Category: Astronomy

I’m going to give you a break from measurements, calculations, and death marching around the neighborhood: A paper.
Write a 1500-word paper on a topic in Observational Astronomy. Example topics are listed below. If you have a different topic than those on the list, just email it to me so I can OK it. No OK, NO POINTS.
Any common format is fine. I want a minimum of three sources, listed in a bibliography. I have generated ChatGPT papers for all these topics. I’ve seen everything on Chegg and the other cheat sites. If your paper does not look original, no credit.
WORD COUNT REQUIRED.
This project cannot be resubmitted. So, get it right the first time.
Examples of topics:
Optical Astronomy
Infra-red Astronomy
Radio Astronomy
Sub Millimeter Wave Astronomy
Ultraviolet Astronomy
X-ray Astronomy
Gamma Ray Astronomy
Neutrino Astronomy
Gravity Wave Astronomy
Astronomical Photometry
Astronomical Spectroscopy
Interferometry
James Webb Space Telescope
Hubble Space Telescope
Spitzer Space Telescope
Kepler Space Telescope
Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe
Very Large Array

astrobiology explores life beyond Earth, studying exoplanets, extreme environments, and Mars. SETI searches for extraterrestrial intelligence through radio signals.

Please read the article and watch the NASA educational video and describe three aspects
of scientific knowledge that you have learned from it. Supplement those concepts with external resources.
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13275

For this project you are going to observe some light sources. You are going to observe the SPECTRA of at least SIX light sources. You will use a spectroscope. Recall that a spectroscope spreads out light into its component colors, or WAVELENGTHS. A laser pointer emits light at just one wavelength. A light bulb emits a mix of countless wavelengths. A spectroscope spreads them out so you can see the colors, or wavelengths, separately.
Let the light from the source shine in through the vertical slit in the spectroscope. Concentrate on seeing the light come through the vertical slit first, then move your eyes to the left or right to see the colorful spectrum. It takes some practice to produce a nice rainbow, or spectrum. For example, the Sun delivers way more light than you need, but the Moon’s spectrum is tough to see because the Moon is much fainter than the Sun and only a narrow slit allows the light through. You will be able to see rainbows on the left and right, and even on top of the wavelength scale, depending on how you hold the spectroscope.
Sources with a small angular size in your field of view (like a pen light, candle flame, the Sun,) produce the best spectra. Big sources like a TV screen or your roof on fire will be difficult: There will be fat, overlapping spectra.
Try observing the Sun, an incandescent light bulb, an LED light, a fluorescent light, a candle flame, gas flame from stove or propane torch, streetlight, red light from electric stove coil. When you observe the Sun, do not put the slit directly on the Sun. It is too bright. Protect your eyes by putting the slit near the Sun, but not directly on it. Keep the Sun just out of the slit. You will still get plenty of light and a bright spectrum. Pay attention to the dark absorption lines you see against the Sun’s spectrum (rainbow). Draw them in on your diagram.
Draw me a picture of your observations of six light sources. Make it look like a long bar, with sections showing the different colors. One bar for each spectrum/light source observed. Use colored pencils. Label the parts of the spectrum indicating colors and brightnesses. Send me a photo or scan of your picture.
Make comments on what you’ve seen. You will need them for your report in the next project. For example, “I was surprised how little yellow light I saw in the spectrum of a candle flame. There definitely wasn’t much blue, but there was a lot of RED.”
I expect you to draw me at least SIX SPECTRA (rainbows). Be a careful observer and recorder. Don’t just make a kindergarten mess with your crayons. I know what these spectra are supposed to look like, so pay attention. This is easy points if you follow instructions the first time. Many of your predecessors did not and brought great pain upon themselves.

For this project you are going to observe some light sources. You are going to observe the SPECTRA of at least SIX light sources. You will use a spectroscope. Recall that a spectroscope spreads out light into its component colors, or WAVELENGTHS. A laser pointer emits light at just one wavelength. A light bulb emits a mix of countless wavelengths. A spectroscope spreads them out so you can see the colors, or wavelengths, separately.
Let the light from the source shine in through the vertical slit in the spectroscope. Concentrate on seeing the light come through the vertical slit first, then move your eyes to the left or right to see the colorful spectrum. It takes some practice to produce a nice rainbow, or spectrum. For example, the Sun delivers way more light than you need, but the Moon’s spectrum is tough to see because the Moon is much fainter than the Sun and only a narrow slit allows the light through. You will be able to see rainbows on the left and right, and even on top of the wavelength scale, depending on how you hold the spectroscope.
Sources with a small angular size in your field of view (like a pen light, candle flame, the Sun,) produce the best spectra. Big sources like a TV screen or your roof on fire will be difficult: There will be fat, overlapping spectra.
Try observing the Sun, an incandescent light bulb, an LED light, a fluorescent light, a candle flame, gas flame from stove or propane torch, streetlight, red light from electric stove coil. When you observe the Sun, do not put the slit directly on the Sun. It is too bright. Protect your eyes by putting the slit near the Sun, but not directly on it. Keep the Sun just out of the slit. You will still get plenty of light and a bright spectrum. Pay attention to the dark absorption lines you see against the Sun’s spectrum (rainbow). Draw them in on your diagram.
Draw me a picture of your observations of six light sources. Make it look like a long bar, with sections showing the different colors. One bar for each spectrum/light source observed. Use colored pencils. Label the parts of the spectrum indicating colors and brightnesses. Send me a photo or scan of your picture.
Make comments on what you’ve seen. You will need them for your report in the next project. For example, “I was surprised how little yellow light I saw in the spectrum of a candle flame. There definitely wasn’t much blue, but there was a lot of RED.”
I expect you to draw me at least SIX SPECTRA (rainbows). Be a careful observer and recorder. Don’t just make a kindergarten mess with your crayons. I know what these spectra are supposed to look like, so pay attention. This is easy points if you follow instructions the first time. Many of your predecessors did not and brought great pain upon themselves.

