Week 01: The Astronomer's Toolbox (23 - 24 August)

• Read chapter 3 (The Continuous Spectrum of Light) and chapter 5 (The Interaction of Light and Matter) of Modern Astrophysics, by Carroll and Ostlie.

Week 02: Optics (27 - 31 August)

• Read chapter 6 (Telescopes) of Modern Astrophysics; review chapter 4 (The Propagation of Light) of Optics, by Eugene Hecht, if you need to do so.
• Quiz 1 (The Fiddler on the Roof) will be held on Thursday.

Week 03: Probability (3 - 7 September)

• Read chapter 4 (The Theory of Special Relativity) of Modern Astrophysics. (We will revisit relativity at the end of the semester if time permits.)
• Homework 1 (Optics) will be due Thursday [405 - 505].
• Quiz 2 (Finding the Forest in the Trees)

Week 04: Fourier Transforms (10 - 14 September)

• Read chapter 1 (The Celestial Sphere) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Homework 2 (Probability) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 3 (Plates and Dishes)

Week 05: Celestial Mechanics (17 - 21 September)

• Read chapter 2 (Celestial Mechanics) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Homework 3 (Classical Mechanics) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 4 (The Cat and the Fiddle)

Week 06: Rotational Mechanics (24 - 28 September)

• Read chapter 19 (Physical Processes in the Solar System) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Homework 4 (Celestial Mechanics) [405 - 505]; review sheet on dimensional analysis
• Quiz 5 (Le Petit Prince)

Week 07: Planets (1 - 5 October)

• Read chapter 9 (Stellar Atmospheres) of Modern Astrophysics. Read chapter 1 (Fundamentals of Radiative Transfer) of Radiative Processes in Astrophysics, by Rybicki and Lightman.
• Homework 5 (Rotational Mechanics) [405 - 505]; review homework and reading assignments for midterm exam
• Quiz 6 (Which Way is Up?)

Week 08: Midterm Week (8 - 12 October)

• Read chapter 2 (Basic Theory of Radiation Fields) of Radiative Processes in Astrophysics.
• Midterm examination on Tuesday, review on Thursday

Week 09: Radiative Transfer (15 - 19 October)

• Read chapter 9 (Atomic Structure) of Radiative Processes in Astrophysics
• Homework 6 (Planets) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 7 (The Straw and the Camel)

Week 10: Radiative Transfer (22 - 26 October)

• Read chapter 10 (Radiative Transitions) of Radiative Processes in Astrophysics.
• Homework 7 (Radiation) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 8 (Proxima Centauri)

Week 11: Radiative Transfer (29 October - 2 November)

• Read chapter 5 (Bremsstrahlung) and sections 6.1 through 6.2 (Synchrotron Radiation) and 7.1 through 7.3 (Compton Scattering), of Radiative Processes in Astrophysics.
• Homework 8 (Radiative Transfer) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 9 (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Planet)

Week 12: Spectra (5 - 9 November)

• Read chapter 7 (Binary Stars and Stellar Parameters) and Chapter 8 (The Classification of Stellar Spectra) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Homework 9 (Planetary Atmospheres) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 10 (What You See)

Week 13: Stars (12 - 16 November)

• Read chapter 10 (The Interiors of Stars) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Homework 10 (Spectra) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 11 (Big and Fast Giraffes)

Thanksgiving Holiday Week: (19 - 23 November)

• Read chapter 24 (The Milky Way Galaxy) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Consume large amounts of turkey (or tofudabeast).

Week 14: Galaxies (26 - 30 November)

• Read chapter 25 (The Nature of Galaxies) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Homework 11 (Stars and Galaxies) [405 - 505]
• Quiz 12 (Moths to a Flame)

Week 15: Galaxies (3 - 7 December)

• Read chapter 26 (Galactic Evolution) of Modern Astrophysics.
• Homework 12 (Galaxies and Stars) [405 - 505]

Week 16: The Big Picture (10 - 14 December)

• Final examination will be held on Tuesday, 3:30 - 5:30 pm.

Collaboration assessment sheets for all homework sets are available here, if you need extra copies.