Summer Sessions | Courses | Astronomy

Course information is posted for 2021. Please check back at a later time for updated 2022 course offerings.

Back to Subject Areas

Contact Information

Admissions/Advising

212-854-9666
summersessions [at] columbia.edu
https://sps.columbia.edu/admissions/visiting-students/contact

Astronomy

Check the Directory of Classes for the most up-to-date course information.

Summer 2021 Session Information

  • SESSION A courses are May 3–June 18, 2021
  • SESSION B courses are June 28–August 16, 2021
Courses
Expand All
EARTH, MOON AND PLANETS
ASTR1403S001 3 points.
Prerequisites: Recommended preparation: a working knowledge of high school algebra. May be counted toward the science requirement for most Columbia University undergraduate students. The overall architecture of the solar system. Motions of the celestial sphere. Time and the calendar. Major planets, the earth-moon system, minor planets, comets. Life in the solar system and beyond.
Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR1403S001 001/11269 Summer A Subterm Mo 01:00 PM–04:10 PM
We 01:00 PM–04:10 PM
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
James Applegate
3 Closed for Online Registration On-Line Only
STARS, GALAXIES & COSMOLOGY
ASTR1404W001 3 points.

Distances to, and fundamental properties of, nearby stars; nucleosynthesis and stellar evolution; novae and supernovae; galaxies; the structure of the universe and theories concerning its origin, evolution, and ultimate fate. You can only receive credit for ASTR UN1404 if you have not taken ASTR BC1754, ASTR UN1420 or ASTR UN1836.

Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR1404W001 001/11343 Summer A Subterm We 05:20 PM–06:55 PM
Mo 05:20 PM–06:55 PM
Th 05:20 PM–06:55 PM
Tu 05:20 PM–06:55 PM
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Melissa Ness
3 Closed for Online Registration On-Line Only
THEOR-UNIVERS:BABYLON-BIG BANG
ASTR1610W001 3 points.

Milestones in the science of cosmology over the past 6000 years. Skylore and observation in ancient cultures. The twin revolutions of the Greeks: Pythagoras and Ptolemy; and Aristotle, Aquinas, and the Great Chain of Being. The scientific revolution: the impersonal and deterministic world-order of Newton, Laplace, and Kelvin. The erosion of that world-order by mathematics and experiment in the 20th century (relativity, quantum physics, dark matter, and the expanding universe). Todays searches for a new grand order in the Universe, which can cope - or maybe not - with these blows to yesterdays comfortable wisdom.

Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR1610W001 001/11344 Summer A Subterm We 02:45 PM–04:20 PM
Tu 02:45 PM–04:20 PM
Mo 02:45 PM–04:20 PM
Th 02:45 PM–04:20 PM
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Joseph Patterson
3 Closed for Online Registration Hybrid
LIFE IN THE UNIVERSE
ASTR1753X001 3 points.
Prerequisites: recommended preparation: a working knowledge of high school algebra. Introduction to astronomy intended primarily for nonscience majors. Includes the history of astronomy; the apparent motions of the moon, sun, stars, and planets; gravitation and planetary orbits; the physics of the earth and its atmosphere; and the exploration of the solar system. This course is similar to ASTR W1403. You cannot enroll in both courses and receive credit for both.
Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR1753X001 001/00047 Summer A Subterm Th 01:00 PM–04:10 PM
Tu 01:00 PM–04:10 PM
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Laura Kay
3 Registration Block
(w/ Self-Managed Wait List) 		Hybrid
ASTRONOMY LAB I
ASTR1903W001 1 points.

Laboratory for ASTR UN1403. Projects include observations with the departments telescopes, computer simulation, laboratory experiments in spectroscopy, and the analysis of astronomical data. Lab 1 ASTR UN1903 - goes with ASTR BC1753, ASTR UN1403 or ASTR UN1453.

Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR1903W001 001/11345 Summer A Subterm Mo 07:00 PM–10:00 PM
We 07:00 PM–10:00 PM
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Laura Kay
Yuxi Lu
1 Closed for Online Registration Hybrid
ASTRONOMY LAB I
ASTR1903W002 1 points.

Laboratory for ASTR UN1403. Projects include observations with the departments telescopes, computer simulation, laboratory experiments in spectroscopy, and the analysis of astronomical data. Lab 1 ASTR UN1903 - goes with ASTR BC1753, ASTR UN1403 or ASTR UN1453.

Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR1903W002 002/14271 Summer A Subterm We 07:00 PM–10:00 PM
Mo 07:00 PM–10:00 PM
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Laura Kay
Christopher Carr
1 Closed for Online Registration On-Line Only
ASTRONOMY LAB II
ASTR1904W001 1 points.

Laboratory for ASTR UN1404. Projects include use of telescopes, laboratory experiments in the nature of light, spectroscopy, and the analysis of astronomical data. Lab 2 ASTR UN1904 - goes with ASTR BC1754 or ASTR UN1404 (or ASTR UN1836 or ASTR UN1420).

Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR1904W001 001/11346 Summer A Subterm Th 07:00 PM–10:00 PM
Tu 07:00 PM–10:00 PM
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Laura Kay
Karen Perez
1 Closed for Online Registration Hybrid
Independent Research
ASTR3999W001 3 points.

Prerequisites: the instructor's permission. For an independent research project or independent study, a brief description of the proposed project or reading, with the supervising faculty member's endorsement, is required for registration.

A variety of research projects conducted under the supervision of members of the faculty. Observational, theoretical, and experimental work in galactic and extragalactic astronomy and cosmology. The topic and scope of the work must be arranged with a faculty member in advance; a written paper describing the results of the project is required at its completion.

Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR3999W001 001/12660 Summer A Subterm
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Frederik Paerels
3 Closed for Online Registration On-Line Only
Independent Research
ASTR3999W002 3 points.

Prerequisites: the instructor's permission. For an independent research project or independent study, a brief description of the proposed project or reading, with the supervising faculty member's endorsement, is required for registration.

A variety of research projects conducted under the supervision of members of the faculty. Observational, theoretical, and experimental work in galactic and extragalactic astronomy and cosmology. The topic and scope of the work must be arranged with a faculty member in advance; a written paper describing the results of the project is required at its completion.

Course Number Section/Call Number Session Times/Location
ASTR3999W002 002/12661 Summer B Subterm
Instructor Points Enrollment Method of Instruction
Frederik Paerels
3 Registration Block
(w/ Self-Managed Wait List) 		On-Line Only