ASTR-201 Lessons

ASTR 2.1: Introduction to the Moon and Year Two Year Expectations Good morning, students, and welcome to another year of Astronomy. I enjoyed teaching First Year Astronomy last term, and I am glad to see so many of you back in class after the term break. The class expectations from last year h…

2.2: Phases and Tides In this lesson we will discuss two aspects of the Moon: phases and tides. To start with the basics, tides are caused by the gravity of the Moon and the Sun, and phases are caused by the Moon’s revolution around Earth. But that doesn’t mean that lunar magic will n…

2.3: Syzygies and Eclipses Syzygy Types Good evening, students, and welcome back to Astronomy. During the previous lesson, I mentioned the concept of a syzygy. What do you recall about this celestial event? Yes, a syzygy is an event that occurs when three astronomical bodies line up with each o…

2.4: Magical Beasts and the Moon Good evening, students, and welcome to another night of Astronomy class! During this class and for the next two weeks, we will be focusing on how astronomy and, specifically, the phases of the Moon connect to other classes and disciplines at Hogwarts. As I said b…

2.5: Magical Beings and the Moon Good evening, everyone, and welcome back to Astronomy! I have heard many positive things about last week’s lesson on magical creatures, and I hope that it has helped you to think about the ways that Astronomy can affect other disciplines such as Care of Mag…

2.6: Potions and the Moon Welcome back to class, everyone! Today, we will discuss a few other ways that the magic of the Moon affects us in the wizarding world. In particular, we will be discussing how astronomy intersects with potion brewing and usage with the help of a few example potions to h…

2.7: The Moons of Mars and Jupiter In this, our year about the Moon, I would be remiss not to take the time to mention the celestial bodies that revolve around our neighbours in the solar system. So, we are taking time to do just that! While knowledge of the facts and effects of these moons may …

2.8: Moons of Saturn, Uranus and Neptune Having discussed the moons of Mars and Jupiter, we now turn to the moons of the remaining outer planets in the solar system. Also, while we’re in the neighbourhood, we’ll make it a point to talk about Saturn’s rings as well. Of course, thi…

2.9: Origin of the Moon: Folktales and Scientific Theories Welcome back to the final lesson of Year Two! I’m glad to see so many of you as excited to finish this year of lunar lessons as you were to start it. Today we have a fun discussion planned about the origin of the Moon. I have some…