About this course: This course is designed for anyone who is interested in learning more about modern astronomy. We will help you get up to date on the most recent astronomical discoveries while also providing support at an introductory level for those who have no background in science.
Created by: University of Arizona
Taught by: Chris Impey, Distinguished Professor
Astronomy
| Level | Beginner |
| Commitment | ~26 hours of lectures and assignments |
| Language | English, Subtitles: Romanian |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
Astronomy: Exploring Time and Space
Here you can find all of the introductory information, course syllabus, and current announcements.
2 videos, 6 readings
- Video: Welcome Video
- Reading: About the course
- Reading: About us
- Reading: Social media
- Reading: Syllabus
- Reading: Grading policy
- Video: Prof. Impey's Science Learning Survey Invitation
- Reading: Course Participation and Motivation Survey
Graded: Survey Verification "Quiz"
WEEK 2
Science and History
Science combines logic and evidence to increase our understanding of the natural world, including remote and inaccessible regions of space and time.
15 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Science & History introduction video
- Reading: Lesson one overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Vision
- Video: 2. Discovery
- Video: 3. Imagination
- Video: 4. Reasoning
- Video: 5. Uncertainty
- Video: 6. Evidence
- Video: 7. Scientific Method
- Video: 8. Information
- Video: 9. Ancient Astronomy
- Video: 10. Calendars
- Video: 11. Greek Science
- Video: 12. Copernican Revolution
- Video: 13. Kepler
- Video: 14. Galileo
Graded: Lesson Quiz 1a (Videos 1-8)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 1b (Videos 9-14)
Graded: Writing Assignment no. 1, "Science: Past and Present"
WEEK 3
The Night Sky
Astronomy is the oldest science, and its history shows a growing realization of our insignificant status in a vast and ancient universe.
6 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Night Sky introduction video
- Reading: Lesson two overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. The Naked Eye
- Video: 2. Daily Motion
- Video: 3. Annual Motion
- Video: 4. The Moon
- Video: 5. The Planets
Graded: Lesson Quiz 2a (Videos 1-5)
WEEK 4
The Tools of Astronomy
A continuing revolution in telescope design and construction is giving astronomers an unprecedented set of tools for exploring the universe.
15 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Tools of Astronomy introduction video
- Reading: Lesson three overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Telescopes
- Video: 2. Observing Limitations
- Video: 3. Observing Solutions
- Video: 4. Adaptive Optics
- Video: 5. Interferometers
- Video: 6. Detectors
- Video: 7. Space Astronomy
- Video: 8. Hubble Space Telescope
- Video: 9. Hubble Images
- Video: 10. Big Glass
- Video: 11. Invisible Waves
- Video: 12. Beyond Vision
- Video: 13. Gravity Waves
- Video: 14. Frontiers
Graded: Lesson Quiz 3a (Video 1-7)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 3b (Videos 8-14)
Graded: Writing Assignment no. 2, "Telescopes"
WEEK 5
Matter and Radiation
Astronomers harvest information across the electromagnetic spectrum, using spectra to measure the composition of distant objects and diagnose extreme physical conditions.
14 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Matter & Radiation introduction video
- Reading: Lesson four overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Unity
- Video: 2. Atoms
- Video: 3. Substructure
- Video: 4. Forces
- Video: 5. Forms of Energy
- Video: 6. Light
- Video: 7. Radiation
- Video: 8. Chemistry
- Video: 9. Spectra
- Video: 10. Heat Energy
- Video: 11. Mass Energy
- Video: 12. Gravity
- Video: 13. Curved Space
Graded: Lesson Quiz 4a (Videos 1-7)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 4b (Videos 8-13)
WEEK 6
The Solar System
Space probes have visited most planets in the Solar System, and orbiters and rovers are homing in on the habitability of Mars. Space exploration is entering an entrepreneurial phase that might let us venture beyond the Solar System.
18 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Solar System introduction video
- Reading: Lesson five overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Formation
- Video: 2. Comparisons
- Video: 3. Inner Planets
- Video: 4. Mars
- Video: 5. Mars and Water
- Video: 6. Mars Up Close
- Video: 7. Future Mars
- Video: 8. Jovian Planets
- Video: 9. Outer Regions
- Video: 10. Solar System Satellites
- Video: 11. Titan
- Video: 12. Water Worlds
- Video: 13. Small Bodies
- Video: 14. Mastering Space
- Video: 15. The Role of NASA
- Video: 16. Commercial Sector
- Video: 17. Future Technology
Graded: Lesson Quiz 5a (Videos 1-7)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 5b (Videos 8-13)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 5c (Videos 14-17)
WEEK 7
Exoplanets
In the last few years, thousands of extrasolar planets have been discovered, including some that are Earth-like and possibly habitable.
