Astronomy

Broadway High School

Instructor: Russ Kohrs

Contact Info: rkohrs@rockingham.k12.va.us, 896-7081

Website: bhsastronomy.blogspot.com (access to course documents, calendar, and news)

Course Description and Objectives: Astronomy is the oldest science, with the first
observations of the heavens conducted by our early human ancestors. Historical records of
astronomical measurements date back as far as 5000 years ago. Astronomy is the study of
the sky and those celestial bodies and processes which exist outside of the Earth.
In this course, we will discuss a myriad of topics from the history of astronomy to
neutron stars and quasars. This course is an upper-level elective science course. As such,
there are no SOL requirements to fulfill.
The work in this class will be largely student-directed and teacher facilitated. By this, I
mean that this class will largely depart from the traditional lecture/take notes method of
conducting class. Labs and projects will be the main form of work, some of which will be
student-designed. Students will also, to a certain extent, design the quizzes and tests which
they will take. My role as teacher is to help students in this class come to learn about
astronomy on their own while providing guidance, topics, and occasionally designing certain
labs.

Course Text:
Seeds, Michael A., 2002, Horizons: Exploring the Universe, Brooks-Cole: Pacific Grove, CA

Educational Videos: From time to time, videos of an educational nature will be shown as a
supplement to material presented in class. These programs are products of the Discovery
Channel, History Channel, BBC, or PBS.

Evaluation: Students will receive one grade each six-week term, based on the following
criteria:

20% = Quizzes and Exams

40% = Class Projects
40% = Observation Projects

Grading Scale: This scale is based on the Rockingham County Board of Education’s guidelines.
A = 100-94
B = 93-86
C = 85-78
D = 77-70
F = 70 & below
Unit 1

1. Scale in the Universe (Chapter 1)

2. The Night Sky (Chapter 2)
3. Cycles in the Sky (Chapter 3)
4. History of Modern Astronomy (Chapter 4)
5. Field Trip? – JMU Planetarium

Unit 2

1. Atoms and Starlight (Chapter 6)

2. Astronomical tools (Chapter 5)
3. Field Trip? – NRAO – The National Radio Astronomy Observatory, Green Bank, WV

Unit 3

1. The Origin of the Solar System (Chapter 16)

2. The Inner Planets (Chapter 17)
3. The Outer Planets (Chapter 18)
4. Meteorites, Asteroids, and Comets (Chapter 19)

Unit 4

1. The Sun (Chapter 7)

2. The Properties of Stars (Chapter 8)
3. The Formation and Structure of Stars (Chapter 9)
4. The Deaths of Stars (Chapter 10)
5. Neutron Stars and Black Holes (Chapter 11)

Unit 5

1. Cosmology (Chapter 15)

2. Galaxies (Chapter 13)
3. The Milky Way Galaxy (Chapter 12)
4. Galaxies with Active Nuclei (Chapter 13)

Unit 6

1. Life on Other Worlds (Chapter 20)

2. The Space Program, History and Future
3. Field Trip? – Udvar-Hazy Center, National Air and Space Museum