1. Introduction

Discovering the Universe (ACC)

Unit 1: Discovering the Universe (weeks 1,2)

Major Theme: The shores of the great cosmic ocean.
“The known is finite, the unknown infinite; intellectually we stand on an islet in the midst of an illimitable ocean of inexplicably. Our business in every generation is to reclaim a little more land.” – T.H. Huxley, 1887.

Learning Objectives:

Describe the Big bang model, focusing on its assumptions and its ability to explain fundamental cosmological observations.

  • Describe the size and age of the universe and Earth’s place in it.
  • Use the scientific method to study universe.
  • Describe the essential aspects of a scientific model and evaluate cosmological models in the context of scientific model making.
  • Compare and contrast a mythical and a scientific cosmological model with specific examples from Babylonian and Greek astronomy.
  • Demonstrate how scientists use mathematics, including graphs to find patterns in nature.

Outline:

The scope, scale, and timeline of the Universe 

  • The Scale of the Solar System, our galaxy, and the Universe
  • Your cosmological address: Earth, Solar System, Milky Way Galaxy, Local Group, Local Supercluster
  • History of the Universe and Big Bang Cosmology

Science as a way of viewing the universe 

  • The scientific method
  • Cosmological principle and Occam’s razor
  • The Celestial Sphere
  • Constellations
  • Ancient Roots of Astronomy
  • Angular measurement
  • Scientific Revolutions

Using mathematics to find patterns 

  • Powers of Ten
  • Interpreting data with graphs
  • Review Appendix 1

Activities & Assignments:

Purchase your textbook.

Download your lab manual: see D2L Course Content folder.

Lab1: Stellarium  (install prior to the 2nd day of class)

Get the SkyView app for your phone.

Reading assignment: Textbook Chapter 1, Science and the Universe

Watch: Pictures in the sky: the origin and history of the constellations

Resources:

Class Notes

Star Chart of the Month

The Cosmic Voyage (review of powers of ten)

VideoPodcast: Scale of our galaxy and Inter-Galactic Scale

Tutorial: Scales of the Universe

Star Party: DAS Open House at Chamberlain Observatory ( starting at Dusk)