Ay 122a Schedule, Fall 2012-13 (subject to changes)

Wed/Fri 2:30-4:00pm, 219 Cahill


Oct 3 [SGD] General considerations, units, coordinates, observing practicalities

Oct 5 [SGD] Web resources, archives, VO, etc. 

Oct 10 [CCS]  Telescopes and Telescope Optics I: intro optics, configurations, design issues

Oct 12 [CCS]  Telescopes II: coatings, sites, space telescopes, specialized facilities

Oct 17 [CCS]  Spectrographs I: diffraction theory, spectrograph design, resolving power, scaling

Oct 19 [CCS]  Spectrographs II: echelles, Fourier-transform, fibers, slicers, IFUs 

Oct 24 [CCS]  Detectors I: CCDs, MCPs, photon counting

Oct 26 [CCS]  Detectors II: IR arrays, bolometers, hybrid devices, energy resolving  

Oct 31 [SGD]  Review statistics relevant to detection of sources; photometric systems

Nov 2  [SGD]  Intro to observing and image processing techniques, software

Nov 7  [SGD]  Photometry (observing techniques, aperture, PSF-fitting, surface photom.)

Nov 9  [SGD]  Astrometry, polarimetry

Nov 14 [SGD]  Spectroscopy: techniques for choosing resolution, observing, data reduction

Nov 16 [SGD]  Time-domain astronomy: synoptic surveys, strategies, processing, follow-up, etc. 

Nov 21 [CCS]  Adaptive Optics I: principles, atmospheric physics, implementation

[Nov 22-23 T-giving, no class]

Nov 28 [CCS] Adaptive Optics II: applications, incl. coronography, other techniques 

Nov 30 [presentations, I] [SGD+CCS]

Dec 5  [presentations, II] [SGD+CCS]

Dec 7 [last day of classes; review]

Dec 10 **final exam available**

Dec 14 **final exams due before 5:00 pm**