OBSERVATIONAL ASTRONOMY LAB (ERTH 102)
Spring 2008 -- M (7-10 pm), Tu (4-7, 7-10 pm), W (7-10 pm), Th (4-7, 7-10 pm)
(Official class syllabus posted online -- always check for updates)

SEMESTER SCHEDULES:  Mon Lab , Tue Lab A, Tue Lab B , Wed Lab, Thr Lab A, Thr Lab B
SOLAR OBSERVATION MAKE-UP:  If you are unable to attend the required solar observation, click here for the Solar Observation Make-up.

OBSERVATIONAL ASTRONOMY LAB (1 unit):  Emphasizes night-time observation of the sky. Observations are used to examine motions of the earth, moon and planets.

COREQUISITES:  ERTH 101 or 101HR.     TRANSFERABILITY:  CSU, UC TRANSFER LIMIT

LOCATION:  Held in the Planetarium at the SB Museum of Natural History.  Click here for directions.

TEXTBOOK:  There is no textbook, however, you are required to purchase an AstroLab Card from the SBCC Bookstore (at upstairs cashier).  These will be collected and exchanged for Lab Folders during class.

ATTENDANCE:  Attendance is required.  I look forward to seeing all of you in class regularly.  See the "Grading" section below for more details.

COURSE WEBSITE:  Additional and/or updated information regarding this class can be found on my web site at www.fieldstudy.com.  Scroll down to ERTH-102 Lab.

GENERAL:  This class is an interactive lab-based experience.  To aid in your comprehension of the appearance and motion of the objects that fill the nighttime sky, illustrations, data collection, and worksheets will be presented at a lecture which will precede most sessions.

GRADING:  Your grade will be based on class participation, your completed folder, and a series of homework assignments and "in class" quizzes and activities.  Worksheets will be worked on each night you come to lab, stamped for completion, and turned in for evaluation with your folder at the end of the semester.  Approximately three constellation quizzes will be given, three telescope quizzes, and two coordinate quizzes.  Most quizzes are given on 15 questions short form scantrons provided by your instructor.  Grade breakdown (Quizzes = 50%, Folder and HW = 50%).

Lab classes are experiential in nature, and as such, attendance is required.  Remember, each class missed represents a full week of class time.  If you miss more than one class, the highest grade you can receive drops by a full letter grade for each additional class missed.  See the table below for clarification.  Note that extra credit will be awarded for those who attend every lab and additionally, there will be extra credit for those who are on time for every class.

PIPELINE:

All students are required to make use of SBCC's PIPELINE service for participation in classroom activities and assignments and so that the instructor (and other students in your class) may contact you.  It is required that you check your PIPELINE account at least once per week.  To access PIPELINE, click the PIPELINE link at the bottom of my www.fieldstudy.com website, and/or on the www.sbcc.edu website.  If you have difficulty accessing your PIPELINE account, meet with me after class so that I can help you.  Make use of your Pipeline account to email me so as to avoid spam filtering problems.  I always check my Pipeline account first.  If you do not receive a response from me within a few days, catch me before or after class or contact me by phone.

PARTICIPATION INFORMATION:

* Your sign-out sheet, your folder, and the pencil that comes with your folder, are needed each week.  Please don't forget them at home.  All work must be done in pencil.
* Attendance is required.  There are no make up quizzes or make up labs.  It is important that you do not miss lab.
* You must arrive on time and stay the full lab session to receive credit for attending.  You will sign in at the beginning of lab and sign out at the end of lab.
* Your folder worksheets and sign-out sheet will be given a "participation" stamp at the end of each class.  Do not lose these stamps.  They are the basis of your participation grade.
* Being late to lab and/or missing a portion of lab (either at the beginning or the end) will contribute toward the number of "missed labs" tabulated above (each time you are late, it counts as half a lab missed).
* A solar observation will be required and counts as a full lab session for the purposes of attendance.  Be sure to attend one of the solar observation sessions shown in your lab schedule.  Solar observations are held outside of regular class time.
* This is a highly impacted course.  If you can not attend regularly and on-time, please do not take this class.  Do not displace a student who may critically need this class for transfer.
* There are no "excused" absences.  Regardless of the reason for missing or being late, material presented in class has been missed and can not be made up.  This may seem harsh, but please keep in mind that lab courses are different than lecture courses.  Lab courses, by nature, are attendance and/or participation based.  There is no text and most all of what we do involves planetarium presentations, telescope demonstrations, and/or interactive participation with the instructor and your fellow students.

