Specialist Topics in Astrophysics (U01423)

? Credit Points : 10 ? SCQF Level : 10 ? Acronym : PHY-4-SpeTopAst

Formation and Evolution of Planetary Systems: One of the biggest questions in modern-day astronomy is whether other stars have planetary systems similar to our own and whether they harbour Earth-like planets, possibly containing life. This course will cover the enormous progress that has been made in recent years in the understanding of how planetary systems form and evolve. Describing the methods used it will discuss the level of success so far achieved in detecting extrasolar planets and will address fundamental questions such as to whether our Solar System is unique. A key part of the course will be to look towards the future and examine the likelihood of finding Earth-like planets around nearby stars in our lifetimes. The search for biomarkers leading to the possible discovery of life will also be addresseed.

X-Ray Astronomy: X-ray observations probe violent, highly energetic astrophysical processes. Such conditions arise near compact objects (e.g. black holes, quasars) or whenever gas is heated to temperatures of millions of degrees (e.g. in clusters of galaxies). In this course we will investigate the main types of X-ray emitting phenomena, both galactic and extragalactic, emphasising how X-ray observations can be used as a tool to help in our broader understanding of astronomy and cosmology.

Entry Requirements

? Pre-requisites : At least 40 credit points accrued in courses of SCQF Level 9 or 10 drawn from Schedule Q, including Galaxies, Quasars & the Universe (PHY-3-GalQuas) and Physics of Stars & Nebulae (PHY-3-StarNeb).

Subject Areas

Home subject area

Undergraduate (School of Physics), (School of Physics, Schedule Q)

Delivery Information

? Normal year taken : 4th year

? Delivery Period : Semester 2 (Blocks 3-4)

? Contact Teaching Time : 2 hour(s) per week for 11 weeks

First Class Information

Date	Start	End	Room	Area	Additional Information
07/01/2008	12:00	13:00			ROE - LEcture THeatre

All of the following classes

Type	Day	Start	End	Area
Lecture	Monday	12:10	13:00	Other
Lecture	Thursday	12:10	13:00	Other

? Additional Class Information : Lecture times will be 1220-1310

Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes

Formation and Evolution of Planetary Systems: to follow

Upon successful completion of (the X-ray part of) this course, it is intended that a student will be able to:

* Demonstrate an understanding of the radiation processes giving rise to X-ray emission, and be able to describe the astrophysical situations in which these take place.

* Demonstrate an understanding of the thermal emission of galaxy clusters,apply hydrostatic models to these, and discuss the interpretation of the results in a cosmological context.

* Explain the different modes of gas accretion onto compact bodies, and summarise the differences in their observable properties.

* Review the observational evidence for supermassive black holes, and describe the X-ray properties of active galactic nuclei.