Astronomy 2291

Saturn from Cassini

Basic Astrophysics & Planetary Astronomy
Autumn Semester 2023

Prof. Richard Pogge
MWF 12:40-1:35pm
080 Derby Hall

Overview

Astronomy 2291 is the first semester of a required two-semester introductory sequence for Astronomy and Astrophysics majors and minors, as well as for scientifically literate undergraduates who wish to learn basic astrophysics from a quantitative perspective. The major topics to be covered are To get the most from this class you should read the assignments in the book, attend and participate in lectures and class discussions and problem-solving sessions, do the problem sets and other exercises, and take the exams.

Textbook

The textbook for this course is Foundations of Astrophysics by Barbara Ryden and Bradley Peterson, available from the bookstore and many online booksellers. There is only one edition, so used copies and the international edition are acceptable. This textbook is required for all students. Selected readings are assigned weekly, and should be read before the week's class sessions.

Course Information

We will be using OSU's CarmenCanvas learning management system for this course. This webpage provides enough basic info to help those not yet registered learn about the course but who cannot access the Carmen pages.

Copyright Statement

All of the written materials provided in these web pages are copyrighted by the course instructor, except as noted. In addition, some images and animations are also copyrighted by the instructor, while others are copyrighted by the original sources. These latter appear with the written permission of the copyright holders. Please read the Copyright Statement before you make copies of any of these web pages for any purpose. Use of these notes implies that you have read and understood the copyright statement.