Catalog Description: An introductory course, will concentrate on the origin, life, and fate of the solar system, the various bodies in the solar system (planets, satellites, meteors, comets, and asteroids), the solar system mechanics. Theories about the structure and origin
Semester Credit Hours: 4 Lecture Hours per Week: Lab Hours per Week: Contact Hours per Semester: 64 State Approval Code: 4002015100
Course Subject/Catalog Number:
PHYS 1411
Course Title: Introductory Astronomy I
Core Curriculum: State Criteria
Basic Intellectual Competencies (Those marked with a √ reflect the state-mandated
competencies taught in this course.)
Perspectives (Those marked with a √ reflect the state-mandated perspectives
taught in this course.)
Establish broad and multiple perspectives
on the individual in relationship to the larger society and world in which
he/she lives, and to understand the responsibilities of living in a culturally
and ethnically diversified world.
Stimulate a capacity to discuss and
reflect upon individual, political, economic, and social aspects of life in
order to understand ways in which to be a responsible member of society.
Recognize the importance
of maintaining health and wellness.
Develop a capacity to use knowledge
of how technology and science affect their lives.
Develop personal values for ethical
behavior.
Develop the ability to make
aesthetic judgments.
Use logical reasoning in problem solving.
Integrate knowledge and understand
the interrelationships of the scholarly disciplines.
Exemplary Objectives (Those marked with a √ reflect state-mandated exemplary
objectives taught in this course.)
Natural Sciences: The objective of the study of
a natural sciences component of a core curriculum is to enable the student
to understand, construct, and evaluate relationships in the natural sciences,
and to enable the student to understand the bases for building and testing
theories.
To understand and apply method and appropriate technology to the study
of natural sciences.
To recognize scientific and quantitative methods and the differences
between these approaches and other methods of inquiry and to communicate
findings, analyses, and interpretation both orally and in writing.
To identify and recognize the differences among competing scientific
theories.
To demonstrate knowledge of the major issues and problems facing modern
science, including issues that touch upon ethics, values and public
policies.
To demonstrate knowledge of the interdependence of science and technology
and their influence on, and contribution to, modern culture.
Instructional Goals and Purposes:
Lee College's instructional goals include 1) creating an academic atmosphere
in which students may develop their intellects and skills and 2) providing
courses so students may receive a certificate/an associate degree or transfer
to a senior institution that offers baccalaureate degrees.
General Course Objectives:
Successful completion of this course will promote the general student learning
outcomes listed below. The student will be able
To become acquainted with the basic fundamental physical laws and principles
which govern and give meaning to our universe.
To develop an understanding of scientific methods and the evolution
of scientific
thought.
To explain physical phenomena in proper, clear, technical terms.
To correctly identify basic physical principles and specify the procedural
knowledge to arrive at a solution for some desired unknown, when presented
with problem situations.
To demonstrate mathematical skills necessary to carry an argument from
the
"givens" to the "to finds" alluded in (4) above.
To develop laboratory techniques of experimenting, measuring, data
evaluation,
presentation of results, and drawing inferences from these results.
Specific Course Objectives:
Upon successful completion of the course, the student will be able
To explain changes in the definition of astronomy.
To develop appreciation of the early history of astronomy.
To develop a general idea of the basic structure of the universe.
To define fundamental astronomical terms.
To explain the evolution of and notion of the earth-moon system.
To discuss evidence of the earth’s motion.
To explain the relationship between the earth’s rotation and celestial
coordinates.
To discuss the earth’s age, origin, evolution, and structure.
To describe gravitational force.
To describe the general structure of the solar system.
To describe the structure of the sun and how it produces energy.
To describe the arrangement, structure, and compositions of the solar
system,
including the sun, planets, and non-planetary bodies.
Course Content:
Students will be required to do the following:
INTRODUCTION
Describe the solar system and name its components.
Discuss the nature of the differences between the Sun and the planets.
Explain the difference between a solar system and a galaxy.
Describe the forces involved in holding together atoms, components of
solar systems and galaxies and galaxy clusters.
History of Astronomy
Explain the reasons why Earth experiences seasons.
Explain the logic involved in the early Greek belief that the earth
was a sphere.
Explain how Eratosthenes determined the size of the earth.
Explain how Eratosthenes determined the relative sizes of and distances
to the earth, moon, and sun.
Discuss the significance of Galileo’s telescopic observations
of the moon, Jupiter, Venus and the sun relative to the debate pitting
the heliocentric and geocentric models against one another.
Explain Kepler’s three laws pertaining to the planetary orbits.
