Syllabus for Roster(s):

  • 17Sp ASTR 1230-100 (CGAS)
In the UVaCollab course site:   17Sp ASTR 1230

ASTR 1230 Spring 2017 Syllabus

Comet Hale Bopp over the Rotunda

Introduction to Astronomical Observation

Astronomy 1230

Spring 2017


 

Contact Information:

 

Name Office Office Hours Lab Hours Email
Mark Whittle
 Instructor
Astronomy 216 M,W after class, or by appointment Varies dmw8f@virginia.edu
Yiqing Song
Head TA
Astronomy 263 n/a Mon 8-11 PM ys7jf@virginia.edu
Chris Hayes
 Lab TA
Astronomy 267 n/a   Tue 8-11 PM crh7gs@virginia.edu
Yiqing Song
 Head TA
Astronomy 263 n/a Wed 8-11 PM ys7jf@virginia.edu
Chris Hayes
 Lab TA
Astronomy 267 n/a Thu 8-11 PM crh7gs@virginia.edu

Student Observatory Room: 924 0678      Weather update info:  924 7238

 

Course Description:

Astronomy 1230 is an observational/laboratory course intended to familiarize you with the general features of the night sky and the astronomical objects that can be studied with small instruments, including binoculars, small telescopes, and cameras. It will develop your skills in operating astronomical instrumentation and in making and analyzing scientific observations. By the end of the course, you will be a competent amateur astronomer, able to operate astronomical equipment, and be familiar with many sky phenomena.

The course has two main components: lectures and observational projects.

  • Lectures: The lectures will be given Monday and Wednesday, 10 to 10:50am in Clark 107. They will cover the observable phenomena in the night sky, principles of telescopes, and the basic observational techniques used in the laboratory work. It is important to attend all lectures. Lecture material will be covered on both the weekly quizzes and the final exam.
  • Observatory Work: The emphasis in the course is on making your own observations of the sky using your eyes, binoculars, telescopes, and other equipment such as cameras. Most work for this course will take place at the Student Observatory, which is in the U-shaped building located immediately to the west of the Astronomy Building on McCormick Road (see the Astronomy Laboratory Maps). The Observatory Support Office and equipment storage is in room G25.
Good observing conditions are at a premium, and you will not be able to complete all required work by observing only on the one night of the week for which you registered. You need to be prepared to take advantage of good weather conditions whenever they occur and to work at the Student Observatory on any night from Monday through Thursday.
Therefore, to achieve a good grade in this class, you must adjust your personal schedule to the course, not vice-versa. If you think this will be a problem for you, please consider taking another Astronomy course. We do not recommend that you take ASTR 1230 if you have a regular commitment that conflicts with the 8-11 PM M-Th lab hours.



 

 

Previous Astronomy?

ASTR 1210 (Solar System Astronomy) or ASTR 1220 (Stars & Galaxies) will help provide some context for some of the material in ASTR 1230, though I do not require them as pre-co-requisites. If you have not already taken one of these courses, you may want to learn some background about the objects you'll be looking at, and/or ask the TAs about them when you are observing.

Web Pages:

The ASTR 1230 Collab Pages contain all announcements and information on all course policies, assignments, deadlines, weekly interactive quizzes, grading, and grades. If you have questions, this is the first place to look. These pages also contain links to supporting web sites on current astronomical phenomena, weather, astronomical observations, and so forth. The Collab Page is a secure site, and you will need your UVa login and NetBadge password to access it.


Lecture notes are posted on the ASTR 1230 Collab Page. These include (a) copies of the power-point slides I will show in class, and (b) a fuller set of notes that serve as a "textbook". It would be best if you look over the power-point slides before coming to class and were prepared with questions. You can print out the power-point slides to mark up during class, rather than attempting to hurriedly take detailed notes.

Texts and Supplies:

Texts are available in the UVa Bookstore.

  •  Astronomy 1230 Laboratory Manual, Current Edition (UVa Astronomy Department)
  •  The Night Sky Star Finder "Sky Wheel" - Northern Hemisphere (Chandler)
  •  The Edmund Mag 5 Star Atlas
You will also need to purchase a small flashlight (e.g. a Mini-Maglite). Be sure to buy one with a red filter; if you can't find one with a red filter, we can provide a makeshift red filter on your first night at the lab. You should always bring a flashlight with you to the Observatory. Please Note:  A smart phone cannot be used as a flashlight for this course. Even if the screen is set to be "red", the LED light will damage your night-adapted vision (and that of your classmates as well).

 

Electronic devices during class:

Devices can only be used during class for class material. Texting, reading email, watching YouTube, checking Facebook, etc. is not allowed. It is disruptive to myself and other students.

