The Distant Universe

Course Times & Enrolment

This course is currently unavailable.

Course Summary

This lecture-based course covers astronomy topics relating to the most massive and most distant objects in the Universe. A team of astronomers will teach you about galaxies, galaxy clusters, dark matter and the Universe itself, as well as the technology which makes our understanding possible.

Course Details

Pre-requisites for enrolment

A basic understanding of mathematical concepts at Standard Grade, GCSE, O level or equivalent would be useful but this is not an essential requirement.

Content of Course

1. Observing Galaxies.

2. Active Galaxies.

3. Merging Galaxies and How Stars Form.

4. Evolution of Galaxies and Structures.

5. Further and Farther Galaxies.

6. Cosmology- our standard model+GR.

7. GW.

8. Probing the Dark Universe.

9. Frontiers of Cosmology.

Teaching method(s)

One hour lectures accompanied by 30 minute discussion/tutorial sessions.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

Demonstrate a good general understanding of the distant universe;
Gain a basic grounding in relevant mathematical concepts such as distance measures, parallax and luminosity;
Show awareness of the latest in astronomy research in these fields;
Grasp more clearly what current limitations remain to our understanding.

Sources

Core Readings

Essential:

No essential reading - the course is intended to be fully self-contained.

Recommended:

Zeilik, M.,2002. Astronomy: the Evolving Universe. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (ISBN 0521800900).
Moore, p. & Lintott, C., 2001. Astronomy for GCSE. London: Gerald Duckworth & Co. Ltd.
Silk, J., 2008. The Infinite Cosmos. OUP: Oxford
Breithaupt, J., 1999. Cosmology. London: Hodder Headline, TeachYourself Books.

Web Sources

Many major observatories and telescopes have their own websites with useful information and astronomy-related links, e.g.:

Class Handouts

PDFs of lecture slides will be available on request.

Queries

If you have questions regarding the course or enrolment, please contact COL Reception at Paterson's Land by email COL@ed.ac.uk or by phone 0131 650 4400.

Student support

If you have a disability, learning difficulty or health condition which may affect your studies, please let us know by ticking the 'specific support needs' box on your course application form. This will allow us to make appropriate adjustments in advance and in accordance with your rights under the Equality Act 2010. For more information please visit the Student Support section of our website.