Class Times/Dates

Class will meet twice weekly on Tuesday and Thursdays from 10:30 to 11:45am in J. W. Gibbs 263. There will be classes during reading week (April 28/30). A hard copy of the course syllabus can be found here, a dynamic version is below.

Course Description

A survey of the content, structure, formation and evolution of galaxies. Topics include the contents of galaxies (stars, gas, and dark matter), galactic black holes, galaxy interactions and the environments of galaxies.

Textbook

Sparke & Gallagher "Galaxies in the Universe" (2000)
Binney & Merrifield "Galactic Astronomy" (1998)

Evaluation

Grading will be divided as follows:
40% Problem sets
30% Midterm exam: in class on April 14, 2009
30% Student presentations

Class Tools: A link to tools used in class and for problem sets.

Syllabus

The following is a tentative syllabus which will be updated and modified as the semester progresses. Note that reading are expected to be done BEFORE class

DATE LECTURE READING
1. Tues Jan 13
2. Thur Jan 15 		Introduction
Galaxy Tool Box 		SG 1.1 BM 1.2, 2.1.1-2, 2.3
3. Tues Jan 20
4. Thur Jan 22 		Morphology and Classification Schemes
Galaxy Structure and Scaling Laws | HW#1 due 		SG 1.3 BM 4.1
BM 4.2-4
5. Tues Jan 27
6. Thur Jan 29 		Luminosity Functions
The Milky Way as a Galaxy | HW#2 due 		BM 4.1.3
BM 9.1, 10.1-2, 4
7. MON Feb 2
Thurs Feb 6 		Components of Galaxies: Stars + Globular Clusters
No Class		 BM 3.3-3.6, 6.1
8. Tues Feb 10
9. Thur Feb 12 		Components of Galaxies: Gas + Dust
Components of Galaxies: Central Black Holes | HW#3 due 		BM 8.1.4,8.2
10. Tues Feb 17
11. Thur Feb 19 		Components of Galaxies: Dark Matter
Star Formation Indicators 		BM 8.2.4
BM 8.2.8
12. Tues Feb 24
13. Thur Feb 26 		Chemical Evolution Models
Nearly Normal Galaxies: Disk Galaxies 		BM 5.2-3
14. Tues Mar 3
15. Thur Mar 5 		Nearly Normal Galaxies: Elliptical galaxies
Nearly Normal Galaxies: Dwarf galaxies HW#4 due		 BM
Tues Mar 10/17
Thur Mar 12/19 		SPRING BREAK
16. Tues Mar 24
17. Thur Mar 26		 Peculiar Galaxies: Interactions and Mergers
Peculiar Galaxies: Active Galaxies HW#5 due		 BM 4.6
18. Tues Mar 31
19. Thur Apr 2		 Active Galactic Nuclei
High Redshift Galaxies		 BM
20. Tues Apr 7
21. Thur Apr 9		 Galaxy Groups and Clusters
Galaxy Evolution with Environment/Redshift		 BM
Tues Apr 14
22. Thur Apr 16		 MIDTERM EXAM
Direct Dark Matter Experiments		 BM
23. Tues Apr 21
24. Thur Apr 23		 Absorption Line Systems
Galaxy Formation: N-body Methods		 BM
25. Tues Apr 28
26. Thur Apr 30		 Dark Energy Constraints
First Stars + The Epoch of Reionization		 BM
SG = Sparke & Gallagher
BM = Binney & Merrifield

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