 

Observatory Schedule and Orientation

  •  The Student Observatory is open, weather permitting, Monday through Thursday nights 8-11 PM all semester. The Observatory will close promptly at the end of the scheduled period. This means that you will need to have your equipment put away before 11pm.

  • In the first full week of class, students meet in ASTR 265 for an orientation session. We will show you how to use your star wheels, and acquaint you with the Observatory facilities and procedures. Once you are familiar with the Observatory, you may work on any night that it is open, regardless of your formal registration. You will need to take advantage of this flexibility due to the unpredictability of the weather (see next section).

Weather Warning and Personal Scheduling

  •  The Observatory will be closed under adverse weather conditions (clouds, fog, rain). The TA's will decide whether the Observatory can open by 6:30 PM each night and post an Observatory status telephone message at 434-924-7238 at that time. Call this number for information if the weather conditions are questionable. At their discretion, the TA's can open the Observatory if conditions improve after 6:30 and will post an updated recording. Students are encouraged to use such nights, but any night that is not declared "open" by 6:30 will not count against the official quota of "clear nights."
  •  Although you are allowed to set your own schedule for attending the Observatory, you are also responsible for completing each laboratory by the posted deadline. Deadlines and penalties for missing them are discussed further below.
  • Good observing conditions are at a premium, and you will not be able to complete all required work by observing only on the one night of the week for which you registered. You need to be prepared to take advantage of good weather conditions whenever they occur and to work at the Student Observatory on any night from Monday through Thursday.
  • Therefore, to achieve a good grade in this class, you must adjust your personal schedule to the course, not vice-versa. If you think this will be a problem for you, please consider taking another Astronomy course. We do not recommend that you take ASTR 1230 if you have a regular commitment that conflicts with the 8-11 PM M-R lab hours.

 

    Preparation for Observing

  1. You are expected to be well prepared for lab work in this course. TA's will not have much time for individual instruction, so your progress will depend on your self-motivation and independence. You should be completely familiar with the goals, procedures, and technique for each lab before you go to the Student Observatory.

  2.  Bring the lab manual, observing sheets, star charts (the Edmund Mag 5 Star Atlas and the Sky Wheel), flashlight, notebook, pencil & eraser, etc. with you to every observing session.

  3. Before attempting any particular lab assignment, you should carefully read the corresponding chapter in the manual. A clear understanding of what is expected in each lab will save valuable time during the limited lab hours with clear skies. Note that it is awkward to consult written material when you are working in the dark(!), so the more pre-observing preparation, the better.

  4.  You should understand the observing conditions required for each lab and plan your activities well in advance. Some labs can only be done during certain phases of the Moon. Others require particularly good observing conditions (e.g. Meteors). The Variable Star Lab requires (brief) observations made over a period of 2 months. The "Time Estimate" section of each lab writeup in the Manual will alert you to special considerations.

  5. Most labs are best done during the darkest skies, i.e. in the two-week period centered on New Moon. A brief sky calendar is included at the end of this syllabus. For more complete information, you can consult some of the links from the ASTR 1230 home page.

  6. You must have filled out part of the standard observing forms used to record binocular or telescope observations before starting to observe. Preferably do this before coming to the observatory. See details in the next section.

  7.  Reference materials: The Manual and the Edmund Atlas will provide most of the background information you will need in the course, but other reference materials can be obtained from the TA's or on the Internet. See the Web Links Page for a list of relevant sites.

General Observatory Procedures - You must follow these for each lab!

  •  The TA's will provide general orientation during the first full week of the semester. You must attend an orientation session that week during the hours for which you are registered for lab (regardless of the weather).

  •  You will do the Constellation Lab (Lab 1) in small groups. Group sessions will take place during the first two usable nights on or after Monday, January 30.

  •  The TA's will help you in learning to use the 8-in telescopes as part of doing Lab 3 (Introduction to Small Telescopes). After that, you should require relatively little help with normal observing procedures.

  •  Signing In: You must sign in on the Student Log Sheet when you arrive at the Observatory.

  •  Equipment: We provide all the equipment you will need to complete the labs. This is, however, expensive and in limited supply. Be careful when setting it up and using it. Be patient, think before you act, and never force anything. If there is a problem, do not hesitate to ask the TA for help. Equipment must be checked out; there are separate log sheets for equipment items. Celestron 8-in computer-controlled telescopes (at right) will be used this semester.

  •  Observing Forms: Observations made with the binoculars and telescopes must be recorded on special supplied forms. As part of lab preparation, you are expected to fill out the first part of each observing form for each object you plan to observe before an observing session. The Manual describes how to fill out a form. An example is shown in the Manual and also at this site, from which you can download a digital copy of a blank form. Forms are also available in the Observatory Support Office (Rm. G25). Be sure that you make all required entries on observing forms, since they are an important part of your grade.   

