Astronomy 103 Moons and Planets Spring 2006

 252 JSMC 9:00 - 10:00 MWF; 7:00 - 10:00 pm Tuesday

Group 1 Lab, Q 

Dr. M. P. Kertzman 233 JSMC kertzman@depauw.edu

academic.depauw.edu/~kertzman/astro103s06/a103s06.htm

1. Course Goals
2. Text and other required materials
3. Course overview
4. Course Web Site
5. Schedule
6. Office hours
7. Q certification
8. Course Grade
9. Exams and assignments
10. Lab

COURSE GOALS:

1. To gain an understanding and appreciation of the daily and yearly motion of the objects in our sky. To ancient humans the motions of the heavens had an important significance in their everyday lives. In our modern technological times, most people are not even aware of what happens in the sky. I hope that you gain an understanding of why things move as they do, and also gain a sense of wonder at how much you can learn just by observing the sky.
2. To learn about the physical characteristics of the objects in the solar system.
3. To obtain a basis for understanding current and future exploration of the solar system.
4. To gain an appreciation of the unique interactions between Earth, its inhabitants, and interplanetary space.
5. To learn to use the Internet to keep current on planetary exploration.
6. To be able to understand popular level astronomy articles in magazines such as Sky and Telescope and Astronomy and Scientific American.
7. To practice your quantitative and mathematical skills.

• Astronomy Today Volume 1 The Solar System, fifth edition edition, Chaisson and McMillan, Available at DPU  and Fine print bookstores. 
• Calculator. Always bring a calculator to class and lab. It is best to always have one with you. It does not need to be fancy, but should have trigonometric functions. 
• Class/lab Folder: Instead of having you purchase a separate lab textbook, we assemble a folder of materials you need for labs. Your account will be charged $10 (or less)  for the lab folder. This is non-refundable! 
• Lab kit (cross staff, quadrant and compass): The lab kit will be handed out at the first lab in which you need the tools.  A $10 lab deposit will be charged to your account, and will be refunded when you return the instruments at the end of the semester.

• Clear plastic ruler (metric, clear)
• Compass (to draw circles)
• Protractor
• Pencils for lab (not pens). Colored pencils are useful for some labs. I have some, but probably not enough to go around. 
• A loose-leaf notebook is preferred for this course. There will be many handouts and in-class activities which would be best kept integrated with your notes in a loose-leaf binder.
• Always bring a ruler (metric, clear) and a protractor to lab.
• On most activities in class and lab I prefer you to use a pencil, so please be sure to have a pencil and an eraser at all times.

COURSE OVERVIEW

There are three main themes for the course: observational astronomy, characteristics of the solar system, and the Earth and its relation to its space environment. Each of these themes will be visited throughout the semester (rather than following through them one after the other). Specific topics related to each theme are listed below.

1. Observational astronomy of the solar system
• motion of the sun, planets, and comets
• identification of constellations
• observations of the moon and planets
• celestial coordinate systems
• systems of time
2. The Solar System
• The Planets, with particular emphasis on Mars, the Moon, and the Galilean moons
• Comets and asteroids
• The Sun
• Formation of the solar system
• The search for other planetary systems
3. Earth and its space environment
• the space program
• exploration of the planets
• Threat of asteroid/comet impact on Earth
• Aurora, Earth's geomagnetic field, and the boundary between Earth and Space

COURSE WEB SITE

The web site for this class can be found at:  academic.depauw.edu/~kertzman/astro103s06/a103s06.htm  The web site contains the full schedule, detailed weekly schedules, announcements about assignments, useful links, study questions, and other resources for the class. Links on the weekly schedule pages will take you to the Power Point shows used in class. These will be available after each class. The Power Point slide shows are located on the class I drive account, and you must be logged into the local Novell network in order to link to them.

SCHEDULE

A schedule for the entire semester is available online here. The full schedule gives you an overview of the entire semester. It also lists corresponding readings from the text, as well as exam and major assignment dates. Detailed weekly schedules will also be posted on the full schedule page. These schedules list topics day by day, as well as text readings, any additional readings, and any due assignments. Links to study questions  for each week are given as well. I prefer the course to be flexible and to take extra time on a topic if needed, or allow time for relevant current events in astronomy. However, as a consequence of being flexible, the schedule may vary. In particular, the detailed weekly schedules should not be considered final until 5:00 p.m. on the previous Friday. Any weekly schedule with the label "preliminary" is just that: a preliminary estimate of where I think we will be. At the end of each  week, I will adjust the next week's schedule as needed to accommodate what we actually did in class. The weekly schedules contain links to study questions for the course. The study questions are organized by the planed weekly topic and are ordered in the order we will cover them.  The study questions are further grouped (and posted) to match the content of the exams.

