Professor: William Herbst

Associate Professor: John Salzer (Chair)

Assistant Professors: Ata Sarajedini, Kathryn Johnston

Adjunct Assistant Professor: Vicki Sarajedini

Systems and Facility Manager: Eric Williams

Departmental Advising Expert (2000-2001): John Salzer

Introductory and General Education Courses. The Astronomy Department offers three general ducation courses (ASTR103, 105, and 107) intended for nonscience majors who want a broad introduction to various aspects of astronomy. These courses do not require calculus and are designed to meet the needs of students who will take only a few science courses during their time at Wesleyan. The standard introductory course for potential majors and other science-oriented students is ASTR155. It assumes a good high school preparation in physics and some knowledge of calculus. Potential majors with a good knowledge of astronomy may place out of this course by demonstrating proficiency in the material; anyone wishing to do so should speak with the instructor. ASTR211 is a focused-inquiry course appropriate for interested nonmajors as well as a gateway course to the major.

Major program. The astronomy major is constructed to accommodate both students who are preparing for graduate school and those who are not. The basic requirement for the major is successful completion of the following courses: PHYS113, 116, 213, 214 and 215; MATH121, 122, and 221; and ASTR155, 211, 221, 222, 231, and 232. PHYS224 and MATH222 are strongly recommended but are not required. Additional upper-level physics courses are also recommended but are not required. Ability to program a computer in at least one of the widely used languages in the sciences, such as C, Pascal, or Fortran is also highly recommended. This does not necessarily mean that students should take a computer science course. Potential majors with graduate school aspirations should complete or place out of the basic physics and mathematics courses listed above, preferably by the end of their sophomore year, and should also take ASTR155 and ASTR211 during their first two years. Some students may also wish to take PHYS224 and/or ASTR222 as sophomores.

Since physics GRE scores are an important admission criterion at most astronomy graduate schools, those planning to go on for a Ph.D. are best advised to double major in physics. This can be accomplished by taking several of the following additional courses, normally in the junior and senior years: PHYS224, 313, 315, 316, and 325. Check the published requirements for the Physics major for more details. Additional mathematics courses, such as MATH229, may also be chosen. Students considering graduate school are strongly urged to do a senior thesis project (ASTR429/430); honors in astronomy requires completion of a senior thesis.

All astronomy majors and potential majors are expected to enroll each year in the 0.25-credit course ASTR431, which meets in the spring semester. This is a research-discussion course that provides a broad exposure and introduction to topics of current astronomical interest. Majors are also encouraged to serve as a teaching apprentice in a general education course at least once during their junior or senior years and to participate in the observing program with the 24-inch telescope of Van Vleck Observatory.