Astronomy 130: Introductory Astronomy II
Sections 1 and 2, Fall 2025
Lecture: Tuesday
and Thursday
Location:
RITA, room 387
Time: TR 5:30 pm
- 6:45 pm
Instructor: Dr.
George Chartas
Office: RITA 307
Office
hours: TR 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Phone: (843)
953-3609
Email: chartasg@cofc.edu
Pre-requisite: ASTR 129 and 129 lab; CO: ASTR 130L
A
preliminary outline of the course can be found at the SCHEDULE website. Some of
this material is subject to change and this site will be constantly up-dated so
please check it before each class.
_____________________________________________________________
Syllabus
Required materials:
The textbook for the course is Bennett, J.,
Donahue, M., Schneider, N., and Voit, M., titled The Cosmic Perspective 8th,
9th, or 10th Edition. Important: only a
hardcopy textbook and notes are allowed in tests and the final exam. E-textbooks
and computers/phones are not allowed in tests and the final exam.
Suggested options:
1.
Print options available
Rental + Paperback
ISBN-13: 9780137898237
Cosmic Perspective, The
2. Also acceptable are used copies of
the Cosmic Perspective 8th, 9th ,
and 10th Editions which you may purchase online.
If you purchase the print version of the 9th Edition,
make sure the cover looks like: 9th_Edition
If you purchase the print version of the 8th Edition,
make sure the cover looks like: 8th_Edition
All students must have access to a computer
equipped with a web camera, microphone, and Internet access. Resources are
available to provide students with these essential tools.
You will also need a scientific calculator capable
of computing exponential functions.
Syllabus statement regarding absence due to illness
Students who are absent due to illness may use the
online recordings and lecture notes provided on OAKS and my course website to
complete assignments and will be granted an extension to submit their
work.
If a student has the flu or COVID, they should not
attend any classes until they are no longer contagious. I will provide
reasonable accommodations for students who become ill or indicate a need to
isolate themselves.
If a student is absent from class for an extended
period, a withdrawal (W) before the deadline should be strongly considered.
Syllabus statement regarding the use of generative
AI programs
You are welcome to use generative AI programs (for
example ChatGPT) in this course. These programs can
be powerful tools for learning and other productive pursuits, including
completing some assignments in less time, helping you generate new ideas, or
serving as a personalized learning tool. However, your ethical responsibilities
as a student remain the same. You must follow CofC’s Student Code of Conduct. If
you use a generative AI tool to develop content for an assignment, you are
required to cite the tool’s contribution to your work. In practice, cutting and
pasting content from any source without citation is plagiarism. Likewise,
paraphrasing content from a generative AI without citation is plagiarism.
Similarly, using any generative AI tool without appropriate acknowledgment will
be treated as plagiarism. You may not use AI tools during
midterm tests and the Final Exam.
Here are some specific expectations for your use of
AI generation tools in this course:
· You can
include AI generated content verbatim into a writing assignment with quotations
and a citation.
· You can
paraphrase AI generated content with a citation.
· You can
include non-text AI generated content (images, video, code, etc.) with an
appropriate citation, when expressly permitted in the assignment prompt.
· You will
conduct your own research and generate bibliographies yourself for topics that
you have researched.
· You will
not use or present generative AI content that you pass off as your own work.
· You may
use AI-generated content with a citation to create your AstroNews presentation.
Finally, it is important that you recognize that
generative AI tools frequently provide users with incorrect information, create
professional-looking citations that are not real, generate contradictory
statements, incorporate copyrighted material without appropriate attribution,
and sometimes integrate biased or offensive concepts. Code generation models
may produce inaccurate outputs. Image generation models may create misleading
or offensive content. While
you may use these tools in the work you create for this class, it is important
to note that you understand you are ultimately responsible for the
content that you submit. Work that is inaccurate, biased, unethical, offensive,
plagiarized, or incorrect will be treated as such during the evaluation of your
work.
Course Objectives:
One of the goals of
this class is to reveal to you some of the wonders of our cosmos. Astronomy 130
will begin with an introduction to the nature of light and a description of the
optics and telescopes used by scientists to collect electromagnetic radiation
from objects in the Universe. The course will cover the birth, evolution and
death of stars and the nature of galaxies including our own Galaxy the Milky
Way. You will learn about exotic objects in our Universe such as neutron stars,
black holes, quasars and active galactic nuclei. The course concludes with a
description of the evolution of the Universe and a presentation summarizing
ongoing searches for extraterrestrial life in our Universe.
I recommend that you
review the material before it is presented in class. This will help you to
better understand the concepts and enjoy the class. I expect your active
participation in the class.
General Education Natural Science Learning
Outcomes:
1. Students apply physical/natural principles to analyze and solve
problems (This outcome will be assessed by writing a report of one of the labs.
It will count as 7.5% of your final lab grade.)
2. Students
explain how science impacts society (This outcome will be assessed in the lab
class using an assignment involving writing a letter to a public official about
an astronomy-related current event. It will count as 2.5% of your final lab
grade.)
Outcome
1 will be assessed in a lab report and outcome 2 will be assessed in the lab
via a signature assignment.
