Dear PH students and faculty,
Teaching Astronomy here at PH has awakened the astronomy teacher in me, and I just began a Yahoo site dedicated to astronomy amateur enthusiasts, where I can get a bit deeper into the science but where there are no grades nor assignments that must be turned in. You go at your own pace.
I'm beginning with observational astronomy and hope to go through everything I'm teaching here, but in more detail. We will explore the solar system, constellations in both hemispheres, and deep sky objects. We'll also explore relativity and other such theoretical astronomy.
I will also be posting monthly sky charts in a "What's Up?" section in the files, as I do here for my class at PH, to keep people up to date on meteor showers, eclipses and other interesting observational phenomena.
I'll post 'test yourself exercises' for each lesson so you can see if you've gotten the gist of the material, and you can ask questions on the message board or by email, but there is absolutely no pressure. It's for those who, like myself, are drawn to the wonders of the night sky and the beauty of the universe and might like to explore them with me.
The site is called Astronomy_for_everyone, and you can access it at www.yahoogroups/group/Astronomy_for_everyone or you can write to me at sligocait@yahoo.com. A Yahoo IM is not necessary at this time.
I am hoping that perhaps some of you who just don't have the time to take Astronomy here but are interested on your own, as well as my PH students who might want another source for exploration of space, might like to give this a try.
Suggestions are always welcome, too!
This in NO WAY is meant to compete with my own class here at PH nor siphon anyone away from PH. I love being the Astronomy prof here, and plan on continuing for as long as the HMs wish me to. This is an additional way to enjoy this lovely science if you wish.
Prof Caitie McShane