Introductory Astronomy, AST 2002, is about the universe, our place in it, how it works, and how we know how it works. You will learn about our family of planets, our place in the solar system, and the Milky Way galaxy, and the universe. You will learn about exploding stars, black holes, time dilation, the warping of space-time, impacts in the solar system, the formation of the Earth, and most importantly you will learn how we know these things.

This class is a broad survey of astronomy including motions in the sky, the solar system, stars, galaxies, and the origin and evolution of the universe. With such a broad array of topics it is not possible to cover each one in great depth. Instead we will emphasize the scientific techniques used to elucidate the physical evolution of the universe. We will use astrophysics as a case-study to illustrate scientific inquiry and quantitative reasoning.

AST 2002 is offered both online and in-person.

 

Recent Imagery from the James Webb Space Telescope

Galaxy Cluster SMACS 0723
Galaxy Cluster SMACS 0723

Southern Ring Nebula
Southern Ring Nebula

Stephan's Quintet
Stephan’s Quintet

Cosmic Cliffs in the Carina Nebula
Cosmic Cliffs in the Carina Nebula


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James Webb Space Telescope
James Webb Space Telescope

UCF Researchers to Conduct Research Using First James Webb Space Telescope Images

With the first images from the telescope released, here is a round-up of the many research projects UCF is working on.

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