Astrophysics for Beginners - an online course

Key topics: solar physics, planetary science and solar system formation

Uncover the inner workings of the Sun, the origin of sunspots and the immense power of space weather. You’ll also find out where the solar system came from, why it looks the way it does, and where it ends and the rest of space begins.

[image: a coronal mass ejection from the Sun (NASA/SDO)

Key topics: alien planets. the life cycle of stars and black holes

Discover the thousands of planets we’ve spotted beyond our solar system and consider whether any of them could be home to life. You’ll also tour the nearest star factory to Earth and see how stars are born. Then learn how they die to produce cataclysmic supernovas, gargantuan black holes and rapidly spinning pulsars.

There’s even a chance to hear about exciting new discoveries like gravitational waves and outlandish ideas such as string theory.

[image: the Crab Nebula as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope]

Key topics: spiral galaxies, dark matter & SETI

We’ll investigate the Milky Way’s size, age and shape and explain those distinctive spiral arms. But there’s a lot more to a galaxy like ours than meets the eye. You’ll meet the supermassive black hole that lies at its heart and learn about the mysterious dark matter that seems to be acting like a gravitational glue holding the whole galaxy together. There’s time, too, to check in on our Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI) and assess the chances of finding advanced civilisations elsewhere in the Milky Way.

[image: artist’s impression of the Milky Way – NASA]

Key topics: different types of galaxies & measuring cosmic distances

Our Milky Way is just one of two trillion galaxies in the universe. Visit some of our nearest neighbours, discovering eerie similarities and vast differences. We’ll talk about the likely future collision between the Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxy, as well as how galaxies cluster together to form the overall structure of the universe. I’ll also walk you through the various techniques we use to measure distances across the vast chasm of space.

[image: colliding galaxies courtesy of NASA]

Key topics: the Big Bang, the multiverse, dark energy

Discover why we think that the universe started with a ‘Big Bang’, how it’s an imperfect theory that needs tweaking and how those tweaks may lead to an infinity of other yous in endless multiple universes.

We’ll also look into the future towards the ultimate fate of the universe, encountering the dark energy that appears to be tearing the universe apart at a frightening pace.

[image: the Cosmic Microwave Background – WMAP]