Course-specific
Learning Outcomes
1. Students distinguish the nature and significance of the following:
instruments used in astronomy, stars (binary, variable), star clusters,
interstellar matter, galaxies and cosmology.
2. Students demonstrate how the measurement of light is used to
interpret physical characteristics of the universe.
3. Students recognize the origins of astronomical objects.
4. Students apply physical laws to reveal the nature of astrophysical
phenomena.
Astro-News:
Each
class will contain a segment called Astro-News. Every student will be expected
to give a 3-5 minute presentation during Astro-News (only one presentation per
student over the entire course). The presentation may be in PowerPoint,
keynote, overhead or blackboard.
Astro-News will cover events that have been recently presented in a
recognized astronomy media source.
Great
sources of astronomy news include:
(a)
the Science Section of the New York Times
(see
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/science/index.html),
(b)
the NASA News Website
(see
http://www.nasa.gov/news/index.html),
(c)
the Hubble Space Station News website
(see
http://hubblesite.org/newscenter/),
(d)
the Sky and Telescope news site
(see
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news), and
(e)
the spaceweather website
(see
http://www.spaceweather.com/).
Midterm Exams Homework and Quizzes:
There
will be 3 midterm exams over the semester. A quiz will be given at the end of
each class. The quizzes will be based on material already presented in
lectures. There will be a final exam that will cover most of the material
presented in the lectures.
Grades
Your
final grade will be calculated as follows:
|
|
|
|
Quizzes |
5% |
|
Astro-News |
10% |
|
Midterms |
45% |
|
Final |
40% |
Your
number grade will be converted into a letter grade as follows.
|
>85% |
A |
|
80-84% |
A- |
|
76-80% |
B+ |
|
72-76% |
B |
|
68-72% |
B- |
|
64-68% |
C+ |
|
60-64% |
C |
|
56-60% |
C- |
|
52-56% |
D+ |
|
48-52% |
D |
|
44-48% |
D- |
|
<44% |
F |
Special
Needs
If you have any special needs or disabilities that
might require special arrangements to be made for any aspect of this course,
please let me know at the beginning of the semester or as soon as you become
aware of them.
1.
Any student eligible for and needing accommodations because
of a disability is requested to speak with the professor during the first two
weeks of class or as soon as the student has been approved for services so that
reasonable accommodations can be arranged.
2.
The College will make reasonable accommodations for persons
with documented disabilities. Students should apply for services at the
Center for Disability Services/SNAP located on the first floor of the Lightsey
Center, Suite 104. Students approved for accommodations are responsible
for notifying me as soon as possible and for contacting me one week before
accommodation is needed.
3.
This College abides by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. If you have a documented
disability that may have some impact on your work in this class and for which
you may require accommodations, please see an administrator at the Center of
Disability Services/SNAP, (843) 953-1431) or me so that such accommodation may
be arranged.
Weather Closure of CofC
If the College of Charleston closes and members of
the community are evacuated due to inclement weather, students are responsible
for taking course materials with them in order to continue with course
assignments consistent with instructions provided by faculty. In cases of
extended periods of institution-wide closure where students have relocated,
instructors may articulate a plan that allows for supplemental academic
engagement despite these circumstances. If the College of Charleston closes and
members of the community are evacuated due to inclement weather, students are
responsible for taking course materials with them in order to continue with
course assignments consistent with instructions provided by faculty. In cases
of extended periods of institution-wide closure where students have relocated,
instructors may articulate a plan that allows for supplemental academic
engagement despite these circumstances.
Class
and Attendance Policies:
Cellular
technology: Please respect your
class-mates and keep your cellular devices off. You are expected to attend all classes.
College
of Charleston Honor Code and Academic Integrity:
Lying,
cheating, attempted cheating, and plagiarism are violations of our Honor Code
that, when identified, are investigated.
Each incident will be examined to determine the degree of deception
involved.
Incidents
where the instructor determines the student-s actions are related more to a
misunderstanding will be handled by the instructor. A written intervention designed to help
prevent the student from repeating the error will be given to the student. The intervention, submitted by form and
signed both by the instructor and the student, will be forwarded to the Dean of
Students and placed in the student-s file.
Cases
of suspected academic dishonesty will be reported directly by the instructor
and/or others having knowledge of the incident to the Dean of Students. A student found responsible by the Honor
Board for academic dishonesty will receive a XF in the course, indicating
failure of the course due to academic dishonesty. This grade will appear on the student-s
transcript for two years after which the student may petition for the X to be
expunged. The F is permanent. The student may also be placed on
disciplinary probation, suspended (temporary removal) or expelled (permanent
removal) from the College by the Honor Board.
Students
should be aware that unauthorized collaboration--working together without
permission-- is a form of cheating.
Unless the instructor specifies that students can work together on an
assignment, quiz and/or test, no collaboration during the completion of the
assignment is permitted. Other forms of
cheating include possessing or using an unauthorized study aid (which could
include accessing information via a cell phone or computer), copying from
others- exams, fabricating data, and giving unauthorized assistance.
Research
conducted and/or papers written for other classes cannot be used in whole or in
part for any assignment in this class without obtaining prior permission from
the instructor.
Students
can find the complete Honor Code and all related processes in the Student Handbook at http://studentaffairs.cofc.edu/honor-system/studenthandbook/index.php