PY124: Solar System Astronomy
Instructor: R. A. Egler (www4.ncsu.edu/~egler)
.SPRING 2013. Office: Fox Labs 236 (Hours T, Th 10:30 -
11:30 AM)
Room: Withers 232A Phone: (919) 515-7842
Days / Time: T, Th: 1:30 - 2:45 PM e-mail: robert_egler@ncsu.edu
Textbook: Universe-
The Solar System
Freedman & Kaufmann
(Freeman Publishing), about $70
IMPORTANT! Some material is
not covered in the textbook. I have put
the necessary material
on-line as "virtual handouts". Virtual handouts are
available at : www.physics.ncsu.edu/courses/astron/virtualhandouts.html
Suggested
- Detailed (class by class) Topics
- Additional
study material for Solar System Astronomy
- Sample Tests for this section
·
Explanation
of Orbital Terms
- Official course
description
Last Update 31 January 2013
15:10 UTC, change date of tests 1&2
Goals:
My goals in
teaching this class are to have you understand the spatial and temporal relationships
of objects in the solar system, particularly the movements of the common
objects visible in the sky with minimal optical aid; to understand the
historical development of astronomy; to understand the basics of the
philosophical underpinnings of scientific research; and to understand the
properties of the major solar system bodies, both in the large collective
groupings by which they are classified, and individually; and how we acquire
knowledge concerning these objects.
Course
Requirements:
There
are no formal prerequisites for this course, however basic familiarity with
algebra and geometry at the level required for admission to the university is
assumed.
There will be
three tests during the semester, and a comprehensive final examination. You will be graded on the basis of:
60%
of final grade: Average of the three tests.
10% of final grade: Homework
(WebAssign access is required)
30% of final grade: Comprehensive
final exam.
Students who come
to a test more than 15 minutes late
or after the first person has left the room will not be permitted to take the test.
There will be no make-up for tests missed in this manner.
Answers to the tests during the
semester will be available immediately
after each test at:
http://www.physics.ncsu.edu/courses/astron/last_test.html
☼ Please note NOW that
there is NO extra credit of any kind available for this course. ☼
Grades:
Final Grades will
be on the Plus/Minus system. Grades will
be calculated to the nearest 0.01 point.
The grading scale is as follows:
A+ = 98 to 100.0% A = 92 to 97.99% A-
= 90 to 91.99%
B+
= 88 to 89.99% B = 82 to 87.99% B-
= 80 to 81.99%
C+
= 78 to 79.99% C = 72 to 77.99% C-
= 70 to 71.99%
D+
= 68 to 69.99% D = 62 to 67.99% D-
= 60 to 61.99%
F =
59.99% or lower
In accordance
with university policy, students who elect the S/U grading system will receive an 'S' only if their course grade
would be "C-" or better on the letter grade system.
Important: Repeated
disruptions of the class (for example: talking, answering your cellphone during class, etc) may result in the lowering of
a student's grade by up to one full letter grade. Please be considerate of your fellow
students.
.No Finals will
be given at any time other than the officially schedule exam time for this
class.
*** FINAL EXAM: May 7th , 1:00 p.m. *** except
in the case of 3 tests in 24 hours or
documented emergency. (Going home early for ANY reason is NOT
an emergency, even if you "already have your tickets".)
ANY CHANGES IN TEST DATES WILL BE IMMEDIATELY POSTED ON THE
ON-LINE SYLLABUS
Accommodations
for students with disabilities:
Reasonable
accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities,
registered with NC State Disability Services for Students, room 1900
www2.ncsu.edu/ncsu/provost/info/hat/current/appendix/appen_k.html
Attendance:
The material on the tests will be drawn from the lectures,
therefore regular class attendance is expected.
Attendance will be recorded, but does not directly affect your
grade. However, keep in
mind that several years experience shows that your final grade will likely be
reduced one or more letter grades if you miss 5 or more classes.
Homework:
WebAssign access is required. Go
to www.webassign.com. This class is
listed as PY124,
section 001.
You may
request 1 (ONE) homework extension during the semester. This request MUST be made (via email to me)
within 48 hours of the original due date/time.
The extension will be for 2 days.
There will be NO other homework extensions for ANY reason.
Academic
Integrity
I consider
your name on the test as your certification that you did not give or receive unauthorized
assistance with the test.