Gravity and Motion
Explain the meaning of each of Newton’s laws of motion and give
an example where each is used.
Explain how the mass and radius of a body influences its surface gravity.
Determine the orbital velocity of a planet knowing the sun’s mass and
the planet’s distance from the sun.
Light and Atoms
Describe the wave and particle nature of light.
Describe the electromagnetic spectrum.
Explain how the Stefan-Boltzmann law and Wien’s law influences
the appearance of stars and enables astronomers to distinguish among
stars.
Distinguish between absorption, emission and continuous spectrums.
Describe the structure of an atom and explain how spectral lines
are related to the movement of electrons from one energy level to
another.
Describe the Doppler effect and explain its significance in the spectrum
of a star.
The Earth
Describe the size and shape of the earth.
Describe the internal structure of the earth.
Describe the changes in composition and density of the earth’s
interior zones.
Discuss what plate tectonics is and the importance of it in shaping
the geology of the earth.
Describe the chemical makeup of the earth’s atmosphere and its
origin.
Describe the structure of the earth atmosphere and the importance
of the ozone layer.
The Moon
Describe the moon’s surface features.
Contrast the moon with the earth in terms of its mass, volume, density
and geologic activity.
Contrast the rocks which are found in the lunar highlands with those
of the lunar maria.
Describe the current theory for the moon’s origin.
Explain the conditions under which eclipses of both the sun and moon
occur and their frequency.
Explain the relationship between lunar phases and tides.
Survey of the Solar System
Describe and discuss the two classes of planets found in the solar
system.
Describe the formation of the solar system from a solar nebula.
Discuss the effect that the distance from the sun has on the characteristics
of the planets as they formed out of the solar nebula.
Describe the kind of world one would have experienced on Earth or
any other planet during the first billion years of the solar system.
The Terrestrial Planets
Describe the location of Mercury and Venus in the solar system and
explain how this impacts on when and where they are best observed
from Earth.
Contrast Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars in terms of their mass,
size, density, temperature, atmosphere, and geologic activity.
Describe Mars location in the solar system and explain how this impacts
on when and where it is best observed from Earth.
The Outer Planets
Contrast the outer planets with the inner planets in terms of their
compositions, the state of their matter, masses, densities, sizes,
presence of moons, and temperatures.
Describe the visible features of Jupiter and explain the variations
in color of these features.
Explain the source of the strong magnetic fields associated with both
Jupiter and distinctive surfaces.
Contrast the geology of the four Galilean moons of Jupiter as revealed
by their distinctive surfaces.
Describe the makeup of the rings of Saturn.
Contrast Neptune and Uranus with Jupiter and Saturn.
Meteors, Asteroids, and Comets
Describe the location of the majority of asteroids in the solar system
and discuss the nature of these objects.
Describe the role that an asteroid may have played in the evolution
of live on Earth about 65 million years ago.
Discuss the makeup and origin of comets and describe their orbits within
the solar system.
Explain how and why the appearance of a comet changes as it orbits
the sun.
Explain the relationship of comets to meteor showers on Earth.
Explain the significance of the Kuiper belt of comets and the Oort
cloud.
Contrast meteoroids and asteroids and comets and explain where most
of them probably come from.
The Sun
Describe the structure of the internal sun.
Explain the significance of the granular structures observed in the
sun’s
photosphere.
Describe the structure of the sun’s atmosphere.
Describe the appearance of a sunspot and explain what its appearance
tells about the temperatures near such a spot.
Explain how sunspots change over 11 and 22 year cycles.
Explain the source of the energy flowing out from the sun and why
this energy is generated only in the sun’s core.
Describe the flow of energy from the sun’s core, through the body
of the sun and out into space.
Explain what hydrostatic equilibrium in a star is and why it is important
Methods of Instruction/Course Format/Delivery:
Faculty may choose from but are not limited to the following methods of instruction: lecture,
discussion, Internet, video, television, demonstrations, field trips, collaboration,
readings.
Assessment:
Faculty may assign both in-
and out-of-class activities to evaluate students' knowledge and abilities. Faculty
may choose from the following methods:
Attendance
Book reviews
Class preparedness and participation
Collaborative learning projects
Compositions
Exams/tests/quizzes
Homework
Internet
Journals
Library assignments
Readings
Research papers
Scientific observations
Student-teacher conferences
Written assignments
Course Grade:
Students' final grades are determined by:
Exams
30% to 50%
Homework/Quizzes
10% to 20%
Laboratory Work
20% to 30%
Other
0% to 10%
Final Exam
15% to 30%
Students' final grades are determined by the following grading scheme:
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