Exoplanets and Their Orbits

Recommendations: Introductory course to computer science, or consent from instructor. May also be taken at the 100 level. Orbital dynamics of 2, 3 and N-body systems, studied with analytic and N-body computational methods. Applications to the dynamics of exoplanet and multi-star systems. Discovery and characterization of exoplanets through the transit and radial velocity methods applied to real data. Applied research skills through open-ended projects, Python programming, paper writing and oral presentations. Prerequisites: AST-31 and AST-51 for undergraduate student enrollment in AST-61. No prerequisites for enrollment in AST-161 by graduate students in Physics & Astronomy. Recommendations: PHY-68, CS-11 or other significant programming experience, preferably Python AST 0101 Radio Astronomy Astronomy and astrophysics of the invisible radio universe. Topics include antenna theory, interferometry, signal reception and processing, thermal and nonthermal radiation processes, cosmic magnetic fields, solar radiophysics, stellar activity, interstellar atoms, ions and molecules, supernovae, pulsars, active galactic nuclei, normal galaxies, radio galaxies, and quasars.