Undergraduate Academics
UM Astronomy Projects
This page is provided as refrence and resource for all introductory astronomy classes. Students should check with their instructors for the requirements for their class(s), and availablity of projects.
Forms
Forms required for particular projects are included in the project description. If you know which for you need, you can download it here
Projects
Click on the bold links below to see a list of all projects in each catagory, or you can list all projects.
List projects by TIME or COMPLEXITY:
- Tier 1 projects should take less than 1 hour and can be finished in a single evening with either no special equipment or equipment provided in Angell Hall.
- Tier 2 projects require something else, such as special equipment (like a camera), travel more than a mile off campus, multiple observations, or more than one hour to complete.
List projects by TYPE:
- Observing projects involve making some sort of observation, and may involve sketching or timing of events.
- Most of the planetarium projects must be done in the Angell Hall planetarium, except for the visit to another planetarium. Check with your instructor about the availability of these projects.
- Computer projects involve using software available in the Angell Hall computer lab. You may have access to this or alternative software as well. For example, some textbooks come with a basic version of Starry Night, or with the Voyager Sky Gazer software, which can be used for some of the projects.
- If you have a camera, there are photography projects available. Some of these require fairly special equipment, so read the descriptions carefully.
- There are a few other projects don't fit into any of the above categories.
List projects by LOCATION:
- Angell Hall Student Observatory (check with your instructor about the availability of the Observatory)
- Angell Hall Planetarium (Check with your instructor about the availability of the planetarium)
- Starry Night is available in the Angell Hall Astronomy Computer Labs. There are some other software programs may also be capable of doing everything you need. For example, Stellarium is open source software that you can use for most of the projects. Your GSIs may not be able to answer questions about any software other than Starry Night.
- Some observing projects require a dark sky, which you might find at Peach Mountain or if you are heading out of town for a break.
- Home projects can be done at home or another convenient location (like the Arb) with a clear view of some part of the sky.
- A few projects require you to visit someplace, like the planetarium in the Exhibit Museum of Natural History or an observatory at another university.