My office hours this semester are 1:30 - 3:30  Monday and Wednesday. I am also available by appointment. Check with me in class to make an appointment if these office hours do not fit your schedule. If you find that this policy is not working for you please tell me so I can change it. When you come to my office, I ask that you come prepared with your questions organized and readily available.

Q CERTIFICATION: Certain labs and homework assignments are designated as "Q". Parts of the exams and lab exams will also be "Q". To achieve "Q" certification, you must have an average of "C" or better on all designated "Q" work AND have a "C" grade for the course. It is possible to pass the course but not receive a "Q"; it is not possible to fail the course and receive a "Q".

COURSE GRADE:

Your final grade is determined from the following scale:

• 90% - 100% A
• 80%- 89% B
• 70% - 79% C
• 60% - 69% D
• <60% F

Your final course grade is based on the following factors:

• Exam 1: 22%
• Exam 2: 22%
• Lab: 22%
• Assignments: 10%
• Final Exam: 24%

Assignments and Exams:

There will be 2 - 6 short graded written assignments. These will factor into the "assignments" part of your final grade.

There are two mid semester exams and a three hour comprehensive final exam. The format of the exams will be discussed in detail in advance of the first exam. There are no makeups for exams except in the most extreme situations (e.g. hospitalization, serious injury etc). The exam dates are given below.

Optional Bonus Assignments: There will be five short (1-2 page) optional  assignments. Many of these will be based on information from the internet. The grade for these is added on to the top of your overall grade, so in effect  these are "extra credit" assignments. There will actually be six of these assignments, but I will only count five of them towards your bonus grade. Each assignment if worth 0.5% of the total final grade, and collectively these assignments are worth 2.5%. This is enough to raise your grade one level, e.g. from a "B" to a "B+". Although optional from a grading standpoint, most of these assignments are constructed to be a starting point for other graded assignments. Each assignment is graded on a 10 point scale. Work that is the bare minimum requested in the assignment will receive 7 out of 10 points (essentially a C-) . Papers that show evidence of superior effort and work will receive 8 - 10 points out of 10. Papers that show less than the bare minimum requested will receive less than 7 points. Due dates for these assignments are listed on the semester schedule. Since these are optional, and you have 6 opportunities to turn in 5, late assignments will not be accepted for any reason! Assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date. 

LAB:

Lab meets at McKim Observatory or 252 JSMC, Tuesday, 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.

The lab has two major purposes. First, it strives to help you become familiar with the nighttime sky. Becoming familiar with the night time sky includes learning to identify and find constellations, observing the motions of stars and planets, learning how to measure locations in the sky, and observing the planets. This is also your chance to learn to use a telescope. Secondly, the lab is a time to explore material from class in a different context, and to learn some of the methods used by astronomers to study the objects in our solar system.

Lab is Tuesday evening, 7:00 - 10:00 pm. In general, lab will begin indoors, in room 252 Julain. In a typical lab evening, we will work on a project indoors for about 2 hours, then, if its clear, go to McKim for an hour of observing. Occasionally, we may meet at McKim for the full lab period.

A schedule of these labs is given on the course schedule. In addition to the regularly scheduled labs, there are required independent observing projects (discussed on a separate handout). These projects are relatively easy to do though they take some time, and form a significant portion of your lab grade, so please take them seriously!

Your lab grade is based on lab participation and lab proficiency. The proficiency grade is based on graded lab work and a lab exam.  Graded lab work includes informal lab reports (these will be data sheets and sample sample calculations, and will generally by due at the start of the next week's lab, though some may be due at the end the nights  lab), any formal lab reports (there will be between 0 and 4 formal lab reports) , and any other work lab related work  that may be assigned. Typically the graded work for each week's lab is worth 10 - 20 points. Your participation grade is based on actively participating in lab. Each lab is worth 10 participation points. By coming to lab and doing the activity, you earn all 10 points. If you miss a lab, for any reason, you receive 0 points for participation. If you are at lab, but not actively participating, you will earn between 1 and 9 points. In some cases you may be able to independently make up the lab work if you missed the lab, but you will not earn the participation points. Any independent makeup of missed lab work is due at the regular due date. No late work for labs will be accepted.

Your lab grade is based on the following factors:

• Graded lab work (including any formal reports): 40%
• Lab Exam: 30%
• Independent Observing Projects: 30%