  • Before filling out observing forms, be sure that the objects of interest are well placed in the sky for that particular lab session. See Lecture 3.     

  • Group work: Because of the limited number of telescopes, you will usually work in groups of 2-4 students. You are allowed to observe together with a group as long as the responsibilities of finding objects are shared equally and each member of the group gets a chance to observe. In a group situation, students may collaborate on setting up the telescope. They should take turns operating the telescope and finding objects. However, once an object is located, everyone in the group must independently observe it and take his or her own data. See below for the policy on pledged work.

  • Safety: Conscientiously follow the safety guidelines given in the Introduction to the ASTR 1230 Manual.

  • Shut down: At the end of each observing session, you should return the equipment to its storage place in the Support Office. Stow it carefully. Sign it back in. You are responsible for any equipment you have used. Please be prepared to complete your work for the evening and have equipment stored by the end of the scheduled Student Observatory hours.

  • Signatures: Each observing form which you fill out in the course of an evening's observing must be signed by the TA. Forms which are not signed will not be accepted for credit.

  •  Be sure you complete all required parts of each lab (see the Requirement Checklist for each lab). Failure to submit complete labs on time is the most common cause of poor grades. Keep up with the deadlines; unwary students who get behind can fail this course.

Independent Work


[Any material submitted for grading in this course is assumed to be entirely your own work and will be regarded as IMPLICITLY PLEDGED, whether it is pledged in writing or not. Students may work together in setting up and pointing telescopes, though each person should contribute to the effort. However, when you make an entry on an observing form (describing sky conditions or an object viewed through the telescope, for instance) you must do so without consulting anyone other than the instructor or a TA. It is not permissible to copy any material from anyone else's notebook or observing sheets. It is not permissible to collaborate with other students on the non-telescopic assignments. You must turn in your original notes and signed observing forms for each lab. Suspected violations of this policy will be referred to an Honor Advisor. If you have questions about this policy, you should consult with the instructor or a TA.]


Course Requirements and Grading


Your grade will be based on a nominal maximum possible score of 1000 points, earned from the weekly review quizzes, the final exam, and the completion of at least six laboratory exercises.

The review quizzes are intended to consolidate your understanding of the material in the lectures and reading on a weekly basis. They will be made available for interactive completion on the ASTR 1230 Collab site. Each quiz will be open for student access for one week and will close before the subsequent week's lecture. You should be sure to complete each quiz on time.

The quizzes, the midterm, and four of the labs (Chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4 in the Manual) are required of all students. The maximum possible score on the required work is 700 points.

You can choose among the remaining labs which to submit for the last 300 points. These are called "optional" labs. Two of these (Labs 10 and 12) involve observations of the Sun (and are carried out during the day). Contact the TA's to arrange sessions to undertake Labs 10 and 12. The optional labs are worth 150 points each. Therefore, you will have to do at least 2 optional labs to reach the nominal 1000 point maximum possible total. A complete list of the labs and the credit possible for each is given in Table 2 below.

Final grades will be assigned on the basis of a nominal perfect score of 1000 points. But the following grade breaks are guaranteed: 950 = A-; 850 = B-; 750 = C-. If your total score reaches these levels you are guaranteed to receive these letter grades or higher.

Lab reports are expected to be well organized, neatly presented, and clear. For this reason, hand-written work, other than the standard observing forms and data sheets provided with some of the laboratories, will not be accepted. You should word-process the text of submitted labs. Follow the instructions in Appendices D and E of the Lab Manual for writing up reports.


Deadlines


It is important that you work continuously throughout the semester to complete your lab work. To help you stay on track, there are firm deadlines for submission of work, and a penalty of 15% of the possible credit will be applied per week for work turned in after a deadline.


An lab is late if it is not turned in by 4:30 PM on the due date. Only submit work in the special ASTR 1230 submission box located outside Room 267 in the Astronomy Building. Initial deadlines for each assignment are listed below in Table 1 but an up-to-date version list of all deadlines are on the Schedule page in Collab.

Note: Assignments are designed so that any student can complete the requirements even in the event of a large amount of bad weather if the student does not squander clear lab nights. If the weather is unusually bad, we will reschedule the deadlines for everyone. The class will be notified well in advance if changes are to be made. It is up to you to keep yourself informed of deadlines. You should regularly consult the Announcements Page and the Schedule Page on the ASTR 1230 Collab site. To put this simply, bad weather is not an excuse for missing deadlines.


The deadline for each of the weekly review quizzes, which will be open to you on Collab after each lecture, is 7 PM on the following Monday.

  • Note: you must do Lab 3 before attempting Lab 4 or any of the more advanced telescope labs.

