Official course information can be found in the Undergraduate Catalog. The following information is an overview of each of the Astronomy courses that are currently offered to UNT students. PHYS 1052/1062 can each be used to satisfy a portion of the Natural Science requirement of the University Core Curriculum.

PHYS 1052 - The Solar System

Course Information: 3 hours. (3;2) History of astronomy and the physical properties of the earth, moon, planets and minor bodies. Includes self-scheduled outdoor and indoor laboratory exercises.

Laboratory Information: Five self-scheduled labs will be completed throughout the duration of the lecture course. The laboratory component of the course is described in a separate syllabus and takes place at the exciting locations of Sky Theater Planetarium and Rafes Urban Astronomy Center Observatory, our Experimental Lab. Labs are SELF-SCHEDULED through Canvas, via a class link which will become available upon the first day of the enrolled semester. (You will not go to the same lab/location for your lab at the same time each week.) Each of the fives labs will be offered several times throughout the semester and you will be responsible for attending each one ONCE. The overall point total you receive for labs will be transferred to your professor at the end of the semester and this will count as percentage of your final course grade, as determined by your professor. Click the links here for a sample PHYS 1052 Syllabus and PHYS 1052 Lab Schedule.  Note, the times of lab offerings are subject to change slightly each semester. 

Course Prerequisite(s): None.

PHYS 1062 - Stars and the Universe

Course Information: 3 hours. (3;2) Properties of stars and stellar systems and a study of the origin, evolution and future of the universe. Includes self-scheduled outdoor and indoor laboratory exercises.

Laboratory Information: Five self-scheduled labs will be completed throughout the duration of the lecture course. The laboratory component of the course is described in a separate syllabus and takes place at the exciting locations of Sky Theater Planetarium , Rafes Urban Astronomy Center Observatory, our Experimental Lab.  Labs are SELF-SCHEDULED through Canvas, via a class link which will become available upon the first day of the enrolled semester. (You will not go to the same lab/location for your lab at the same time each week.) Each of the five labs will be offered several times throughout the semester and you will be responsible for attending each one ONCE. The overall point total you receive for labs will be transferred to your professor at the end of the semester and this will count as percentage of your final course grade, as determined by your professor. Click the links here for a sample PHYS 1062 Syllabus and PHYS 1062 Lab Schedule.  Note, the times of lab offerings are subject to change slightly each semester. 

Course Prerequisite(s): None.

PHYS 3950 - Observational Astronomy

Course Information: 3 hours. This class provides an overview of modern methods and techniques in observational astronomy. The following topics will be covered; optical astronomy; telescopes; modern detectors; photometry; spectroscopy; interferometry; data analysis; time-series analysis; multi-wavelength astronomy; multi-messenger astrophysics.

Course Prerequisite(s): PHYS 1520 or PHYS 2220 with a grade of C or better; and MATH 1720 with a grade of C or better.

PHYS 4650 - Intro to Modern Astrophysics

Course Information: 3 hours. An introduction to the basic concepts and methods of modern astrophysics and cosmology. Topics include the energy source of the Sun, stellar evolution, galaxies, and black holes. The course also explores exciting areas of astrophysics that are advancing rapidly, such as potential sources for dark matter, dark energy, as well
as the structure and fate of the Universe.

Course Prerequisite(s): PHYS 3010.

PHYS 4750 - Galaxies and Cosmology

Course Information: 3 hours. Covers the current standard model of the universe; and the formation, evolution and the properties of galaxies. Students will gain a deeper understanding of the following topics: modern cosmology and its history; basics of general relativity; cosmological models; the distance ladder; the age of the universe and the universal expansion; Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB); early universe and the big-bang nucleosynthesis; the contents of the universe - baryons, dark matter, and dark energy; structure formation of the universe; Galaxies: morphology, structure, kinematics, stellar populations, spectra; Galaxies: space distribution, luminosity function, mass function; Galaxies: formation and evolution; galaxy clusters; supermassive black holes and their roles in galaxy evolution.

Course Prerequisite(s): PHYS 4650