Alternate
and Make-Up Tests:
** NO "makeup" tests will be
given for ANY reason.**
Under unusual
circumstances that would cause you to miss a test (for instance, a death in the
family, a scheduled University event, a document illness, etc..) , arrangements
may be made to take the missing test
on the LAST day of class, APRIL 24, provided
that such arrangements are made before the regular test is given. Such "Alternate" tests will almost certainly be of a different format,
for example a mixed essay - multiple choice test, a verbal test, or an
all-essay test.
Policy on IN (Incomplete) grades:
(From the NC State Faculty Handbook): IN is a temporary grade. "At the discretion
of the instructor, students may be assigned an IN grade for work not completed
because of a serious interruption in their work not caused by their own
negligence. An IN must not be used as a
substitute for an F when a student's performance in the course is deserving of
an F. An IN is only appropriate when the
student's record in the course is such that successful completion of
assignments, projects, or tests (missed as a result of a documented serious event)
would enable that student to pass the course. Work undertaken to make up the IN
grade should be limited to the completion of missed work. "
Disagreements
between the text and the lectures:
Astronomy, like
any science, has areas in which the scientists studying the subject
disagree. It is possible that there will
be some disagreement between some material present in the lecture and the
corresponding material presented in the textbook. In any case where my lecture differs from the
textbook, I will take as correct on any test question the version that I
discussed in class.
SYLLABUS:
NOTE:
No class on the following
dates:
March 5th, 7th (Spring Break)
*** FINAL EXAM: May 7th , 1:00 p.m. ***
No
Finals will be given at any other time. except in the
case of 3 tests in 24 hours or
documented emergency. (Going home early for ANY reason is NOT any
emergency, even if you "already have your tickets".)
ANY CHANGES IN TEST DATES WILL BE IMMEDIATELY
POSTED ON THE ON-LINE SYLLABUS
Detailed Syllabus by Class (Approximate,
subject to change as needed)
Class 1 General Introduction
Scale of the
Solar System
Powers of ten
Video
Class 2 Atmospheric Effects
Constellations
and star names
Magnitude system
Terrestrial
Coordinate System
Class 3 Time
Celestial Coordinate
System
Latitude and
Longitude from
Celestial Observations
Class 4 Motions in the Sky,
and Seasons
Development of
the Calendar
Astronomical
Origins of Day Names
and
Holidays
Class 5 Astrology
Phases of the
Moon
Class 6 Tides: Moon and Sun
Eclipses
History of
Astronomy: Greeks thru Ptolemy
Class 7 History of
Astronomy: Copernicus thru
Galileo
Kepler's Laws of
Motion
Class 8 Gravity: Aristotle
thru
Class 9 Orbits
Review for Test
1
Class 10 *** Test 1 ***
(February 7 )
Class 11 Return tests.
Video
Class 12 Light,
electromagnetic spectrum
Wavelength,
frequency, and energy
Wein's law
Emission
spectra, absorption spectra,
and atomic structure.
Class 13 Telescopes and optics
Optical
aberrations
Imaging systems
and telescope mounts
Class 14 Overview of the solar
system.
History of the
Earth
Class 15 Earth in
detail. Internal structure.
Atmosphere
Plate tectonics
Magnetic field
Moon:
structure and geology
surface features
origin Mercury:
structure
surface features
atmosphere
Class 16 Earth continued
Class 17 Venus:
structure
surface features
atmosphere
Class 18 Mars
structure
surface features
atmosphere
Class 19 *** Test 2
*** (March 21 )
Class 20 Video
Class 21 Asteroids and Comets
Structure and orbits
L4 and L5 Points
Class 22 Jupiter
Internal structure, atmosphere
Coriolis
force and the storms of Jupiter
Large
moons, and tidal forces
Saturn
Internal
structure, atmosphere
Roche
limit and rings of planets
Large
moons
Class 23 Uranus
Discovery
Internal
structure, atmosphere
Neptune
Discovery
Internal
structure, atmosphere
Pluto, Eris, and
similar bodies
Discovery
Principle
features
Class 24 The Sun
Overall
structure
Nuclear
fusion
Searching for
planets around other stars
Relativity
Review
Class 25 *** TEST 3 ***
(April 18 )
Class 26 Video
Class 27 (LAST DAY OF CLASS) - Make-up tests only, no class
