2021-2022 / SPAT0078-1

The Sun and Stars

Duration

20h Th

Number of credits

 Specialised master in cosmos exploration2 crédits 

Lecturer

Marc-Antoine Dupret

Language(s) of instruction

English language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the first semester, review in January

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

Carl Sagan said, "We are made of star-stuff". And he was right!
The stars we see in the sky are born, evolve over the course of their lives, and then die. During their lifetime, the nuclear reactions that occur within them modify the chemical elements, which are then found in the interstellar medium and constitute the material of which subsequent generations of stars, planets and, therefore, lives will be made.
In this course, we analyse the major phases of the life of stars, from their birth to their death. We position the Sun, our star, among the others and answer the question: "Is the Sun unique or just a star like so many others? ". We also discuss the various techniques used to "decode" starlight and thus obtain valuable data on its size, distance and chemical composition. We show that a very large part of what we know about the cosmos comes from what we learn from starlight.

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

This course aims to show the main stages of the life of a star, from birth in a protostellar nebula to its death. At the end of the course, the student will be able to understand and describe the evolution of stars of different masses and make the link between theoretical predictions and observations.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

None

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Oral lessons in classroom. A slide show will be used and made available to students.

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Face-to-face courses

Recommended or required readings

The lecture notes (slides) will be made available after the courses.

Assessment methods and criteria

Any session :

- In-person

oral exam

- Remote

oral exam

- If evaluation in "hybrid"

preferred in-person


Additional information:

A list of possible questions is given. The student has to answer one of them.

Work placement(s)

Organizational remarks

10 courses of 2h each, Q1

Contacts

Lecturer: Prof. Marc-Antoine Dupret MA.Dupret@uliege.be