PHYS 390: Introduction to Astrophysics



PHYS 390 - Introduction to Astrophysics is a third year course for science students at Simon Fraser University. The lectures are stored as PDF files and can be read by Adobe Acrobat Reader (click to download a free copy from Adobe). Canadian spelling conventions are used.

Click to download the PDF file.


Assignments and examinations

Copies of old exams are available for the following years. The exams are stored in PDF format.
2002 2008


The Universe Observed

Lectures 1 and 2 - The big picture
Lecture 3 - Stellar luminosities
Lecture 4 - Orbits and masses
Lecture 5 - The expanding universe

Planets

Lecture 6 - A tour of the planets
Lecture 7 - Age of the solar system
Lecture 8 - Tidal forces
Lecture 9 - Planetary atmospheres

Particles and their interactions

Lecture 10 - Elementary particles
Lecture 11 - Interactions and cross sections
Lecture 12 - Energy and temperature
Lecture 13 - Thermal distributions
Lecture 14 - Photons

Stars and their energetics

Lecture 15 - Stars
Lecture 16 - Stellar lifetimes
Lecture 17 - Nuclei
Lecture 18 - Reactions I - Tunneling
Lecture 19 - Reactions II - Rate equations
Lecture 20 - Reactions III - Thermonuclear processes
Lecture 21 - Hydrogen reactions in stars
Lecture 22 - Energy production in stars

Formation and evolution of stars

Lecture 23 - Photon gas
Lecture 24 - Stellar interiors
Lecture 25 - Star formation
Lecture 26 - A star's birth
Lecture 27 - Evolution on the main sequence
Lecture 28 - Degenerate matter
Lecture 29 - White dwarfs and neutron stars

Galaxies

Lecture 30 - Morphology of galaxies
Lecture 31 - Kinematics of galaxies
Lecture 32 - Galaxy formation and evolution

The Big Bang

Lecture 33 - Temperature and time
Lecture 34 - Evolution of the early universe
Lecture 35 - Universal helium abundance
Lecture 36 - The first microsecond