Science is undergoing a data explosion, and astronomy is leading the way. Modern telescopes produce terabytes of data per observation, and the simulations required to model our observable Universe push supercomputers to their limits. To analyse this data scientists need to be able to think computationally to solve problems. In this course you will investigate the challenges of working with large datasets: how to implement algorithms that work; how to use databases to manage your data; and how to learn from your data with machine learning tools. The focus is on practical skills - all the activities will be done in Python 3, a modern programming language used throughout astronomy.
ofrecido por
Data-driven Astronomy
Universidad de SidneyAcerca de este Curso
Habilidades que obtendrás
- Python Programming
- Machine Learning
- Applied Machine Learning
- SQL
ofrecido por

Universidad de Sidney
Our excellence in research and teaching makes the University of Sydney one of the top universities in Australia and highly ranked among the best universities in the world. In 2020, we were ranked second in the Times Higher Education (THE) University Impact Rankings, and first in Australia in the QS Graduate Employability Rankings.
Programa - Qué aprenderás en este curso
Thinking about data
This module introduces the idea of computational thinking, and how big data can make simple problems quite challenging to solve. We use the example of calculating the median and mean stack of a set of radio astronomy images to illustrate some of the issues you encounter when working with large datasets.
Big data makes things slow
In this module we explore the idea of scaling your code. Some algorithms scale well as your dataset increases, but others become impossibly slow. We look at some of the reason for this, and use the example of cross-matching astronomical catalogues to demonstrate what kind of improvements you can make.
Querying your data
Most large astronomy projects use databases to manage their data. In this module we introduce SQL - the language most commonly used to query databases. We use SQL to query the NASA Exoplanet database and investigate the habitability of planets in other solar systems.
Managing your data
This module introduces the basic principles of setting up databases. We look at how to set up new tables, and then how to combine Python and SQL to get the best out of both approaches. We use these tools to explore the life of stars in a stellar cluster.
Reseñas
- 5 stars84,74 %
- 4 stars13,62 %
- 3 stars1,11 %
- 2 stars0,25 %
- 1 star0,25 %
Principales reseñas sobre DATA-DRIVEN ASTRONOMY
Really amazing course! Gave me insights into how data analysis works in the field of astronomy and how one can use different machine learning techniques to classify the huge amounts of data generated.
One of the best courses I've done on Coursera. Just enough astronomy to understand the problems, and then go into the exercises in a step by step way, building up complexity. Couldn't stop!
This course is exceptionally good, well developed and structured. The content of the course is good. The teachers have demonstrated the concept well. I would like to learn more on this concept.
This is such an amazing course which helps me to improve my astronomical knowledge and improving my coding skills as well. I'm glad that I came across this course. Thank you so much !!!
Preguntas Frecuentes
¿Cuándo podré acceder a las lecciones y tareas?
¿Qué recibiré si compro el Certificado?
¿Hay ayuda económica disponible?
What programming background is assumed?
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