Astr/Phys 3210: Resources for Discussions and Homeworks -- Spring 2011

Cosmic Background and BBT:

• WMAP page and BB/expansion timeline, CMBR map, TempFluct Spectrum, Content Pies.
  • other images: 5 bands, polarization maps,
  • animations: map the sky, fly through time, ripples,
• COBE map (~1990, ~7° resolution)
• N-body simulations of large-scale structure evolution (CDM z=49-0, CDM z=20-0, observed)

Cosmic Expansion:

• Two "Key Project" papers on the Hubble Constant: ("Cepheids in NGC 2841" and "Final Results")
• Supernova Acceleration Probe (SNAP)
• Supernovae Cosmology (SN spectra, cosmology eqns, etc, by B.Falck)

Dark Matter:

• Lensing and detection of dark matter: strong lensing example, weak lensing concepts, simulated light paths.
• N-body simulations of structure evolution with dark-matter halos (small group movie, DM-halo, galaxy harassment)
• Homework #7: (i) observing rotation curves, (ii) GIF image of NGC 2742 (300x300 arcsec) from the Digitized Sky Survey.

Extra-Solar Planets:

• Main Reading: California & Carnegie Search for Extrasolar Planets
• animated orbit (simulated views and spectra)
• basic observations and equations for Doppler method
• observation for "HD 73256 b" (sample star in lecture)
• eccentricity: radial velocity curves for e=0.277, e=0.927
• news article based on research paper "Five planets orbiting 55 Cancri" (PDF, see pp.34-39 for data figures)
• data used in discovering 7.5 M-earth planet around M-type star

Interstellar Medium & Galactic Stellar Halo:

• interstellar reddening maps
• Rosette Nebula image
• parallax movie
• galactic collision movies (2 spirals merge, MW/Andromeda, satellite mergers, minor mergers)
• metal abundance from spectroscopic analysis

Saturn:

• Main Reading: text handed out in class, text/pictures available in color PDF at our Blackboard website, pp.74-83.
• Individual Research topics:
  • Saturn's Dynamical Rings (Physics Today, Aug 2007, pp.74-75)* [recommended, PDF on Blackboard]
  • Rings & Flying-Saucer Moons:
    • background
    • Saturn's Small Inner Satellites: Clues to Their Origins (Science 318, 7 Dec 2007, pp.1602-1607)*
  • Titan:
    • background & videos
  • The lakes of Titan (Nature 445, 04 Jan 2007, pp.61-64)*

* Indicates an article "heavier on the physics" including terminology, concepts, mathematics and/or observational data.

Helpful figures and defs: Roche lobe, Roche limit, methane, Saturn/ring facts.

XXX -- Mars:

• Main Reading: text handed out in class, text/pictures available in color PDF at our Blackboard website, pp.34-43.
• Individual Research topics:
  • Viking Missions (1976-1980): -
  • Pathfinder rover (1997): -
  • Mars Global Surveyor (1997-2007): -
  • Mars Odyssey (2001-): -
  • Mars Express (2003-): -
  • Spirit and Opportunity rovers (2004-): -s
  • Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (2006-): --
  • Phoenix Mars Lander (2008-): -
  • Future missions & research strategy: -
• Image of dust-devil tracks from HW#2, Problem#4: full image (2048x6119pix), Image A (199x133pix), Image B (77x39pix), HiRise page.
• MGS map of Mars' magnetic field.
• Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) and mineral maps (scroll down).