Course overview
This course aims to present a survey of astronomical science, including highlights of modern exploration and the open questions in astronomy. Topics include the formation and characteristics of the Solar System, including the planets and minor members of the system; telescopes; the Sun; the birth, life and death of stars; galaxies and dark matter; active galaxies and quasars; Big Bang cosmology.
- History, Telescopes and the Solar System
- The Sun and Stars
- Galaxies and the Universe
Course learning outcomes
- Describe and explain the Solar System’s structure, formation, and physical behaviour, and compare the major objects within it.
- Describe and explain the properties and life cycles of stars, and the formation of compact objects.
- Describe galaxy types and formation and explain the evolution of the Universe using observational evidence.
- Describe and explain how astronomical data are obtained and used in space science and astronomy, and how they have informed understanding of the Universe.
- Acquire and record astronomical observations and interpret these or provided astronomical data.