cosmology	28
R Apr 19	Big Bang. HW8 due.	29
T Apr 22	Astrobiology	29 + extra
R Apr 24	Astrobiology	29 + extra
T May 1	Recap for final
R May 3	No class, office hours
T May 8	Final exam: 11:45AM-2:30PM	1, 5, 18-29
R May 10	Exam pick up (PandA rm 170) 10:00AM-12:00PM