AST 443 / PHY 517 - Observational Techniques

Fall 2009

ESS 450/437A, Mondays and Wednesdays 8:20pm - 10:10pm
General Information | Course Description | Syllabus | Lectures | Computing Resources | Assignments and Exams | Grading | Course Policies

General Information

Credits: 4
Instructor: Prof. Stanimir Metchev (metchev 'at' astro.sunysb.edu; ESS 452; 632-1302)
Office hours: Monday & Wednesday 1-2pm or just stop by my office
Required texts:
- Astronomy Methods, H. Bradt (Cambridge University Press, 2007)
- Practical Statistics for Astronomers, J.V. Wall & C.R. Jenkins (Cambridge University Press, 2008)
- Handbook of CCD Astronomy, S.B. Howell (2nd ed., Cambridge University Press, 2006)
Recommended text:
- Data Reduction and Error Analysis for the Physical Sciences, P.R. Bevington & D.K. Robinson (2nd or 3rd ed., McGraw-Hill Inc., 1992, 2002)
The required textbooks are available at the bookstore or through amazon.com, by following the above links
Prerequisites: AST 203, or AST 205, or permission of instructor
Graduate students may register for this as PHY 517 (3 credits) or PHY 585 (0-1 credit). Grad students will be expected to show a more advanced understanding of the material.

Course Description

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This is partly a lecture course, and partly a laboratory course. Students will be expected to learn how to use a telescope to obtain useful astronomical data. Students will learn how to write simple IDL code to read and analyze astronomical images. Students will be expected to undertake and complete an observing project and a data analysis project using archival data. Grades will be based on a combination of a midterm exam, homework and projects.

Lectures

Lecture 1, Aug 31, 2009, Course Logistics
Lecture 2, Sep 2, 2009, Coordinates
Lecture 3, Sep 4, 2009, Coordinates, Time, Magnitudes
Lecture 4, Sep 9, 2009, Radiation and Telescopes
Lecture 5, Sep 14, 2009, CCDs
Exercise Lab 1, Sep 16, 2009, CCD Data Reduction: Bias, Dark, Flat, Bad Pixel Mask
Exercise Lab 1, continued, Sep 21, 2009, CCD Data Reduction: Bias, Dark, Flat, Bad Pixel Mask
Lecture 7, Sep 24, 2009, Other Types of Photon Detectors
Lecture 8, Oct 5, 2009, Photometry, PSF Fitting, Astrometry
Lectures 9, 10, 11, Oct 7-14, 2009, Statistcs I
Lecture 12, Oct 19, 2009, Radiation, Color-Magnitude Diagrams, Spectral Classification
Midterm Review, Oct 21, 2009
Lecture 13, Oct 28, 2009, Electromagnetic Spectra
Lecture 14, Nov 2, 2009, Spectroscopy
Exercise Labs 4 and 5, Nov 4 & 9, 2009, Spectroscopy Data Reduction
Tenagra data reduction labs, Nov 11 & 16, 2009
Lecture 15, Nov 18, 2009, Astrometry

Computing Resources

Example initialization files for Unix (C-shell) and IDL. Remove the ".ast443" suffix and put them in your home directory. If the C-shell is not your default Unix shell, use the 'chsh' ("change shell") command: at the prompt, type chsh -s /bin/tcsh
Unix tutorials:
- A detailed intro at the University of Surrey, UK.
- Paul Twohey's guide for beginners. Note that some information is specific to UC Berkeley.
IDL tutorials and resources:
- Christophe Morisette's IDL Cookbook for beginners.
- The IDL FAQ.
- Coyote's Guide to IDL Programming, which includes a more comprehensive list of IDL-related websites.
- The IDL Astronomy Users Library. You need to install these procedures, if they have not been installed already. (Check for the existence of an $IDL_DIR/external/astron/ directory, for example.)
- The JHU APL IDL library.
Astronomical FITS image viewing programs:
- SAOImage DS9
- ATV: an interactive display tool for IDL
Literature search:
- NASA ADS: virtually all literature of astronomical interest can be found here.
- astro-ph: the most up-to-date resource (updated daily), but incomplete.

Assignments and Exams

readings

There will be 4 homework assignments, 4 projects, and a midterm exam. There will not be a final exam. The homework sets and the midterm exam will include both numerical problems and analytical sections, with short-paragraph answers to questions. At least one of the projects will involve writing a telescope observing proposal, which will be peer-reviewed. The peer evaluations will not affect the proposer's grade, but will rather serve to assess the evaluator's ability to critically assess the quality of the proposal.

Readings

Week 1: Bradt chapters 2-4
Week 2: Bradt chapters 5, 6.3; Wall & Jenkins chapters 1-2
Week 3: Bradt chapter 6; Howell chapters 1-3
Week 4: Bradt chapter 6; Howell chapter 4; Rieke, G. (2007, ARA&A, 45, 77)
Week 5: Howell chapters 4-5
Week 6: Howell chapter 5, Wall & Jenkins chapters 2-3
Week 7: Wall & Jenkins chapters 4-5
Week 8: Bradt chapters 8,10
Week 9: Bradt chapter 11
Week 10: Howell chapter 6
Week 11: no reading
Week 12: Howell chapter 5.8
Week 13: Wall & Jenkins chapters 6-8

