|
 Academic Year:
| 2015/6 |
| Owning Department/School:
| Department of Physics |
| Credits:
| 3 |
| Level:
| Certificate (FHEQ level 4) |
| Period: |
Semester 2 |
| Assessment Summary:
| EX 100% |
| Assessment Detail: |
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| Supplementary Assessment: |
Mandatory extra work (where allowed by programme regulations) |
| Requisites: | You must have A levels (or equivalent) in Physics and Mathematics to take this unit. |
| Description:
| Aims: The aim of this unit is to provide a broad introduction to astronomy and astrophysics. An additional aim is that the student's appreciation of important physical phenomena such as gravitation and blackbody radiation should be reinforced through their study in astrophysical contexts. Learning Outcomes: After taking this unit the student should be able to: * describe the physical properties of stars and galaxies; * give qualitative accounts of how the Sun and planets were formed; * give a general description of stellar evolution; * give a general description of the expanding Universe and its large-scale structure; * solve straightforward problems concerning orbital motion, blackbody radiation, stellar luminosity and magnitude, Hubble's Law. Skills: Numeracy T/F A, Problem Solving T/F A. Content: Astrophysical Techniques (2 hours): Telescopes and detectors. Invisible astronomy: X-rays, gamma-rays, infrared and radio astronomy. Gravitational force and potential energy. Weight and mass. Circular orbits; Kepler's Laws; planetary motion. Escape velocity. Solar System (2 hours): Earth-Moon system. Terrestrial planets; Jovian planets. Planetary atmospheres. Comets and meteoroids. Formation of the solar system. Structure of the sun. Stars (4 hours): The interstellar medium and star birth. Stellar distances, magnitudes, luminosities; black-body radiation; stellar classification; Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. Stellar Evolution. Star death: white dwarfs, neutron stars. Galaxies (3 hours): Galactic structure; classification of galaxies. The Large scale structure of the Universe. Hubble's Law. The expanding universe. The hot Big Bang. Cosmic background radiation and the ripples therein. |
| Programme availability: |
PH10103 is Compulsory on the following programmes:Department of Physics
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