The course includes: physical features of stars, including the sun as a star; stellar distances and motion, evolution and star types, study of the Milky Way Galaxy and other galaxies. The course includes discussion of recent discovered phenomena such as quasars, pulsars, cosmic blackbody radiation, and infrared stars. It also includes a short unit on the solar system. The text used for the course is Astronomy: A Beginner’s Guide to the Universe by Chaisson & McMillan, 6th edition. (ISBN 0-321-60510-1)
The podcasts will include both live lecture and pre-recorded sessions. The live lecture sessions will be audio only and will refer to PowerPoint slides contained in the class website. The pre-recorded sessions can be both audio and video and will refer to PowerPoint slides as well as covering additional topics in Astronomy for enrichment.
Students will be able to use these podcasts to supplement the lectures. They will be useful when the student is reviewing the material for exams. I will also provide supplemental material for enrichment of the class.
