Welcome to the Prospectus for Astronomy 427
SELECTED TOPICS IN PLANETARY ASTRONOMY
Our Quadrennial Introduction to the Solar System
jcbrandt@unm.edu
Planetary Astronomy has re-emerged as a major
area
of astronomical research, and some knowledge of this
area is essential to a balanced astronomical education.
Besides the many discoveries made from ground-based and
earth-orbiting telescopes, space missions to solar-system
objects contribute to the discoveries and the excitement.
The solar system serves as "ground truth" for other
planetary systems, and provides important astrophysical
information on abundances and the age of the solar system.
Progress and discoveries, many since approximately 1990, have introduced new words or phrases into our astronomical vocabulary: escape hatch; Yarkovsky effect; Kuiper Belt Object (KBO); heliospheric current sheet (HCS); disconnection event (DE); magnetic reconnection; Stardust (not the song); Deep Impact (not the movie); comet D/Shoemaker-Levy 9; impacts on Jupiter; Io auroras; sodium tail; Vesta chips; zonal winds; planetary weather; water on Mars; amorphous ice; standard method; binary asteroids; Chicxulub crater; and Near-Earth Objects. ASTR 427 provides an overview of solar-system research and these words or phrases will be explained. The physics and politics of the current "What's a Planet?" debate will be covered. |
The level is intended for upper-division undergraduates
and graduate students. The coverage will be
partly qualitative and partly quantitative. For the
quantitative part, the student will need algebra,
trigonometry, calculus, and general physics. An introductory
astronomy course would be helpful, but is not required.
Note that the physical explanations will be developed
starting from a general physics level.
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The major topics currently planned are: basic orbits,
including resonances and chaotic behavior; Mars--atmosphere
and surface; Earth--atmosphere and ionosphere;
giant planets--atmospheres and interiors;
solar wind--origin, structure, and interactions with the
earth's magnetosphere, Jupiter, and comets; zodiacal light;
rings with emphasis on Saturn; asteroids; comets; solar-system
collisions; meteors and meteorites; and solar-system origin.
Course grade will be based on class participation (10%), mid-term exam (30%), written term paper and oral presentation (30%), and final exam (30%). Text: The Planetary System, 3rd Ed. by Morrison &
Owen, Addison-Wesley(2003). Copies should be available on the web at reasonable cost. Other sources including the recent literature and unpublished papers will also be used. |
Mail your comments and suggestions concerning the Class or the Homepage. Visit the Physics and Astronomy Department Home Page.