Recommended preparation: a working knowledge of high school algebra. The overall architecture of the solar system. Motions of the celestial sphere. Time and the calendar. Major planets, the earth-moon system, minor planets, comets. Life in the solar system and beyond. This course is similar to ASTR BC 1753. You cannot enroll in both courses and receive credit for both.

Distances to, and fundamental properties of, nearby stars; nucleosynthesis and stellar evolution; novae and supernovae; galaxies; the structure of the universe and theories concerning its origin, evolution, and ultimate fate. You cannot enroll in ASTR C1404 in addition to one of the following ASTR BC1754, ASTR C1420 or ASTR C1836 and received credit for both.

Milestones in the science of cosmology over the past 6000 years. Skylore and observation in ancient cultures. The twin revolutions of the Greeks: Pythagoras and Ptolemy. Aristotle, Aquinas, and the Great Chain of Being. The "scientific revolution": the impersonal and deterministic world-order of Newton, Laplace, and Kelvin. The erosion of that world-order by mathematics and experiment in the 20th century (relativity, quantum physics, dark matter, and the expanding universe). Today's searches for a new grand order in the Universe, which can cope-or maybe not-with these blows to yesterday's comfortable wisdom.

Recommended preparation: a working knowledge of high school algebra. Introduction to astronomy intended primarily for nonscience majors. Includes the history of astronomy; the apparent motions of the moon, sun, stars, and planets; gravitation and planetary orbits; the physics of the earth and its atmosphere; and the exploration of the solar system. This course is similar to ASTR C1403. You cannot enroll in both courses and receive credit for both.

Recommended preparation: a working knowledge of high school algebra. A study of the life cycles of stars, from their birth in cold gas clouds to their final throes in supernova explosions. The turn-of-the-century revolution in physics: X-rays, radioactivity, the nuclear atom, and the quantum theory. Energy production by nuclear fission and fusion, and its consequences. You cannot enroll in ASTR C1836 in addition to ASTR BC1754 or ASTR C1404 and receive credit for both.

Laboratory for ASTR C1403. Projects include observations with the department's telescopes, computer simulation, laboratory experiments in spectroscopy, and the analysis of astronomical data. Lab 1 ASTR C1903 - goes with ASTR BC1753 or ASTR C1403.

Laboratory for ASTR C1404. Projects include use of telescopes, laboratory experiments in the nature of light, spectroscopy, and the analysis of astronomical data. Lab 2 ASTR C1904 - goes with ASTR BC1754 or ASTR C1404 (or ASTR C1836).

Prerequisite: a working knowledge of calculus. Corequisite: a course in calculus-based general physics. First term of a two-term calculus-based introduction to astronomy and astrophysics. Topics include the physics of stellar interiors, stellar atmospheres and spectral classifications, stellar energy generation and nucleosynthesis, supernovae, neutron stars, white dwarfs, and interacting binary stars.

Prerequisites: One year of calculus-based general physics.

The standard hot big bang cosmological model and modern observational results that test it. Topics include the Friedmann equations and the expansion of the universe, dark matter, dark energy, inflation, primordial nucleosynthesis, the cosmic microwave background, the formation of large-scale cosmic structures, and modern cosmological observations.

Prerequisites: One year of general astronomy.

Introduction to the basic techniques used in obtaining and analyzing astronomical data. Focus on "ground-based" methods, at optical, infrared, and ultraviolet wavelengths. Regular use of the telescope facilities atop the roof of the Pupin Labs, to acquire photometry and spectroscopy of stars, planets, and nebulae. There will also be apportunity to acquire and analyze data from National Observatories, and from spacecraft. Given in alternate years.

Recommended preparation: a working knowledge of high school algebra. The overall architecture of the solar system. Motions of the celestial sphere. Time and the calendar. Major planets, the earth-moon system, minor planets, comets. Life in the solar system and beyond. This course is similar to ASTR BC 1753. You cannot enroll in both courses and receive credit for both.

Distances to, and fundamental properties of, nearby stars; nucleosynthesis and stellar evolution; novae and supernovae; galaxies; the structure of the universe and theories concerning its origin, evolution, and ultimate fate. You cannot enroll in ASTR C1404 in addition to one of the following ASTR BC1754, ASTR C1420 or ASTR C1836 and received credit for both.

Galaxies contain stars, gas dust and (usually) super-massive black holes. They are found throughout the Universe, traveling through space and occasionally crashing into each other. This course will look at how these magnificent systems form and evolved, and what can they tells us about the formation and evolution of the Universe itself. You cannot enroll in ASTR C1420 in addition to ASTR BC1754 or ASTR C1404 and receive credit for both.

Recommended preparation: a working knowledge of high school algebra. The properties of stars, star formation, stellar evolution and nucleosynthesis, the Milky Way and other galaxies, and the origin and evolution of the universe. You cannot enroll in ASTR BC1754 in addition to one of the following ASTR C1404, ASTR C1420 or ASTR C1836 and received credit for both.

Laboratory for ASTR C1403. Projects include observations with the department's telescopes, computer simulation, laboratory experiments in spectroscopy, and the analysis of astronomical data. Lab 1 ASTR C1903 - goes with ASTR BC1753 or ASTR C1403.

Laboratory for ASTR C1404. Projects include use of telescopes, laboratory experiments in the nature of light, spectroscopy, and the analysis of astronomical data. Lab 2 ASTR C1904 - goes with ASTR BC1754 or ASTR C1404 (or ASTR C1836).

Prerequisite: a working knowledge of calculus. Corequisite: the second term of a course in calculus-based general physics. Continuation of ASTR C2001; these two courses constitute a full year of calculus-based introduction to astrophysics. Topics include the structure of our galaxy, the interstellar medium, star clusters, properties of external galaxies, clusters of galaxies, active galactic nuclei, and cosmology.

Prerequisites: one year of calculus-based general physics.

Topics include the physics of stellar, structure, stellar atmospheres, nucleosynthesis, stellar evolution, interacting binary stars, white dwarfs, and neutron stars. Offered in alternate years.

Prerequisites: One year of Physics.

The physics and astrophysics of planets, comets, asteroids, natural and artificial satellites, and pretty much anything in the Solar System - including the Sun. Detailed study of the Earth's atmosphere and oceans: circulations, climate, and weather. Orbital dynamics. The emerging science of extrasolar planets. The origin, evolution, and eventual fate of planets.