Introducción a la astronomía observacional: observación de estrellas

 Introduce alt/az coordinate system. Introduce ‘tips and tricks’ for measuring arc on the sky.
Discussion: Students choose one constellation that is observable in their location.
Assignment: Brief writeup about your constellation (name, alt/az coordinates for your location, illustration). Observe your constellation at least one time before next class. Provide an illustration including constellation, direction, and relevant surroundings (house, trees, other stars, etc).
Introduce alt/az coordinate 

 Introduce star classification categories. Introduce star naming conventions. Introduce absolute vs observed magnitude.
Discussion: Share illustrations from assignment. Share challenges with finding the constellation. Celebrate successes!
Assignment: Create an illustration of your constellation with all stars labeled (name, type, magnitude). Observe the constellation at least one time before next class, and record the brightest/dimmest stars to your eyes. Compare observations with magnitudes. 

 Introduce history of constellation naming. Provide one example from ancient astronomers and one from modern astronomers. Introduce constellations as regions in the sky.
Discussion: Share observations of different stars in constellations. Who has the brightest star? Who has the hottest star?
Assignment: Look up the history of your constellation. Observe your constellation on at least three nights before next class, at the same time each night. Create a contextual diagram of your constellation. 

 Introduce other observational techniques: telescopes, binoculars, spectra.
Discussion: Share constellation histories and mythologies. Share observations of constellation movement. Did everyone’s constellation move the same amount, or different amounts?