SCHEDULING: 

* Class starts at 4 pm or 7 pm (depending on the section).  We will lecture in the planetarium and go over worksheets for about an hour, then take a short 5 minute break, then meet at the observatory for another hour to work with telescopes.
* The Tu and Th sections have a different meeting schedule than what it shows on the system.  The class meets the first week 4-7 pm, then the next week it meets 7-10 pm, then the following week it's back to 4-7 pm, and it flip flops like that for the entire semester.  That's so that we get some telescope observing time in the evenings.  The school's registration system is unable to indicate this type of schedule, so that's why they times are given incorrectly as 4-5:15 and 7-8:15 in order to block those time slots.
* You are required to attend the night for which you are enrolled.  Due to rain, holidays, and other factors, each night will be on a separate schedule.  Lab night sessions are not interchangeable.
* In order to maximize our outside observing opportunities, later in the semester, Tu and Th class meeting times may be changed so that we meet at 7 pm every week.  An announcement will be made in class if and when this occurs.
* Grading and attendance errors can only be corrected the week grade reports are distributed.  Please monitor your grades carefully and report any errors immediately.
*Adding and dropping courses is a student responsibility, do not expect the instructor to do this for you.  In general though, students may be dropped after missing 2 classes in a row.  If there are extenuating circumstances, be sure to let the instructor know.  Students who do not show for the second week of class (even if they were in class the first week) will be dropped to allow those on the wait list to add.
* If during the semester, the instructor should be late, wait at least 20 minutes after the class start time, then if the instructor still has not arrived, print and sign your name on an attendance sheet at the planetarium door for participation credit.  If no sheet is provided, please start a sign up sheet using your own paper.  Be sure to stay for a full 20 minutes in case the instructor is caught in traffic.

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

* We will spend a considerable amount of time outdoors.  It is often VERY COLD and DARK!  Please dress appropriately.  Bring warm clothes, hats, scarves, gloves, and a small flashlight.
* No visitors are permitted at any time (for insurance and liability reasons), and there is no food or drink of any kind permitted in the Planetarium or Observatory areas. Water bottles are OK.  You may have a snack during break, but no crunching and munching during class indoors or outdoors (health and safety code issues).
* Entering or leaving the planetarium during class time is VERY disruptive.  Please be sure to take care of your needs before coming to class.   Attendance points will be deducted for those who are late.
* Cell phones, Ipods, and other portable electronic devices, are disruptive and distractive to other students.  Please turn OFF all such devices during the entire class session (inside and outside).  Please no text messaging (remember, your phones are OFF).  You may use your phones before class, during break, and after class.
* The planetarium is used by the museum for public presentations.  Please take extra care with these facilities.  Do not leave trash and do not put your feet up on the upholstery.
* NO SMOKING is permitted in any building and/or around the Observatory!

FOR STUDENTS TRYING TO ADD THIS CLASS:

This is a highly impacted class.  Space is restricted due to seating and space availability at the planetarium and observatory, and also due to limits on equipment.  If you are trying to add, come to class early and sign the add sheet and attend class for the night you are trying to add.  After the second week of classes, those who are not in attendance (even if they attended the first week) will be dropped to make room for those trying to add.  No add codes will be given until the end of class the second week.  Those trying to crash multiple sections (to try and get into any of these sections), must follow this procedure for each section they are trying to add.  Your attendance in another section is not transferable.  This is the only way to give everyone a fair chance to add.  There are no exceptions.