This course is a non-mathematical presentation of knowledge of the content and history of the cosmos. Students will also learn the constellations and have an opportunity to observe celestial objects through the telescopes on campus.

The first class in a two semester sequence for those who are strongly interested in astronomy.

Required for the Astronomy Major and Minor.

Prerequisites: Math 112, 113 and Physics 121

Topics covered are:

• Newtonian Dynamics
• Physics of Light and Matter
• Solar System Survey- dynamics, planetary surfaces and atmospheres
• Stellar Radiation

This course is offered Fall Semesters only.

The second class in a two semester sequence for those who are strongly interested in astronomy.

It is required for the Astronomy Major and Minor.

Prerequisites: Math 112 and 113, Physics 121, and Physics 227.

Topics covered are:

• Stellar Atmospheres, Interiors, Evolution
• Interstellar Matter
• Galactic Structure
• External Galaxies and Cosmology

This course is offered Winter Semesters only.

This course is designed for Majors and Minors in Astronomy, but is open to other qualified students. Students should have taken Physics 227 and Physics 228, with only limited exceptions being made. This course requires a lot of time, much of it at night, and is not a class to take if you already have a heavy class load.

Students will receive instruction on using the 16" DDT telescope in the Eyring Science Center, and on using the CCD camera system and software. Students should leave the course with the ability to take and reduce a variety of data, write a telescope proposal, and prepare a journal article. This is also a good starting point for a senior project.

The first class in a two semester sequence that is fundamental for any long term study of astronomy.

Prerequisites: General Astronomy course is useful.

This course is required for the Astronomy Major and Minor.

Topics covered are:

• Celestial coordinate systems
• Survey of the basic observational data
• Astronomical spectrographs
• The classification and interpretation of stellar spectra

This course is offered Fall Semesters only.

The second semester class of a sequence that is fundamental for those who want to study astronomy and astrophysics.

Prerequisites: Physics 427 or Professor's approval.

This course is required for the Astronomy Major and Minor.

Topics covered are:

• Broadening mechanisms of stellar absorption lines
• Abundances of the elements derived from astronomical data
• Radial velocity measurements
• Binary systems
• Astronomical photometry
• Variable stars
• Stellar structure
• Source of stellar energy
• Stellar evolution

This course is offered Winter semesters only.

No description available.

This course is intended to be a continuation of Physics 329 and will teach hands on research methods and telescope operations. The students will be taught the use of the research equipment. Then the students will be expected to apply that knowledge to research projects, which fit into the overall research goals of the BYU Astronomy Group.

Divisions of Class:

• Telescopes and Instrumentation
• Spectroscopy
• Photometry
• Statistical Methods

No description available.

Prerequisites: Physics 427 and 428 or their equivalent.

Covers the major physical processes in and the structure of stellar atmospheres. Specific topics include:

• Measures of radiation
• Radiative transfer
• Thermal Radiation: the Planck function and its implicatio
• Scattering and absorption, separately and in combination
• The Eddington approximation
• Continuous absorption
• Gray and non-gray atmospheric models
• Pressure stratification
• Line-formation theory, broadening mechanisms
• The curve of growth

No description available.

Prerequisites: Physics 427 and 428 or their equivalent.

Covers the major physical processes and conditions in the interstellar medium. Specific topics include:

• Two-level and three-level atomic models
• Collisional excitation and cooling
• Radiative processes: absorption lines, recombination lines, two-photon emission, free-free spectra, the 21-cm emission line, molecular spectra, masers, Bowen's fluorescence mechanism
• Zanstra's Method
• Curve of growth
• Galactic structure inferred from the 21-cm line
• Dust, reddening and polarization
• Faraday rotation
• The galactic magnetic field
• Stromgren spheres
• Shock fronts and ionization fronts

No description available.

The study the nature of galaxies. Specific topics include:

• The Hubble sequence
• Irregulars, spirals and ellipticals
• Spiral structure and its causes
• Galaxy clusters
• Galaxy interactions
• Effects of environment on galaxies
• Galaxy formation
• Galaxy evolution
• Active galactic nuclei
• Quasars

The study the nature of galaxies and cosmology. Specific topcs include:

• Extragalactic distance scale
• The Cosmic Microwave Background
• Newtonian cosmology
• Relativistic cosmology
• The inflationary big bang model

Some time will be spent discussing current affairs in this rapidly evolving field.