The Astronomical Unit

MENU

This page last modified 2011 December 19

Tutorials

These tutorial pages are intended as brief notes which serve as an introduction. Many have been written in response to questions or misunderstandings I have encountered on the internet. Some are reworkings of the student handouts from an Introductory Astronomy course that I teach as part of an adult education initiative; in that context they are augmented by visual aids and verbal explanations, many of which are absent in this "HTML edition". Some are adaptations of articles I have written for my local AS magazine. As and when I have time I shall add more diagrams to the existing pages, and more subjects to the list.

They are not intended to be exhaustive treatments of the subjects which they cover. Recommended references are often given at the end of most sections. When a specific book is hyperlinked, the link will take you directly to the Amazon.com details on the book, so that you can ascertain its price and availability and, if you so wish, order it.

Several people have asked about using some of these tutorials in astronomical society newsletters. My intention is that they are as useful to as many people as possible, so I gladly give such permission, but request that you do so in accordance with the Creative Commons license below.