A description of asteroids historical importance
Our modern day understanding of an asteroid
The history of the objects name

Find a cultural reference to the Moon (song, poem, work of art, etc.). Post it to the discussion. Discuss how the Moon is portrayed. Is it scientifically accurate? What do you like about what you chose?
For this sample, I’d like tutor chosen to answer 2 additional posts with responses. At completion, I would like to give 20% tip to tutor for seeing this assignment through in its entirety.

Instructions
Write a Research Question and Conduct Preliminary Research
Please develop a research question. You will use this research question throughout this course. Your paper should include a paragraph or two to provide some background about the topic and explain how your research would fit into existing literature on the topic. Also, explain your search method (APUS library, other university or scholarly databases, academic journals, or Google Scholar) to access the most relevant information about your topic.
If you are wondering what a search method is, it is a process or technique. It is “how” you go about researching a topic. Typically, you will have criteria (a way of measuring what you find to determine if it is relevant) and you will have search terms (which are specific references to dates, places, events, people, concepts, or authors, that can be used in a search engine). A search method might include examining a wide variety of databases; it might include using the references in books and articles to find more sources. It might include restricting yourself to peer reviewed journal articles and government publications. No matter what paper or what topic, you will always be using some method for searching for the information you need.
Then go to the APUS online library and conduct a search for articles in peer-reviewed, academic journals or books about your topic. You can access the Library from the Classroom by selecting Library on the left vertical toolbar. Navigate the online databases and conduct a search based on keywords relating to your topic. Remember when you use the APUS library site, you must sign-in with your student account information.
Choose two (2) scholarly articles pertinent to your topic and provide a citation for these articles using APA format.
Technical Requirements
Your paper must be at a minimum of 1-1 ½ pages (the Title and Reference pages do not count towards the minimum limit).
Scholarly and credible references should be used. A good rule of thumb is at least 2 scholarly sources per page of content.
Type in Times New Roman, 12 point and double space.
Students will follow the current APA Style as the sole citation and reference style used in written work submitted as part of coursework.
Points will be deducted for the use of Wikipedia or encyclopedic type sources. It is highly advised to utilize books, peer-reviewed journals, articles, archived documents, etc.
All submissions will be graded using the assignment rubric.

https://openstax.org/books/astronomy-2e/pages/9-thought-questions
Please ensure each answer has the correct question number beside it.

Jupiter and Saturn are currently prominent in the early evening sky. In this project you are going to go outside around 8pm, find Jupiter and Saturn, and measure their azimuth with a real compass, or if you don’t have one, a fake compass, such as the compass utility on your phone. Fakeness is quite fashionable these days, and apparently completely ok.
So, step one, GO OUTSIDE at around 8pm. Face East. If you don’t know where East is, use a compass. East has a compass heading of 90 degrees. If you don’t have a real compass, use the compass utility on your phone.
Now, you are facing East. Fairly low in the sky you will easily see the current brightest star in the sky. You can’t miss it. There is no other star in the area nearly that bright. That “star” is the planet Jupiter. It is bright white.
Aim your compass at Jupiter. Read the heading. It will be around 90 degrees, but its exact heading depends on the time, so measure it accurately. That heading is Jupiter’s azimuth. You measured the Sun’s elevation in a previous project, but not its azimuth. Azimuth is the number of degrees around the horizon circle, starting at North and moving East, to some point of interest. If Jupiter’s azimuth were 80 degrees, Jupiter would be directly above that 80-degree point on the horizon. If you have binoculars or a telescope, take a look at Jupiter. You’ll see three or four tiny “stars” in a line across Jupiter. Those are some of Jupiter’s moons.
Once you have measured Jupiter’s azimuth, turn to face South. South is 180 degrees on your compass. Now look up at an angle of about 45 degrees. That’s halfway from the horizon to the point straight up. There will be a medium bright star in the area. It is most unremarkable, but it is the brightest thing in the area. That “star” is the planet Saturn. Use you compass to measure Saturn’s azimuth.
Go back inside and scrub the kitchen and the bathroom for two hours. Don’t forget to scrub behind the toilet. Then go back outside and measure Jupiter’s and Saturn’s azimuth again. You will see it has changed for both planets.
Draw me a simple sketch of the horizon. On a piece of paper, the horizon is NOT circular. It is a straight line. Draw it parallel to the bottom edge of the paper. Put in a few major landmarks on your horizon. For example, a phone pole, big tree, big building, incoming missile, etc. Don’t think artist, think map maker. Then draw in two dots for Jupiter at 8 pm and 10 pm and two dots for Saturn at 8 pm and 10 pm. 9 pm and 11 pm is also fine. Times don’t have to be exactly 8, 9, 10 or 11, but whatever they are, be sure to record them. Label the dots with the name of the planet and the azimuth at the two times. I want to see where those planets were compared to landmarks on your horizon. Scan or photograph your sketch and send it to me.