Elementary Astronomy Laboratory

Catalog description

Selected experiments and explorations to illustrate major astronomical principles and techniques. Telescopic observations of planets, stars and nebulae. ASTRO 11 Elementary Astronomy Laboratory (1) (GN)(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements. ASTRO 11 is the 1 credit laboratory component of this overview of astronomy and is intended to be taken in conjuction with ASTRO 10 . It covers material similar to the lecture component in ASTRO 10 , but the selected topics are covered in more depth and are focused on active learning components. Weekly two-hour labs may include investigating the habitable zone of a variety of stars, investigating the phases of the moon, analysis of the properties of stars in a color-magnitude diagram, analysis of the colorful spectra of different chemical elements, and exploration of one of the deepest images of space ever obtained. In addition, students will complete a semester nighttime observing project that typically involves learning some constellations, tracing phases of the moon, and sketching images seen through telescopes or binoculars at the student observatory.