Physics 406: Introduction to Astronomy

Welcome to "Introduction to Astronomy"!

  Term Paper: Due Mo, April 21, 11:59 pm
Submit into the Term Paper Assignment on Blackboard!

Take a look at the sky yourself!
This is part of what astronomy is about:
Taking in the wonders of the night sky.

If you are interested in further discussions on Cosmology and Beyond
Join the Class "Cosmology and Our View of the World", INCO 796
always taught in the Spring Semester, this year with
Prof. E. Möbius (Physics), Prof. T. Davis (Genetics), & Prof. W. DeVries (Philosophy)

Important Announcements will always be under the News tab!

Check your Class and Assignment Schedule! Reading is assigned for each class!

Here is a list of the music pieces played during the walk-in period at the beginning of class.

Important class material and your Grade Updates can be found on Blackboard

Current and Recent Events in the Sky:

• An unexpected flare-up of a normally inconspicuous comet occurred in October 2007. Comet P Holmes became prominently visible in the constellation Perseus for a few weeks. By the way, the "P" stands for periodical. This comet is on a known orbit about the Sun at distances between 3 and 5 AU. See also the photo gallery for comet P Holmes.
• Watch a Science Fiction like "eclipse"! To calibrate the UV camera on STEREO a transit of the Moon in front of the Sun was used to provide cover.
• In January 2007 we have been enjoying the brightest comet since about 30 years. Comet McNaught has passed the Sun so closely that its activity is magnificent, producing a spectacular tail. Enjoy the McNaught photo gallery on the web.
• June 8 2004 was the day of the Venus Transit in front of the Sun's disk. Such events were used in the past (1874 and 1882) to determine distances in the solar system. See information by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) and by NASA.
• Two comets promise their showing in April/May: Comet 2001 Q4 NEAT (found by the Near Earth Asteroid Tracking {NEAT}) and Comet 2002 T7 LINEAR (found by the LIncoln Near Earth Asteroid Research {LINEAR}). NEAT will become visible in the northern hemisphere in May while still rather bright, LINEAR will leave into the southern hemisphere when it can viewed at its peak brightness. (See also the May 2004 issue of Astronomy)
  We already have had a few really nice comets over the past 5 years. Here are photos of comet Ikeya-Zhang of last year, here you will find information on 1998 Comet Hale-Bopp.
• Check this site regularly for the Astronomy Picture of the Day, home of some of the most gorgeous images of the sky!
  Check out the collected News Items from Hubble Spacetelescope!
• The Leonid Meteor Shower was strong over the last two years. This only happens once every 33 years (potentially for a few years in a row) around the time when comet Temple-Tuttle comes to its closest approach to the sun. This happened in 1998. On November 17, 1999, the Leonids produced a decent show, to the delight of some nightly onlookers (with good weather). It was also considered potentially dangerous for the fleet of satellites and spacecraft out there. However, the satellites were spared.
  The last two years we enjoyed a relatively good showing at the east coast of the US, but this year is likely to be more spectacular. You can get the latest updates on the shower on the NASA Leonid website. The European Space Agency (ESA) is running running a special Leonid observation program down under. We have issued Press Releases on observations of the Leonids in this area. The Leonids are a good target of opportunity every year. However, spectucular showings are not regularly expected until about 2033. Stay tuned!
• Weren't able to get to Europe for the August 11 eclipse in 1999? Find pictures and movies here.
• Auroral activity may be seen even in New Hampshire, while the sun is still relatively active. Find information on this so-called "Space Weather" on a special website or directly from the NOAA Space Environment Center.
• More and more Near Earth Objects (NEOs), asteroids that can come close to Earth, are found. A recently tracked one may have the chance to hit Earth in about 900 years. See how this information is garnered and what could be done, if confirmed.

Current Events in Spaceflight:

• The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) is expected to be launched in July 2008. IBEX will take the first global images of the boundary oh our heliosphere with the neighboring interstellar medium, using neutral atom cameras. You can sign up for monthly updates via E-Mail on the IBEX website.
• During the month of January 2008 the MESSENGER probe is passing Mercury for the first time with its closest approach on January 14. Watch the flyby through a visualization tool or follow the podcast.
• On February 7, 2007, the Ulysses probe passed one more time over the South Pole of the Sun, thus getting a unique view in the Heliosphere.
• First evidence for lakes found outside Earth! Cassini/Huygens found evidence for lakes on Saturn's moon Titan. They most likely consist of liquid methane or ethane.
• The year 2007/8 is the International Heliophysical Year (IHY). 50 Years after the International Geophysical Year (IGY) in 1957/8, when we "stuck our head above the Earth's atmosphere" for the first time at the dawn of the space age, we are now "sticking our head out of the Heliosphere", with the Voyagers at the ouitskirts of the Solar System and the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) to be launched on July 12 2008. As pointed out above, Ulysses is charting the regions above the Sun's South Pole right now, and it will pass over the North Pole later this year.
• The NASA Mars Rovers made it successfully to Mars' surface. Follow Opportunity's hunt for signs of flowing water in Mars' past. It has revealed the most compelling evidence yet.
  The European Mars probe Mars Express has reached Mars end of 2003. Touch down of the lander Beagle-2 apparently was not successful.
• The "Stardust" spacecraft has flown through the dust cloud of a comet and will bring back the comet material.
• The Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) is providing the most detailed pictures of the "Baby Universe" thus far. Learn about this journey to the beginning of our universe!
• After the terrible tragedy on Saturday, Febr 1, 2003, NASA is investigating what the root cause of the catastrophic failure was. They keep the public informed on these actions and provide extensive material about the shuttle mission on a special website. Follow also another view on space.com.
• NASA launched RHESSI on February 5, 2002, to study the high energy emission from solar flares. It provides detailed insight into these powerful explosions on the Sun.
• The Chandra X-Ray Telescope is in orbit! Visit its website for mission information and pictures.
• NASA's Cassini Probe is orbiting Saturn and charts the Saturnian moon and ring systems.
• Here you'll find the recent Astronomy and Space Science Headlines from NASA and an archive of last year's headlines, or alternatively from Space.com. The European Space Agency ESA distributes news of their activities in a similar way.

Helpful Links:

AstroEd: Astronomy Education Resources:

If you have trouble understanding Astronomy the way it is taught here or in the book, check out the websites from other Astronomy courses listed here.

The Cosmic and Heliospheric Learning Center:

The Cosmic and Heliospheric Learning Center, brought to you by the people at ACE, is designed to increase your interest in cosmic and heliospheric science. (The heliosphere is the HUGE area in space affected by the Sun.) It's an exciting subject to learn about, and science is constantly moving forward in understanding it. (ACE -- the Advanced Composition Explorer -- is one of the many satellite projects with which UNH has been involved, and promises to answer some of the more exciting questions about the formation of the solar system and our galaxy.)

Touching the Limits of Science:

One reason you are probably studying astronomy is that you are interested in the Philosophy behind science and are asking yourself where everything comes from. We will get to part of the story, but, as I make the point over and over, this is an endless enterprise. If you want to know more about this, you can either join us (Prof. Thomas M. Davis (Genetics), Prof. Willem DeVries (Philososphy) and Prof. Eberhard Möbius (Physics) in the seminar "Limits of Knowledge: Cosmology and the View of our World" and/or you may start by browsing the website for the seminar.