Homework and Projects

HW1 due in class, Sep 11, 2009: Bradt problems 3.22, 3.32, 4.22, 4.53
P1 due in class, Sep 23, 2009:
- Wall & Jenkins problem 2.2, including the "extra challenge".
- Basic image reduction: create IDL algorithms to generate master dark, bias, flat, and bad-pixel mask frames based on the series of calibration exposures contained in the ex_long.tar.gz archive. These data come from the Palomar 5m near-IR camera and adaptive optics system. An example of a simple IDL program to generate a median dark frame from a set of dark exposures of the same integration time is quick_dark.pro. However, this is not the approach that is sought in this assignment. Rather, fit for the time dependece of the dark based on the dark exposures with different integration times that you will find in the ex_long.tar.gz archive. Then do the same for the flats. Submit elecronic copies of your dark, bias, flat, and bad pixel masks, and your IDL code.
- Write a one-paragraph description of an idea for an observational project with the Tenagra 32-inch telescope. We have a total of 10 hours of time reserved between October-November 2009.
P2 due in class, Sep 29, 2009 (note Monday schedule!): observing proposal for the Tenagra 32-inch telescope:
- scientific justification (1 page limit)
- technical justification, including target list (1 page limit)
- figures, tables, references (1 page limit)
- print 4 copies and bring to class
- note that our total available time is 10 hours
P3 due in class, Oct 14, 2009: Photometry.
- finish reduction of science exposures from Project 1 (sky creation, sky subtraction, flat-fielding, alignment, coaddition)
- perform aperture photometry on all point sources (determine curve of growth, find optimum aperture size, aperture corrections)
- perform PSF-fitting photometry on all point sources (fit PSF to brightest source, do PSF photometry, compare with outputs of aperture photometry)
- submit a 1-page write-up, appended by:
  - relevant plots: curve of growth, radii for optimum SNR
  - tables: aperture and PSF-fitting photometry
  - your code
HW2 due in class, Oct 21, 2009: Wall & Jenkins problems 4.4, 5.1, 5.3, 5.4

IDL program to solve problems 5.3 and 5.4
Outcomes from:
- t tests on Gaussian random variates with identical means and varying degrees of contamination: t_test_0_mean_offset.pdf
- t tests on Gaussian random variates with 0.5 sigma difference in means and varying degrees of contamination: t_test_0.5_mean_offset.pdf
- F tests on Gaussian random variates with identical means and varying degrees of contamination: F_test_0_mean_offset.pdf

HW3 due in class, Nov 9, 2009: Bradt problems 8.32, 8.41, 10.31, 11.32
P4 due in class, Dec 7, 2009: observational project data reduction and analysis.

Midterm Exam

Monday, Oct 26, 2009
review session: Wednesday, Oct 21, 2009

Tenagra 32-inch Observations

Parent directory: http://yabalka.astro.sunysb.edu/~metchev/ast443/tenagra/
First see readme.txt for information on how to parse your data.
091008.tar.gz 2009 Oct 8 (UTC), partly cloudy: M11 B+V band imaging, HD 209458 R band focus sequence
091020.tar.gz 2009 Oct 20 (UTC), partly cloudy: HD 209458 R band imaging
091027.tar.gz 2009 Oct 27 (UTC), clear: M52 BVR band imaging
091029.tar.gz 2009 Oct 29 (UTC), clear, possibly a sudden focus change: M37 BVR band imaging
091031.tar.gz 2009 Oct 31 (UTC), clear: Hyades BVR band imaging, no photometric standards
091104.tar.gz 2009 Nov 4 (UTC), clear: Hyades BVR band imaging; some M11, M52, M37 BVR images with photometric standards

Course Grading

40% projects
30% homework assignments
20% midterm examination
10% evaluation of peers' proposals and papers

Course Policies

Lecture notes: will be available in PowerPoint and PDF format after each lecture on the course website.
Homework assignments and projects: students will be encouraged to solve problems and to work on projects in groups. However, every student will be responsible for his or her own submitted work. Plagiarism will be punishable by a 50% grade reduction on the relevant part of the problem set, and will be referrable to the Academic Judiciary.
Late work: Assignments up to one week old will be accepted with a 25% penalty. More than one week overdue assignments will not be accepted.
Midterm exam: closed book. A formula sheet will be provided, if necessary.
Missed exam: under exceptional circumstances, a make-up exam can be arranged with the instructor beforehand.

Stony Brook policies:

If you have a physical, psychological, medical, or learning disability that may impact your course work, please contact Disability Support Services (631) 632-6748 or http://studentaffairs.stonybrook.edu/dss. They will determine with you what accommodations are necessary and appropriate. All information and documentation is confidential.

Students who require assistance during emergency evacuation are encouraged to discuss their needs with their professors and Disability Support Services. For procedures and information go to the following website http://www.stonybrook.edu/ehs/fire/disabilities.shtml.

Each student must pursue his or her academic goals honestly and be personally accountable for all submitted work. Representing another person's work as your own is always wrong. Faculty are required to report any suspected instance of academic dishonesty to the Academic Judiciary. For more comprehensive information on academic integrity, including categories of academic dishonesty, please refer to the academic judiciary website at http://www.stonybrook.edu/uaa/academicjudiciary.

Stony Brook University expects students to respect the rights, privileges, and property of other people. Faculty are required to report to the Office of Judicial Affairs any disruptive behavior that interrupts their ability to teach, compromises the safety of the learning environment, and/or inhibits students' ability to learn.

Last updated on Aug 31, 2009.