Table 1: Schedule & Deadlines for Spring 2017

Check Schedule link in Collab for updates to any deadlines

 

Week
Starting
Lecture Topic Lab Work Assignments Due Moon Phase
Jan 13 Class Overview (W) Lab orientation    
Jan 23 Topic 1: Night Sky & Constellations Lab 1: Constellation Quiz First two clear nights  
Jan 30 Topic 1: Night Sky & Constellations Lab 2: Binocular Observing Lab 1 Due 2/3  
Feb 6 Topic 2: Telescopes. Lab 2: Binocular Observing   First Qtr (2/6)
Feb 13 Topic 2: Telescopes. Lab 3: Intro to Telescopes Lab 2 Due 2/17 Full (2/10)
Feb 20 Topic 3: Observing Techniques Lab 3: Intro to Telescopes    
Feb 27 Topic 3: Observing Techniques Lab 4: Telescope Observing Lab 3 Due 3/3  
March 6 SPRING BREAK NO LABS THIS WEEK  EDT starts 3/12 First Qtr (3/5)
March 13 Topic 4: Motions in the Sky Lab 4: Telescope Observing   Full (3/12) 
March 20 Choosing Remaining Labs Chosen Lab Lab 4 Due 3/24  
March 27 Topic 4: Motions in the Sky Chosen Lab    
April 3 Topic 5: Solar System Astronomy Chosen Lab   First Qtr (4/3)
April 10 Topic 6: Stars and Clusters Chosen Lab First Chosen Lab Due 4/14 Full (4/11) 
April 17 No Lectures Chosen Lab    
April 24 No Lectures Chosen Lab    
May 1 Review for Final Chosen Lab   ALL LABS DUE FRI 5/5 First Qtr (5/2)
May 11 FINAL EXAM (9am - noon)      

 


 
Table 2: Course Credit
 
Assignment Estimated Number
Lab Sessions
Maximum Points
Exams    
Weekly Review Quizzes: Lecture material n/a 75
Final Exam: Lecture material. n/a 125
     
Required Labs    
Lab 1: Constellations 1 100
Lab 2: Introduction to Binocular Observing 1 100
Lab 3: Introduction to Small Telescopes 2 150
Lab 4: Telescope Observing I 2 150
     
Optional** Observational Labs    
Lab 5: Telescopic Observations of the Moon 2 (150)
Lab 6: Pulsating Variable Stars 2-3/week (150)
Lab 7: Telescope Observing II 3 (150)
Lab 8: Astrophotography 2-3 (150)
Lab 9: Meteor Shower 1 (150)
Lab 10: Rotation of the Sun/Sunspots 5-6 (daytime) (150)
Lab 11: Speed of Light/Eclipses of Io 1-2 (150)
Lab 12: Navigation by the Sun 1 (daytime) (150)
     
     
TOTAL expected submitted work   1000
** You must submit two optional labs worth a combined total of 300 maximum possible points.

 


SKY CALENDAR Spring 2017

 

For more details, see the Sky and Telescope "Sky at a Glance" Web Page

 

Charlottesville Sky at 9 PM, on Jan 30, 2017 (from Heavens Above)

Solar System Objects for Spring 2017

This is  a good semester for viewing the planets in the evening.

  • Mercury not visible during lab hours this semester, but visible in W sky after Sunset in early September
  • Venus is bright in the evening sky until mid March
  • Mars is visible in the early evening until June, moving through Pisces (Jan) Aries (March) Taurus (April)
  • Jupiter is visible in Lab hours until March (Opposition April 7)
  • Saturn isn't visible in Lab hours this semester
  • Uranus and Neptune are visible all semester

 Visibility:

  • Jan 12: Venus at maximum eastern elongation
  • Jan 19: Jupiter close to moon in sky; 3rd quarter moon.
  • Jan 28: New moon
  • Feb 3: 1st Quarter Moon
  • Feb 10: Full Moon, penumbral eclipse (link)
  • Feb 15: Jupiter close to moon in sky
  • Feb 18: 3rd quarter moon
  • Feb 26: New Moon, annular solar eclipse (not visible in US)
  • March 3:  Moon at perigee
  • March 5: 1st quarter moon
  • March 12: Full Moon
  • March 14: Jupiter close to moon in sky
  • March 20: Spring Equinox (5am EST); 3rd quarter moon
  • April 1: Mercury at maximum eastern elongation
  • April 3: 1st quarter moon
  • April 7: Jupiter at Opposition
  • April 10: Jupiter close to moon in sky
  • April 11: Full Moon
  • April 19: 3rd quarter moon
  • April 26: New moon
  • May 3: 1st quarter moon

Last modified Jan 2017 by DMW