Astronomy of the Solar System (AST-101)
"This course provides a survey of the nature and underlying physics of all the solar system objects: sun, planets, satellites, asteroids, comets, and meteoroids. Astronomical discoveries are put into historical perspective. This course includes a laboratory section that has experiments and activities specifically designed to facilitate knowledge acquisition of course subject matter. Experiments are carried out in the William Miller Sperry Observatory to determine the mass of the earth, phases of the moon and Venus, and more, using only high school math. Topics in optics, motion, heat, and properties of states of matter are introduced. The use of sky charts and coordinate systems is presented. Certain labs can only be completed at Sperry Observatory on the Cranford campus “ students unable to come to the Observatory for these labs can opt to do alternate labs."
Astronomy Beyond the Solar System (AST-102)
"This course, which does not require any prior astronomy, provides a survey of the nature and underlying physics of objects outside the solar system, including stars, constellations, galaxies, and the universe. The brightness and spectral (color) classes of stars are investigated along with the life history of typical stars. The course then covers how stars are clustered into galaxies, and the relationships of galaxies to each other in the universe. This course includes a laboratory section that has experiments and activities specifically designed to facilitate knowledge acquisition of course subject matter. In the William Miller Sperry Observatory, the spectroscope is employed to examine spectral lines of stellar gases. These lines tell us the stuff of which stars are made. Additional experiments cover items such as constellations, classification of stars, the Milky Way, and the structure of the universe. In doing the experiments using basic math, students discover anew what great astronomers of the past have found. Topics in optics, heat, gas laws, forces, relativity, and the atom are introduced. Certain labs can only be completed at Sperry Observatory on the Cranford campus “ students unable to come to the Observatory for these labs can opt to do alternate labs."