Lesson Plans for Astronomy for the week of: 01/09/12 – 01/13/12

MONDAY: Today you will meet in class for role to be taken and then you will go to the library to work on the nova/supernova assignment. You will work in your groups gathering information for your table. This assignment is due Wednesday but this is the only day class time can be given for your research. You may do today’s 3mQ on Tuesday, when you will all have the information you need to answer the questions. Homework: Download the chapter 13 notes for sections 5 and 6.

TUESDAY: Today you will gather as a class and put your N/.SN information in a table. Put the results of your labor on one of the deepest of Mr. Young’s whiteboards. The remainder of class can be used to work on your homework: Read 13:5-6 and using the book along with Mr. Young’s notes make notes of your own. Also, define these terms: nucleosynthesis, photodisintegration, type II supernova.    

WEDNESDAY: Today you will watch a movie. From the information in the movie you will be able to answer today’s 3mQ. Homework: have today’s 3mQ done and ready to show Mr. Young.  The test over chapter 13 will be one week from today.   

THURSDAY: Discuss the N/SN table you put on the board. We will verify the information on the table and then give everyone a chance to copy this table into their notes. With the time remaining we will discuss luminous super-giants and the type(s) of supernovae events they create. We will also discuss cosmic rays and of what they actually consist. This is amazing-scary stuff! (Remember page 407?) Homework: Read 13:7-9 and using the notes on-line and your own reading make your own notes.  

FRIDAY: Finally! We get to neutron stars! We will discuss what kind of stars originate these death knells and along the way we will learn about LGM1 and pulsars. We will also discuss and define: magnetars, and neutron degeneracy pressure. Homework: Read 13: 10-11 and do the note thing.

3mQ Astronomy Monday 01/09/12

1.      What kind of novae/supernovae (N/SN) event can a single star experience more than once?

2.      What type of N/SN event occurs in/on a white dwarf?

3.      What type of N/SN event occurs in/on a Wolf-Rayet star?

BONUS: What type of N/SN event enriches its planetary nebula with the heaviest elements?

3mQ Astronomy Tuesday 01/10/12

1.      What is the minimum mass a star can have and still end its life as a white dwarf?

2.      Why does it take less and less time for a star to fuse heavier and heavier elements?

3.      Why is Fe the heaviest element a star can fuse in its core?

BONUS: Describe ‘core bounce’!

3mQ Astronomy Wednesday 01/11/12

This 3mQ will be posted at a later date; after Mr. Young previews the movie.

3mQ Astronomy Thursday 01/12/12

  1. How many N/SN events can we expect to occur in our galaxy per century?
  2. In what part of a galaxy is a N/SN event likely to occur, near the center or at the edges?
  3. Where are we in the MWG? See page 407! Could we survive a SN event even 50 ly away?

BONUS: What is a cosmic ray?

3mQ Astronomy Friday 01/13/12

  1. Monday: #B
  2. Tuesday: #2
  3. Wednesday: #

BONUS: Thursday: #3