|
|
Physics 172
Spring 2026
|
|
Stellar Astronomy & Cosmology
|
|
Course Materials:
-
Week 0:
1/21-23
Intro to Astronomy [Ch. 1, 2]
Physics 172
syllabus
Wednesday, January 21: Lecture 1: Course structure, science & astronomy, units & notation.
Wednesday, January 21: Lecture Notes: SI units, speed of light, light year.
Friday, January 23: Lecture 2: Distances with c, scientific notation, length scales, Erastosthenes.
Friday, January 23: Lecture Notes: Light years, exponents, and trigonometry.
Problem Set #1, due Friday, January 30, 2026 (hard copy, due in-class)
-
Week 1:
1/26-30
Basic Physics I: Motion and Orbits [Ch. 2, 3]
Monday, January 26: Class cancelled due to winter weather.
Wednesday, January 28: Lecture 3: Orbital basics, seasons, parallax, Kepler's laws.
Friday, January 30: Lecture 4: Constellations, Kepler's laws.
Friday, January 30: Lecture Notes: Kepler's 2nd law and aphelion and perihelion.
Problem Set #2 is due Friday, February 6 by 9:00 AM on ExpertTA.
-
Week 2:
2/2-6
Basic Physics II: Newton and Gravity [Ch. 3]
Monday, February 2: Lecture 5: Galileo, gravity, Galilean relativity, and Newton's laws.
Monday, February 2: Lecture Notes: Orbital speed vs orbital radius.
Monday, February 2: Participation Exercise: Kepler's orbits and orbital capture.
Wednesday, February 4: Lecture 6: Galilean relativity, Newton's laws, momentum and energy, gravity by Newton.
Wednesday, February 4: Lecture Notes: Conservation of momentum, rifle recoil.
Friday, February 6: Lecture 7: Newton's laws, circular motion, center of mass, angular momentum.
Friday, February 6: Lecture Notes: Acceleration due to Earth's gravity.
Problem Set #3 part 1 is due Friday, February 13 by 9:00 AM on ExpertTA.
Problem Set #3 part 2 is due Friday, February 13 in class.
-
Week 3:
2/9-13
Basic Physics III: Light and Matter [Ch. 5, 16.1-2]
Monday, February 9: Lecture 8: Potential energy, escape velocity, tidal forces, electromagnetic waves.
Monday, February 9: Lecture Notes: Newton's version of Kepler's 3rd law for mass determination.
Wednesday, February 11: Lecture 9: Electromagnetic spectrum, blackbody radiation, light pressure.
Wednesday, February 11: Lecture Notes: Blackbody radiation of a hot star.
Friday, February 13: Lecture 10: Blue sky, photons, atomic structure, spectroscopy, Doppler effect, nuclear particles.
Problem Set #4 is due Wednesday, February 18 by 9:00 AM on ExpertTA.
Extra practice problems for week 3 topics (ungraded)
-
Week 4:
2/16-20
Nuclear Physics & Astronomy Instruments [Ch. 5, 16.1-2, 6]
Monday, February 16: Lecture 11: Doppler effect, Nuclear particles, P-P chain solar fusion, charged (anti-)particles.
Monday, February 16: Lecture Notes: Doppler shift.
Wednesday, February 18: Lecture 12: Nuclear particles, neutrinos, astrolabe, refracting and reflecting telescopes.
Wednesday, February 18: Lecture Notes: Different types of ionizing radiation.
MIDTERM #1 is scheduled for Friday, February 20, 2026 (in-class)
Formula sheet for midterm #1
-
Week 5:
2/23-27
Astronomy Instruments [16.1-2, 6]
Monday, February 23: Lecture 13: Reflecting telescopes, angular resolution, adaptive optics.
Monday, February 23: Lecture Notes: Angular resolution of the Gemini telescope.
Wednesday, February 25: Lecture 14: Interlude 1, interferometry, CCD cameras, telescopes by wavelength.
Friday, February 27: Lecture 15: CCD cameras, telescopes, The Sun (visual tour, surface, internal structure, fusion).
Friday, February 27: Lecture Notes: Size of Betelgeuse.
Optional: Ring of fire eclipse photo on APOD: LINK
Optional: Ring of fire eclipse video on APOD: LINK
Problem Set #5 part 1 is due Friday, March 6 by 9:00 AM on ExpertTA.
Problem Set #5 part 2 is due Friday, March 6 in class.
Interlude 1: Essay topics and instructions (due on Monday, March 23)
Tentative Title Form (due on Monday, March 2)
The Interlude 1 essay should be submitted as a PDF on Gradescope: PHYS 172 course on Gradescope
|
|