Intro to Astrophysics [2]: Evolution of the Universe

For students entering Grades 8, 9, 10 in 2021-22

Astronomy is often referred to as the oldest science. Interestingly it is still one of the most exciting fields of science and it captures the imagination of scientists as well as young students.

In this course, we will choose topics carefully that will give a deep insight into some key areas of the subject. We will avoid difficult mathematical machinery needed to fully understand these topics, but  the students will need to have prior familiarity with basic physics ideas, such as force and motion, Newton's laws, energy, gravitational force, and ideas about temperature and pressure.

The course is offered in two parts of four sessions each- Astrophysics I and II. Students can attend either Astrophysics I, or Astrophysics II, or both.

In Astrophysics II, we will focus on cosmology which is the study of the birth and evolution of the universe. We will discuss basic ideas of general relativity, the apparent paradoxes and  experimental observations that force us to conclude about the beginning of the universe and its evolution after that beginning. We will also discuss recent discoveries of dark matter, dark energy and existence and discovery of black holes. Of course, the discussion will be preliminary and will be grounded on observations and discoveries made in the last 20-30 years.

At the end of attending Intro to Astrophysics I and/ or Intro to Astrophysics II , the students will have a far deeper qualitative understanding of these topics and their interrelatedness.

Learn more about this course through the course facilitator's blog post.