6 EC
Semester 1, period 1, 2
5214STAT6Y
In the vast majority of cases radiation is the only thing we detect from distant astronomical objects. Almost all knowledge we have gained from the stars and planets, the interstellar medium, and galaxies is derived from the analysis of the light they emit. These lectures present an advanced introduction to concepts of radiation transfer in astrophysical media, with special emphasis on stellar atmospheres. Topics that will be treated include: the spectra of stars; the description of the radiation field; the equation of transfer; the interaction of radiation and matter, spectral line formation, and the sun. Applications to stellar atmospheres, stellar winds, gaseous nebula, the interstellar medium, and the intergalactic medium will be discussed.
At the end of this course, the student is able to
- develop and construct simple analytical models for radiation transfer problems and calculate properties of the material
medium and (emerging) radiation field in the context of these models
- construct a simple stellar atmosphere model
- derive and prove key concepts in radiation transfer, including the invariance of specific intensity and the Eddington-Barbier
relation for specific intensity and flux
- explain and apply the main types of equilibria between radation field and material medium (TE, LTE, NLTE)
- explain and apply the basic physics controlling the formation of absorption, emission, flat-topped, parabolic, and P Cygni lines
and of continua
- device methodologies to constrain key stellar, stellar wind and nebular properties
- classify spectra of astronomical objects to first order
In interactive lectures and seminars, the basic physics is presented and derived and applied in mostly analytical problems, training skills such as classifying, deducing, deriving, proving, differentiating, arguing, hypothesizing, evaluating, and generalizing.
Activity | Number of hours |
Zelfstudie | 168 |
Requirements concerning attendance (OER-B).
Additional requirements for this course:
Absence due to the La Palma practicum needs to be communicated to the course coordinator.
| Item and weight | Details |
|
Final grade | |
|
70% Tentamen | |
|
30% Tussentoets |
No resit for the mid-term exam.
Contact the course coordinator to make an appointment for inspection.
Homework assignment for the TA sessions must be handed in. Feedback is given for selected assignments, but they are not graded.
The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl
| Weeknummer | Onderwerpen | Studiestof |
| 1 | Introduction; The spectra of stars | |
| 2 | Characterizing the radiation field | |
| 3 | The equation of transfer; numerical methods for solving the equation of transfer | |
| 4 | Radiation and matter | |
| 5 | Discrete processes | |
| 6 | Continuum processes | |
| 7 | Conservation laws | |
| 8 | Grey, planer, LTE, atmosphere in hydrostatic & radiative equilibrium | |
| 9 | LTE model atmospheres | |
| 10 | Spectral lines; scattering | |
| 11 | NLTE mechanisms and models | |
| 12 | The sun | |
| 13 | Stellar winds; H II regions | |
| 14 | ISM and IGM | |
The schedule for this course is published on DataNose.