units

ASP3012

Faculty of Science

18 September 2017 27 April 2024

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This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2016 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

Monash University

6 points, SCA Band 2, 0.125 EFTSL

Undergraduate - Unit

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

Faculty

Science

Organisational Unit

School of Physics and Astronomy

Coordinator(s)

Professor Alexander Heger

Offered

Clayton

  • Second semester 2016 (Day)

Synopsis

Stellar photometry; observing the stars; star formation; equation of state; reduced equations of stellar structure; polytropic stellar models; full equations of stellar structure; the main sequence; post-main-sequence evolution. Galactic morphology and stellar content; elliptical and spiral galaxies; large-scale structure of the Milky Way; dark matter; potential theory; galactic dynamics-orbits in spherical and axisymmetric potentials. Field trip. Astronomical data reduction.

Outcomes

On completion of this unit students will be able to:

  1. Understand the nature of stars - their life histories, how they produce energy, how they synthesise the chemical elements, and their ultimate fates;
  2. Build a simple polytropic numerical stellar model;
  3. Distinguish and discuss different types of galaxies;
  4. Understand the relationships between stellar evolution, galactic evolution, and the creation of the elements;
  5. Model computationally the motion of stars in galaxies;
  6. Understand the implications of the observed nature of galaxies for theories of the universe;
  7. Describe the morphology and kinematics of the Milky Way;
  8. Understand the significance of dark matter to galactic structure;
  9. Understand the use of optical telescopes for data collection;
  10. Write an observational research report.

Assessment

Examination (3 hours): 60%
Assignments: 20%
Computer laboratories: 10%
Field-trip report: 10%

Workload requirements

  • Three 1-hour lectures per week
  • One 1-hour support-class per week
  • One 2-hour computer laboratory per week
  • Six hours of independent study per week

See also Unit timetable information

Chief examiner(s)

Professor Alexander Heger

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Astrophysics
Physics

Prerequisites

One of MTH2010 or MTH2015, plus MTH2032, or equivalent