We will also use parts of NASA/JPL Basics of Space Flight Learners' Workbook, by Dave Doody & George Stephan, which is free and avaliable online (http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/basics/bsf.htm).

Tentative Course Schedule:

Course grades will be determined by the following:

Mid-term Exam, Thursday, February 17 (section 1)	20%
Final Exam: Thursday, May 4, 6:00-8:00 p.m., in Q16 (section 1).	30%
Homework - PLEASE NOTE: No late homework will be accepted.	20%
Project: due Thursday, April 27, at 6:30 p.m.	30%

This project may be either a paper, 2000 words or longer, on a specific astronomical instrument, technique, survey, ground-based project, or space mission, operational or planned---or your own observing project, or proposal for one, on the 36-inch SARA telescope on Kitt Peak. If this proves feasible and is scientifically consequential, I will see if we can carry out this project, and publish the results. E-mail me if you're interested, and I'll send you a proposal form.

These projects should be quantitative and on the level of Kitchin's text. You may do more than one project, as long as the texts of all projects together sum up to over 2000 words.

A tentative project title and summary will be due at the beginning of class on Tuesday, March 28. The summary should describe your project in between 200 and 300 words. Its purpose is to give you practice in writing abstracts, or short descriptions of your work---which may be the only parts of your work people will ever read, if they aren't good. Don't make them sensationalistic or hyped: if your work is interesting, it will sell itself. What's needed is a short description that is accurate and to the point, so busy people will read it, and be convinced to take the time to read the whole article. It's also so I can help prevent you from undertaking projects that aren't feasible, or don't matter much, or should be better focused. You're allowed to change your mind if you later discover something better: this is something I like particularly about science.

SPECIAL EVENTS THIS SEMESTER: These are only optional exercises. Still, I hope you'll all be able to come, at one time or another!

• Remote observing with the SARA telescope on Kitt Peak:
  TBA, 8 p.m. and later (you need not stay the whole time). We will observe in the Senior Lab (S414 in Crawford), and you may push the buttons yourself, if you bring me target coordinates. Look at the pictures Chris Henderson took and Isaac Silver processed of the Great Nebula in Orion (M42).

  If you have trouble getting into Crawford at night: call my office, x7135, and someone will come down and let you in. Campus security (x8111) should also let you in, but sometimes doesn't. There's a security phone halfway between Crawford and Skurla Hall, on the north side; there's also a phone in Evans Library.
  

• Students registered in the Monday night section at KSC may have the opportunity to use a state-of-the-art, 20-inch, near-infrared satellite tracking telescope at KSC. This can be used for satellite tracking, as well as a wide variety of publishable astronomical projects. More TBA.
  

• The WIRE spacecraft is another great opportunity for a class observing project. It was originally written off as a failure, but the star tracker still works, and is being turned over to students. For more on WIRE, read this, and this, and e-mail me.
  
  

• The Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) is another active space observatory, and you can use data from its All-Sky Monitor right now.
  

• Florida Tech students may check out observing equipment you can demonstrate you know how to use. See me for how to do this. Be sure to let me know (best by e-mail) what exactly you have.
  

• I want to do some public outreach this semester, which may include FITAS/SEDS/SPS and the SPS 1020 class. I'll keep you posted for dates, times, and locations.
  

• March is Messier Marathon season, when all 100 or so objects in the catalogue of Charles Messier are visible on the same night. Again, this may include FITAS/SEDS/SPS. I'll keep you posted for dates, times, and locations. New Moons are Sunday, March 5 and Tuesday, April 4.

Astrophysics computing resources and links

On Reserve in Evans Library