ASTR 201 - Astrophysical Black Holes

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SP, alternate years. The study of black holes has undergone enormous progress in recent years as recognized by the Nobel physics prizes awarded in 2017 and 2020. This course will explore all aspects of astrophysical black holes: their basis in general relativity, the formation of both stellar-mass and supermassive black holes, the accretion disks and relativistic jets that form around them, and the means by which they may be observed. These topics will be supplemented by overviews of stellar and galactic astronomy that provide the settings in which black holes are found. Prerequisites: one course in college calculus (such as MATH 132 or MATH 171) and one course in high school or college physics, or permission of the instructor.