General Information and - Specifics for this year's Astro 27
We're
going to Laguna Mountain and Pinnacles
National Park! This will be a fun and educational course
which will get you hip-deep in astronomy. This
is a weekend course on general astronomy by direct observation. Upon
completion, you'll have earned 1 unit of astronomy credit. Maps and details
will be given out at the pre-trip on-campus session. We have a pre-trip
on campus meeting on Thur eve 6-9pm a week before the trip, in room 705. We'll do logistics (food, carpooling, signing liability waivers), lecture on
origin of solar system/stars in the planetarium,
followed by planetarium session. I'll also have maps and any further instructions
for arrival.
Thur - Pre-Trip Meeting
6pm: Meet in room 705 (or 806 if 705 is in use), for the pre-trip meeting. Here, we'll help you arrange carpools, pass out maps, sign liability waivers, and have a planetarium show on star formation and solar system formation.
Fri of Campsite Weekend
* 5pm - Meet at the campground at Laguna Mtn, about 30 miles south of Pinnacles National Park along Coalinga Rd. I'll have maps.
* 6:30pm - Lectures around the campfire if we're allowed to have one (might be forbidden), photography of the sunset.
* 8:00pm - 11:30pm : Telescopic explorations of the sky, last views of the winter Milky Way objects of Orion, Gemini and Perseus before they set in the west. Around-the-telescope micro-lectures on star formation, structure of the Milky Way Galaxy, stellar classifications and the relation of color to surface temperature. We'll have some big scopes for you to enjoy, and big binoculars when Karl shows up. We'll also have laser-pointing of key objects
Sat - of Campsite Weekend
8am - Breakfast. French Crepes!
9:45am - Micro-lecture on the sun and solar cycles, using Kirk's 12" scope and the Department's 8SE telescope and solar filter for examining the sun here during the rise towards Solar Maximum.
10:30am - Start our hike to Laguna Falls, a 5 mile round trip from Laguna Mtn camp, with great views of "the Gorge" and a big swimming hole under the Falls to enjoy once we arrive. Micro-lectures along the way, on the origin of the chemical elements in stars, and the make-up of the crust of the inner planets, the moon, and our atmosphere. We'll compare the landscapes of Earth and Mars, both of which have been subjected to water in their history. On the hike back, we may have an "adventure pod" who would like to go off-trail and pick their way down along-and-in Laguna Creek, until it hits the trail again about 2 miles below the Falls. Bring some swim-worthy clothes!
3:30pm - Approximate return time. Free time till we prep for dinner at 6pm. there's a second hike option along a dirt trail to beneath 4,400 ft Laguna Mountain if desired. More micro-lectures on astronomy topics along the way.
6:00pm - Dinner (Asian Rice a'la Nolthenius) and clean-up, getting the telescopes re-set up and deployed. Demo of telescope use and telescope types.
8:00pm - Twilight, sunset pictures, evening planet inspections. Enjoy and micro-lecture on the Zodiacal Light as soon as it gets dark.
9pm-11:30pm - Telescopic inspections of Galaxies, the first large globular clusters of the Spring sky, binary stars, and other wonders
Sun - of Campsite weekend
* 7:00am - up early, get breakfast going. and pack up quickly.
* 8:45am - Head out, drive north about 50 minutes, to arrive at Pinnacles National Park. Here, we'll do either the Balconies Caves hike, or the Bear Gulch Caves hike. I'll discuss volcanism in the solar system: Ancient volcanism on Mars, ongoing volcanism on Venus, and contrast with the Earth, and a brief history of Pinnacles National Park as an ancient volcano. I'll give another micro-lecture at the far side of the caves, at the Reservoir, and that will end the formal part of the course. We can chat further on the hike back down to the shuttle and out to our vehicles at the parking lot. At that point, you can fill the remainder of your day as you please! The final exam will be on Canvas and due at the end of April.
Links to the PDF's for select PowerPoints:
"Oumuamua: What IS it?" (you can also go to the Astro 5 website to find this link)
Campers Checklist:
-
sleeping bag
-
tent (there are wild boar to watch out for)
-
camp food (keep it in the car unless you're eating it!)
-
cooking gear
-
warm clothes (It has sometimes dropped below freezing before dawn)
-
sunscreen, Ray-bans
-
binoculars or telescope would be nice if you have them
-
field notebook
-
daypack for the geology day hikes.
-
lawn chair for relaxing/ listening to the lectures
* The
campsite is accessible by car so you do not need backpacks. It has
restrooms, but you'll want to bring your own water for drinking. I'll bring water for cooking and cleanup around the camp kitchen.
*
The trip will go, rain or shine. If it's raining, bring rain gear.
* This is an officially sponsored Cabrillo course and the instructors and the College can get in a lot of trouble if anybody does anything dumb. So....leave your automatic weapons, rifles, alcohol, and recreational drugs home for this one! Anyone caught with alcohol or drugs is risks getting an automatic "F".
* Preparatory reading: "The Cosmic Perspective" by Jeffrey Bennett et al. Read the following chapters...
Chapter
6 - Telescopes
Chapter
15 - Surveying the Stars
Chapter
16 - Star Formation
Chapter
17,18 - Stellar Evolution and the Stellar Graveyard
Chapter
19 - The Milky Way Galaxy
Chapter
20, 21 - Galaxies and their Evolution
Chapter
22 - Dark Matter
Chapter
23 - Cosmology and the Origin of the Universe
Chapter
24 - Life and the Universe
This book is on reserve in the library. Please pay special attention to the sections on stars and galaxies and cosmology, towards the end of the book. Try and do your reading before our trip, so you can ask impressive questions around the telescopes! * Your grade will be based on your curiosity and participation at all sessions, and on a Canvas-based, open book final exam. 30% of your grade will be based on the level of your full participation at all sessions - including the planetarium lecture, and at the telescopes on weekend mornings and evenings. Make sure you have whatever warm clothes you need when the sessions start. You're expected to study each telescopic object and answer any questions posed by the instructor. This class is short-term and full participation is important. 70% of your grade will be based on the Canvas final exam. The grading scale for the final exam is:
A = 80%
or above
B = 70%
C = 60%
(or Pass)
D = 50%
F = less
than 50%
Student Learner Outcomes
1. Describe the motion of stars
and planets caused both by daily and orbital motions.
2. Diagram the life history of stars from birth to death, and describe examples
of each in the telescope.
3. Relate the chemical composition of the Earth's crust to the nuclear fusion
processes in stars.
4. Trace the source of major geologic activities to processes present during
planetary formation, and explain examples seen in the field.
5. Examine the broad outlines of the evolution of the universe as a whole, and
theories of the origin of the universe.