ASTR 3730

Astrophysics 1


LECTURE NOTES

These notes are from a prior version of the course. I will not be following these in detail, but they may still be useful.

Lecture 1: Introduction
Lecture 2: Overview of Galactic astronomy
Lecture 3: Radiation processes: fluxes and magnitudes
Lecture 4: Radiation processes: equation of radiative transfer
Lecture 5: Radiation processes: optical depth
Lecture 6: Radiation processes: blackbody radiation
Lecture 7: Radiation processes: radiation from atoms
Lecture 8: Radiation processes: spectral lines
Lecture 9: Radiation processes: bremsstrahlung
Lecture 10: Radiation processes: synchrotron radiation
Lecture 11: Stars: basic assumptions
Lecture 12: Stars: basic observations
Lecture 13: Stars: measuring masses
Lecture 14: Stars: hydrostatic equilibrium / virial theorem
Lecture 15: Stars: characteristic timescales
Lecture 16: Stars: gas and radiation pressure
Lecture 17: Stars: degeneracy pressure
Lecture 18: Stars: Eddington limit
Lecture 19: Stars: energy transport by radiation
Lecture 20: Stars: nuclear reactions
Lecture 21: Stars: Solar neutrinos
Lecture 22: Stars: neutrino oscillations
Lecture 23: Stars: convection
Lecture 24: Stellar evolution: star formation
Lecture 25: Stellar evolution: Young Stellar Objects
Lecture 26: Stellar evolution: binary formation
Lecture 27: Stellar evolution: detecting extrasolar planets
Lecture 28: Stellar evolution: extrasolar planet population
Lecture 29: Stellar evolution: implications of extrasolar planets
Lecture 30: Stellar evolution: low mass stars
Lecture 31: Stellar evolution: white dwarfs
Lecture 32: Stellar evolution: mass transfer binaries
Lecture 33: Stellar evolution: Type II supernovae
Lecture 34: Stellar evolution: neutron stars and pulsars
Lecture 35: Stellar evolution: pulsars
Lecture 36: Stellar evolution: black holes
Lecture 37: Stellar evolution: black holes in X-ray binaries
Lecture 38: Stellar evolution: more about black holes in X-ray binaries

ANNOUNCEMENTS

The aim of this course, in brief, is to provide a broad introduction to the astrophysics of stars and the interstellar medium. Topics will include radiation processes from interstellar gas; the formation, structure and evolution of stars; and the physics of stellar remnants - white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes.

Lectures will be at 12:30pm Tuesday / Thursday in room DUANE G131. My office is A909 (in the JILA tower) - feel free to stop by anytime with queries / problems / suggestions. Policies and further info about the course are set out in the course syllabus (pdf format). Problem sets will be posted here.

FIRST MIDTERM: Thursday October 13th in class (no notes or books, calculators OK)

SECOND MIDTERM: Thursday November 17th in class (notes will be allowed for this one, calculators OK)

PROBLEM SETS

Problem set 1 (due Sep 6th)
Problem set 2 (due Sep 20th)
Problem set 3 (due Oct 6th)
Problem set 4 (due Nov 3rd)

SOLUTIONS

Problem sets 1 & 2

 

Philip Armitage
JILA, 440 UCB
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO80309-0440
Tel: 303-492-7836; FAX: 303-492-5235
email: pja@jilau1.colorado.edu