Astronomy: Exploring Time and Space

This is a fantastic introduction to astronomy by Dr. Impey, indeed it is so much more. You will survey topics like the history of science and star gazing, telescopes and instrumentation, planets and the sun, distant galaxies, cosmology and the big bang, and even astrobiology. The course doesn’t assume a lot of science, and math use is practically non-existent, though knowledge of freshman/AP physics and chemistry will help you understand the contents deeper (though these subjects are reviwed). In fact, by the end of the course you will be acquainted with the frontiers of physical sciences and have a conceptual understanding of some cutting edge results, so in that sense you will get a broad overview of modern physics as well.

Throughout, Dr. Impey mixes animation and multimedia to help elucidate concepts and motivate material. Assessments include multiple choice quizzes and essays that have you write out basics of that week’s content. The professor also hosts a weekly Q&A on stream so you ask questions in a live format similar to seeing him in office hours.

Things I came away with by the end of the course include why we have seasons, why we need space telescopes like Hubble, what makes planets like mars and exoplanets hospitable, how stars die and what black holes are, how we know the universe expands, and even some basic geology and nuclear physics. Great place to start learning astronomy, or even science more broadly.

The course itself is okay but it attracted some real fruitcakes. Its the usual Atheist versus Christian garbage I've seen this on other Coursera courses, but this one was the worst since even complaints to Coursera came to nothing, and insulting threads were left open. I have no interest in this discussion, but it is hard to ignore when the motivated people keep getting their threads and comments high on the forum boards. I am sick of this Christian bashing nonsense. It is completely disrespectful. One guy in particular just kept on posting his very opinionated hate speech aimed at Christians, and nothing was done about him. Anyone who commented on his intolerance was attacked. Not worth it, unless they can put this in order and actually close down inappropriate threads and comments aimed at hurting a portion of the student population.

This is a great overview of modern astronomy, astrophysics and cosmology, and even astrobiology. It features lectures not only on philosophy of science and history of space missions, but it gves a nice commentary on the current technological state as well. There are lectures on Solar System, where you can find out about planets and moons, and basic astrobiological terminology, which is then further investigated in later lectures. There is also a lecture on telescopes, which is really useful for techies, and the techniques for finding exoplanets are discussed as well. All in all, the most comprehensive introduction to astronomy online, and the most fun one. It's perfect for beginners, and it's great for experts trying to find better teaching methods. The class features lots of excerpts - educational and fun ones - which make the learning process amazing. Every recommendation!