ASTR 470 Lab 03: SNR shock and remnant age

Lectures 04-05 ยท high-energy data activity

Objectives

Materials and setup

Use Python 3, the supplied snr_shock.csv, and the source documentation named below. The supplied record is clearly labeled in data/README.md. Record file hash, row count, columns, units, processing state, and provenance level.

Computed check: 2GM/(Rc^2) = 0.34456 and z = 0.23519 The spherical, static metric is an approximation; rotation and atmosphere modeling affect inferred radius.

Procedure

  1. Inspect the file and make a schema table before filtering or fitting.
  2. Reproduce the baseline calculation with units and an independent hand-derived formula.
  3. Apply the activity-specific task: infer shock temperature and age from velocity, angular radius, and distance.
  4. Perform one perturbation or alternative-model test and report the direction of change.
  5. Write a caption that identifies data, transformation, inference, uncertainty, and limitation.

Measurement and analysis record

RecordRequired entry
InputFile, source, release or access date, columns, units, and provenance level.
ModelEquation, parameter values, boundary conditions, and approximation.
UncertaintyStatistical term plus calibration, distance, response, or model sensitivity.
ValidationIndependent recomputation, limiting-case check, and comparison direction.

Deliverables and assessment

Submit code or notebook, provenance manifest, one labeled figure or table, a 700-word methods memo, and a revision note. Full credit requires traceable input, correct units, explicit assumptions, uncertainty treatment, and a specific limitation. Resubmission with a change log is encouraged.

Sources and provenance

Use a 5,000 km/s shock, 2.0 arcmin radius, and 2.5 kpc distance; report the constant-velocity approximation. Reference anchor: OpenStax 23.2-23.3 and Chandra SNR resources.. Level-1 mission facts are listed separately from level-2 literature/object parameters and level-3 teaching records.