Undergraduate Studies
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Department of Astronomy
Undergraduate Studies |
The Department of Astronomy provides a range of courses and programs for students planning careers in astronomy, space science, or related fields as well as for those wishing a physical science degree while focusing on this exciting field of science. The department offers three concentrations: astronomy, astronomy and physics, and planetary and space sciences. Students concentrating in any of these areas develop the necessary mathematical skills and physical insight to understand the nature of the universe from the modern scientific perspective. In addition to course work, most Astronomy Department students participate in research at the forefront of Astronomy and Planetary Science under the guidance of a faculty member . These concentrations prepare a student for graduate school and/or technical and scientific careers.
See our Majoring in Astronomy flyer for more information. You can view this flyer as a PDF by clicking here.
The modern space program has sparked a golden age of discovery in planetary and space science which scientists are now turning into a more complete understanding of near-earth space, planets and stellar systems. The Planetary and Space Science (PSS) concentration is a multidisciplinary program including astronomy, geology, physics, and calculus jointly organize by the Astronomy and Earth Science Departments that allows students to develop the skills to study the nature of our solar system and planets. PSS concentrators begin with the astronomy survey classes (AS 202-203), physics (PY 211, 212 or PY 251, 252), chemistry (CH 101), Earth Science (ES 101 or ES 105) and calculus (MA 123, 124 or equivalent). They then continue with more advance astronomy (PY 311) physics (PY 313 or PY 354) and calculus (MA 225) and then select from a range of additional astronomy, Earth Science, and Geology classes.
Students concentrating in astronomy, astronomy and physics or planetary and space sciences should meet once a semester with a faculty advisor as well as informal meetings with professors and the Director of Undergraduate Studies, Professor Janes.
Following are some sample programs for students concentrating in astronomy:
Almost all undergraduate majors, participate in research with a faculty advisor. Faculty research interests include observational and theoretical studies in galactic and extragalactic astrophysics, magnetospheric and ionospheric physics, planetary atmospheres, comets, solar system plasma physics, star formation and galactic structure, variable stars, active galaxies and quasars, high-energy astrophysics, cosmology, and relativity.
Faculty and students carry out observational programs as guest investigators at facilities such as the Arecibo Radio Observatory in Puerto Rico, the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility in Hawaii, Lowell Observatory in Arizona, the Millstone Hill/Haystack Observatory in Massachusetts, and the National Optical and Radio Astronomy Observatories in Arizona, New Mexico, and West Virginia.
Department members are also actively involved in research programs using space probes, airborne infrared telescopes, satellites, and sounding rockets. Several department faculty members and students are involved in the operation of a submillimeter wave telescope ("AST/RO") at the South Pole. Fabrication and testing of the instrument took place on campus. A 20-inch telescope for solar system astronomy is installed at the McDonald Observatory in Texas.
Research facilities within the Department of Astronomy for analysis of data and for general purpose computing include many UNIX workstations and personal computers. Several of the personal computers are dedicated to the analysis of data obtained by students using the department's telescopes. All computers are connected to the Boston University Campus Data Network providing direct access to the Internet including the main campus computer facilities as well as a supercomputer for massively parallel computations. The Center for Space Physics also maintains a 'clean room' for developing rocket and satellite missions, such as the recent TERRIERS mission which relied heavily on undergraduates to support the mission.
We have created a page containing many links to sites describing undergraduate research programs and opportunities here.
Many students enjoy observational astronomy outside of the classroom setting. Boston University provides many opportunities for observing. On the roof of the College of Arts and Sciences building, the Judson Boardman Coit Observatory deploys a 6" Schmidt telescope-camera, a 7" refractor, four portable 8" reflectors, a 12" reflector, a 14" Celestron telescope. Two floors below the observatory the department has a solar/siderostat spectroscopic telescope, and a photographic darkroom. Interested students will receive instruction in using these instruments and can obtain free access to these fascilities.
The BU Astronomical Society (BUAS) sponsors a number of field trips each year to observatories in the area including frequent trips to the Ayer/Anderson Observatory at Gloucester, MA. A number of students have visited the Lowell Observatory near Flagstaff, Arizona to use the 72-inch Perkins Telescope for amateur observing. In addition, the department maintains a comprehensive astronomical research library that includes sky atlases and subscriptions to more than 50 scientific journals.
A BA in astronomy, astronomy and physics, or planetary and space sciences prepares students for immediate employment or further study leading to research and teaching careers in astrophysics or space science or careers in science education, science management, scientific computing, or science writing. Our graduates have worked for institutions ranging from the Boston Museum of Science to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, on projects such as NASA's Space Telescope and the European Space Agency's X-ray Multi-Mirror satellite. Many of our graduates have gone on to graduate school to pursue advanced degrees at institutions including UCLA, Caltech, MIT, the University of Virginia, and the University of Arizona. Visit our carreers page to learn about opportunities for graduates or our alumni page to see the career paths of some of our graduates.