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SyllabusAstronomy Fall 2013

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Astronomy 101-001 Fall2013Tues & Thurs, 09301045, Regener Hall 103 3 hrs credit

Instructor: T. Howard thowardz@unm.eduOffice hours: available after class, office area behind Regener; see me at end of class

Week 1 begins Tuesday, 20 August (first class meeting)Week 16 ends Thursday, 5 December (last class meeting)

Course description from UNM catalog:

Conceptual description of our fascinating universe: early astronomy, Newtoniansynthesis, Earth, Moon, planets, asteroids, comets, the sun, our solar system, stars, black

holes, galaxies, dark matter, dark energy and cosmological mysteries.

Course objectives: to achieve a comfortable working knowledge of the sky and majorcelestial objects; to learn the basic structure of our universe as we currently know it; and

to understand the important questions being addressed by modern-day astronomy, and the

scientific methods used to do so.

Text:Astronomy: A Beginners Guide to the Universe, 7th

ed., Chaisson & McMillan

(Addison-Wesley, 2013) ISBN 10: 978-0-321-81535-4.

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites.

Grades: will be based on the following assignments and weightings --

2 project assignments worth 8 points each

Mid-term exam (in-class, open book/notes) worth 45 points

Final exam (in-class, open book/notes) worth 45 points

Total grade is sum of all points earned

More details and posting of instructions in week 2

Final grade based on 100 point scale with + andgrades (UNM standard)

A = 93100, B = 85-92, C = 7684, D = 6875.Top and bottom 2 pts in each range are +/-.

Attendance Policy: Regular attendance and participation in class is required. I do notgrade on the basis of attendance; nevertheless, students are responsible for all

assignments and other course administration announcements as given in class. UNM

Pathfinderpolicies apply, which in part means that instructor drops based on non-

attendance are possible. This policy applies regardless of the grading option chosen.

Accommodation Statement: Accessibility Services (Mesa Vista Hall 2021, 277-3506)

provides academic support to students who have disabilities. If you think you need

alternative accessible formats for undertaking and completing coursework, you shouldcontact this service right away to assure your needs are met in a timely manner. If you

need local assistance in contacting Accessibility Services, see the Bachelor and Graduate

Programs office.

mailto:thowardz@unm.edumailto:thowardz@unm.edumailto:thowardz@unm.edu

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SyllabusAstronomy Fall 2013

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Academic Integrity: The University of New Mexico believes that academic honesty is a

foundation principle for personal and academic development. All University policies

regarding academic honesty apply to this course. Academic dishonesty includes, but isnot limited to, cheating or copying, plagiarism, fabricating information or citations,

facilitating acts of dishonesty by others, having unauthorized possession of examinations,

submitting work of another person or work previously used without informing theinstructor, or tampering with the academic work of other students. The Universitys fullstatement on academic honesty and the consequences for failure to comply is available in

the college catalog and in thePathfinder.

Cell phones, laptops, etc: Please mute or turn off your cell phones or other electronic

gadgets while in class.

Course Website: will be available next class; used for reference materials

Class schedule and reading list by week and topic: approximate

Date Topics Textchapters

Week of(Monday)

Week 1 Introduction,practical astronomy

Ch. 0, 1 Aug 19

Week 2 Planetary motion Ch.1, 2 Aug 26

Week 3 Light & Telescopes Ch. 2, 3 Sep 2

Week 4 Solar System

*** NOTE ***

Ch. 4, 5 Sep 9

** No class 9/12 **

Week 5 Earth, Moon, Terrestrial

Planets

Ch. 5, 6 Sep 16

Week 6 Jovian Planets Ch. 7, 8 Sep 23

Week 7 The Sun Ch. 9 Sep 30

Week 8 The stars Ch. 10 Oct 7

Fall Break Thurs 10/10 ** No class 10/10 **

Week 9 Stars, Interstellarmedium

Ch. 10, 11 Oct 14

Week 10 Stellar evolution Ch. 12, 13 Oct 21

Week 11 The Milky Way Ch. 14 Oct 28

Week 12 Galaxies Ch. 15, 16 Nov 4

Week 13 Intro to Cosmology Ch. 16, 17 Nov 11

Week 14 Cosmology Ch. 17 Nov 18Week 15 Life in the Universe

Thanksgiving week

Ch. 18 Nov 25

** No class 11/28 **

Week 16 Exoplanets, Astrobiology Ch. 18 Dec 2