Computational Physics and Astrophysics

Catalog description

This course provides an advanced overview of applications of numerical methods and computer programming to physics and astrophysics. Numerical calculations provide a powerful tool for understanding physical phenomena, complementing laboratory experiment and analytical mathematics. The main objectives of the course are: to survey the computational methods used for modeling physical and astrophysical systems; to apply the computational methods to solve real world problems in physics and astrophysics; to assess the reliability of numerical results using convergence tests and error estimates; and to use scientific visualization as a tool for computer programming development and for physical understanding of numerical results. Strong programming skill in any of the common programming languages such as C, C++, or Python, is highly recommended.