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Emerging from the shadows...

Baskii

By Baskii
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Baskii

Baskii

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Thanks everybody for the warm welcome! :sunny:

In response to jgs001 and rawhead, the Open University course I started with was S194: Introducing Astronomy. It's a short course, worth 10 points, that can be completed in either 3 or 6 months. These points can be put towards a further course such as a Certificate in Introductory Astronomy. The course materials include a nicely designed course book; a DVD with software including Stellarium; a practice end-of-course assessment (ECA); and a planisphere.

The course is designed so that it can be taken by those with no practical astronomy experience, and as such you don't require a telescope. One excercise has you calculating the distance to the moon with the aid of a long stick and a coin; you're also asked to go outside on a clear night and identify some objects with the aid of the supplied planisphere. A section that I found particularly useful as an amateur astronomer explained such things as lunar and planetary phases, apparent planetary motion, celestial co-ordinates and the like.

I have to say that I found the course really absorbing. It is arranged in a nice logical way, beginning with the Sun, then the wider solar system, the stars, galaxies and then the universe. Some of the topics covered are: the internal structure and processes of the Sun; planetary formation and conditions for life; the lifecycle of stars; types of galaxy; the evolution of the universe...!

The science isn't too difficult to follow and if you do get stuck, there's plenty of support (via a personalised OU web site, where you can e-mail your tutor or talk to fellow students - you can also phone a tutor for support in the evenings).

I hope this is of some help to you! I found it to be a good course and definitely recommend it.

After passing S194 I decided to try another short course, this time S197: How the Universe Works. As the title suggests it's quite wide-ranging and I have to say it's tougher going than the last one. I'll report back if and when I finish it! :D

Baskii

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rawhead

rawhead

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Posted

Thanks everybody for the warm welcome! :sunny:

In response to jgs001 and rawhead, the Open University course I started with was S194: Introducing Astronomy. It's a short course, worth 10 points, that can be completed in either 3 or 6 months. These points can be put towards a further course such as a Certificate in Introductory Astronomy. The course materials include a nicely designed course book; a DVD with software including Stellarium; a practice end-of-course assessment (ECA); and a planisphere.

The course is designed so that it can be taken by those with no practical astronomy experience, and as such you don't require a telescope. One excercise has you calculating the distance to the moon with the aid of a long stick and a coin; you're also asked to go outside on a clear night and identify some objects with the aid of the supplied planisphere. A section that I found particularly useful as an amateur astronomer explained such things as lunar and planetary phases, apparent planetary motion, celestial co-ordinates and the like.

I have to say that I found the course really absorbing. It is arranged in a nice logical way, beginning with the Sun, then the wider solar system, the stars, galaxies and then the universe. Some of the topics covered are: the internal structure and processes of the Sun; planetary formation and conditions for life; the lifecycle of stars; types of galaxy; the evolution of the universe...!

The science isn't too difficult to follow and if you do get stuck, there's plenty of support (via a personalised OU web site, where you can e-mail your tutor or talk to fellow students - you can also phone a tutor for support in the evenings).

I hope this is of some help to you! I found it to be a good course and definitely recommend it.

After passing S194 I decided to try another short course, this time S197: How the Universe Works. As the title suggests it's quite wide-ranging and I have to say it's tougher going than the last one. I'll report back if and when I finish it! :D

Baskii

Thanks for that. Sent my application form off today. Really looking forward to it...

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