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Conceptual understanding: modelling the evolution of stellar bodies and the Universe holds technological challenges as we often cannot take direct measurements.
Conceptual understanding: modelling the evolution of stellar bodies and the Universe holds technological challenges as we often cannot take direct measurements.
Knowledge:
Knowledge:
Part 1 (SL) - Stellar Quantities
- Objects in the Universe
- Nature of stars
- Astronomical distances
- Stellar parallax and its limitations
- Luminosity and apparent brightness
Part 2 (SL) - Stellar characteristics and stellar evolution
- Stellar spectra
- Hertzsprung-Russell (HR) diagram
- Mass luminosity relationship for main sequence stars
- Cepheid variables
- Stellar evolution on HR diagrams
- Red giants, white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes
- Chandrasekhar and Oppenheimer-Volkoff limits
Part 3 (SL) - Cosmology
- Big bang model
- Cosmic microwave background radiations (CMBR)
- Hubble's law
- The accelerating Universe and red-shift (z)
- The cosmic scale factor (R)
Part 4 (HL) - Stellar Processes
- The Jean's criterion
- Nuclear fusion
- Nucleosynthesis off the main sequence
- Type Ia and II Supernovae
Part 5 (HL) - Stellar Processes
- The cosmological principle
- Rotation curves and the mass of galaxies
- Dark matter
- Fluctuations in the CBR
- The cosmological origin of red-shift
- Critical density
- Dark energy
Applications and skills:
Applications and skills:
Part 1 (SL) - Stellar Quantities
- Identifying objects in the universe
- Qualitatively describing the equilibrium between pressure and gravitation in stars
- Using the astronomical unit (AU), light year (ly) and parsec (pc)
- Describing the method to determine distance to stars through stellar parallax
- Solving problems involving luminosity, apparent brightness and distance
Part 2 (SL) - Stellar characteristics and stellar evolution
- Explaining how surface temperature may be obtained from a star’s spectrum
- Explaining how the chemical composition of a star may be determined from the star’s spectrum
- Sketching and interpreting HR diagrams
- Identifying the main regions of the HR diagram and describing the main properties of stars in these regions
- Applying the mass–luminosity relation
- Describing the reason for the variation of Cepheid variables
- Determining distance using data on Cepheid variables
- Sketching and interpreting evolutionary paths of stars on an HR diagram
- Describing the evolution of stars off the main sequence
- Describing the role of mass in stellar evolution
Part 3 (SL) - Cosmology
- Describing both space and time as originating with the Big Bang
- Describing the characteristics of the CMB radiation
- Explaining how the CMB radiation is evidence for a Hot Big Bang
- Solving problems involving z, R and Hubble’s law
- Estimating the age of the universe by assuming a constant expansion rate
Part 4 (HL) - Stellar Processes
- Applying the Jeans criterion to star formation
- Describing the different types of nuclear fusion reactions taking place off the main sequence
- Applying the mass–luminosity relation to compare lifetimes on the main sequence relative to that of our Sun
- Describing the formation of elements in stars that are heavier than iron including the required increases in temperature
- Qualitatively describe the s and r processes for neutron capture
- Distinguishing between type Ia and II supernovae
Part 5 (HL) - Stellar Processes
- Describing the cosmological principle and its role in models of the universe
- Describing rotation curves as evidence for dark matter
- Deriving rotational velocity from Newtonian gravitation
- Describing and interpreting the observed anisotropies in the CMB
- Deriving critical density from Newtonian gravitation
- Sketching and interpreting graphs showing the variation of the cosmic scale factor with time
- Describing qualitatively the cosmic scale factor in models with and without dark energy
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