Textbooks
There are two required textbooks for this course:
Overview
Here's a condensed version of the official course catalog listing:
Prerequisite: 750:507, Classical Mechanics
Properties of galaxies: photometry, structure, kinematics, gas content, chemical evolution. Structure of the Milky Way. Equilibrium, stability, and evolution of stellar systems. Dynamics and evolution of disk galaxies (spiral patterns, bars, warps) and elliptical galaxies. Examples of chaotic astrophysical systems.
In addition to learning about the observed properties of galaxies, and how they evolve over cosmic time, we will also study the modern theory for how galaxies form in the context of the 'hierarchical structure formation' picture provided by the Cold Dark Matter theory. Topics that will be covered include: structure formation in the Cold Dark Matter model; galaxy clustering and bias; the Milky Way and the Local Group; demographics of nearby galaxies; galaxies and their environment; interactions and mergers; galaxy evolution over cosmic time; dynamics and stability of galactic disks; dynamics and evolution of elliptical galaxies; black holes and Active Galactic Nuclei.
I plan to broaden this list of topics to include galaxies' relationships with the circumgalactic medium (CGM) and the intergalactic medium (IGM). In general, I will try to highlight subjects that are important to areas of current research in extragalactic astrophysics and cosmology (e.g., galaxy formation, the enrichment of the intergalactic medium, and the reionization of the universe).
Schedule
Both the sequence of lectures and the assignment due dates are preliminary at this point; I will update them as needed during the course of the semester.
I will include in the schedule the dates of any local talks that are relevant to the subject matter of this course. Attendance is encouraged but not required!
LECTURE | DATE | TOPIC | TEXT | DUE |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jan 18 | course introduction; (p)review of the ISM | ||
2 | Jan 21 | cosmic distance ladder | three adjectives | |
3 | Jan 25 | |||
4 | Jan 28 | HW1 | ||
5 | Feb 1 | |||
6 | Feb 4 | HW2 | ||
7 | Feb 8 | |||
8 | Feb 11 | HW3 | ||
9 | Feb 15 | individual galaxy slides | ||
10 | Feb 18 | HW4 | ||
11 | Feb 22 | |||
12 | Feb 25 | HW5 | ||
13 | Mar 1 | |||
14 | Mar 4 | HW6 | ||
15 | Mar 8 | |||
16 | Mar 11 | HW7 | ||
17 | Mar 22 | |||
18 | Mar 25 | HW8 | ||
19 | Mar 29 | |||
20 | Apr 1 | HW9 | ||
21 | Apr 5 | |||
22 | Apr 8 | HW10 | ||
23 | Apr 12 | |||
24 | Apr 15 | HW11 | ||
25 | Apr 19 | |||
26 | Apr 22 | HW12 | ||
27 | Apr 26 | |||
28 | Apr 29 | HW13 |
Grading
Your course grade will be based on a weighted combination of four elements:
Homework assignments will generally be made available on Friday and submitted (in class, or by emailed PDF before 5pm) the following Friday. They will include three types of exercises: straightforward examples or extensions of material discussed in lecture; more involved applications to areas of current research, which may encompass some computational work; and true/false questions that simulate the challenge of refereeing a journal paper.
The observing proposal will be for a telescope of your choice whose actual proposal deadline falls between March 1 and April 30, 2022. Your proposal for this class should be submitted to me two weeks before that actual deadline (e.g., as specified below). You may choose one of the following telescopes (italicized dates are currently estimated and will be updated as needed), or a similar telescope with a deadline in the March/April window:
Observatory | Period | Real deadline | Assignment deadline |
---|---|---|---|
Submillimeter Array (SMA) | semester 2022A | Mar 3 | Feb 17 |
Chandra X-ray Observatory | Cycle 24 | Mar 10 | Feb 24 |
Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique (IRAM) | summer 2022 | Mar 17 | Mar 3 |
Keck Observatory | semester 2022B | Mar 17 | Mar 3 |
European Southern Observatory (ESO) | Period 110 | Mar 25 | Mar 11 |
Hubble Space Telescope | Cycle 30 | Mar 25 | Mar 11 |
NOIRLab | semester 2022B | Mar 31 | Mar 17 |
Gemini Observatory | Fast Turnaround (March) | Mar 31 | Mar 17 |
Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) | Cycle 9 | Apr 21 | Apr 7 |
Gemini Observatory | Fast Turnaround (April) | Apr 30 | Apr 16 |
The summative project will either be a final exam (take-home, open-book, and open-note), or a simulation of a Time Allocation Committee (TAC) review of your observing proposals. I expect to decide on one of these formats shortly after spring break, based on how things have been going in the first part of the course.
The individual galaxy project will be to submit a four-slide PDF presentation on an individual galaxy that will be assigned to you. The four slides should present (i) the basic properties of the galaxy, and (ii) three interesting results on the galaxy that have been published in the literature. Text and figures are expected to be clear, appropriately referenced, and self-explanatory. You can earn one point of extra credit (up to three over the course of the semester) for each time you contribute a relevant insight about your assigned galaxy to an in-class discussion or the Canvas chat room.
Other items