10 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Exoplanets introduction video
- Reading: Lesson six overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Exoplanets
- Video: 2. Detection and Imaging
- Video: 3. Doppler
- Video: 4. Transits
- Video: 5. Characterizing Exoplanets
- Video: 6. Earths
- Video: 7. Kepler
- Video: 8. Habitable Zones
- Video: 9. Biomarkers
Graded: Lesson Quiz 6a (Videos 1-9)
Graded: Writing Assignment no. 3, "Exoplanets"
WEEK 8
Star Birth and Death
Stars are the crucibles of heavy element creation, and the chaotic regions of their birth are being understood though long wavelength observations. Gravity is the ultimate victor in the life story of any star, leaving behind the exotic end states of white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes.
12 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Stars introduction video
- Reading: Lesson seven overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Stars and Life
- Video: 2. Star Formation
- Video: 3. The Sun
- Video: 4. Properties of Stars
- Video: 5. Stellar Evolution
- Video: 6. Nucleosynthesis
- Video: 7. Late Stages of Evolution
- Video: 8. Supernovas
- Video: 9. Pulsars
- Video: 10. Black Holes
- Video: 11. Testing Gravity
Graded: Lesson Quiz 7a (Videos 1-6)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 7b (Videos 7-11)
Graded: Writing Assignment no. 4, "The Sun and Stars"
WEEK 9
Galaxies
The architecture of the Milky Way galaxy is that of a disk, a bulge, and a halo, with the entire assemblage bound by enigmatic dark matter. Every galaxy contains a supermassive black hole, and entire population of galaxies is sculpted by gravity into subtle structures on large scales.
12 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Galaxies introduction video
- Reading: Lesson eight overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Milky Way
- Video: 2. Mass and Motions
- Video: 3. Dark Matter
- Video: 4. The Galactic Center
- Video: 5. Properties of Galaxies
- Video: 6. Galaxy Distances
- Video: 7. Active Galaxies
- Video: 8. Large Scale Structure
- Video: 9. Structure Formation
- Video: 10. Cosmic Expansion
- Video: 11. Dark Energy
Graded: Lesson Quiz 8a (Videos 1-5)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 8b (Videos 6-11)
Graded: Activity no. 1, "Galaxy Zoo"
WEEK 10
Cosmology
The expanding universe points back to an extraordinary state of extremely high density and temperature called the big bang.
11 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Cosmology introduction video
- Reading: Lesson nine overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Scales of Space
- Video: 2. Olbers Paradox
- Video: 3. Old Light and Lookback Time
- Video: 4. Contents of the Universe
- Video: 5. Cosmology
- Video: 6. Microwave Background
- Video: 7. Big Bang
- Video: 8. Early Universe
- Video: 9. Present and Future
- Video: 10. The Multiverse
Graded: Lesson Quiz 9a (Videos 1-10)
Graded: Writing Assignment no. 5, "Cosmology"
WEEK 11
Life in the Universe
The Earth gives us a ringside seat on the physical, chemical, geological, and biological evolution of a dynamic terrestrial planet. The abundance of terrestrial planets in remote solar systems motivates the search for life and technology elsewhere in the universe.
14 videos, 3 readings
- Video: Life in the Universe introduction video
- Reading: Lesson ten overview
- Reading: Lecture slide .pdfs
- Reading: Supplementary materials
- Video: 1. Biology
- Video: 2. The Unity of Life
- Video: 3. Extremophiles
- Video: 4. Exobiology
- Video: 5. The Origin of Life
- Video: 6. The Evolution of Life
- Video: 7. The Nature of Intelligence
- Video: 8. Weird Life
- Video: 9. Companionship
- Video: 10. Drake Equation
- Video: 11. Communication
- Video: 12. Life as Computation
- Video: 13. The Simulation Hypothesis
Graded: Lesson Quiz 10a (Videos 1-8)
Graded: Lesson Quiz 10b (Videos 9-13)
Graded: Activity no. 2, "Observing Project"
FAQs
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University of Arizona
The University of Arizona is the state’s land-grant university and a member of the Association of American Universities—made up of just 62 universities in the country. As one of the world’s premier public research universities, the university conducts more than $625 million of research annually. Home to two allopathic medical schools in Tucson and Phoenix, the UA Tech Park, and a member of the Arizona Space Grant Consortium, the university creates an $8.3 billion economic impact for Arizona. U.S. News and World Report placed 14 University of Arizona graduate programs among the top 20 in the nation and it is one of the nation’s top producers of Fulbright Scholars. With its strategic academic and business plan, “Never Settle,” as its guide, the university is producing graduates who are global citizens, engaged leaders, and fulfilled individuals.
Ratings and Reviews
v
I love the way Prof. Chris Impey imparts knowledge. It is so effortless and easy to understand. Extremely interesting course as it is not just lecture but related videos, knowledge-bits, animations etc too which keeps you going all the way.
Very nice course & informative.
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IM
Very well detailed tutorial to astronomy.