characteristics of stars. star definition star – a body of gases consisting mainly of hydrogen and...
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Characteristics of Stars
Star Definition
• Star – A body of gases consisting mainly of hydrogen and helium that gives off a tremendous amount of energy (electromagnetic radiation)
Star Color – Depends upon surface temperature
Blue stars – above 30,000 CWhite stars – 8,000 - 11,000 CYellow stars – about 5,550 C (sun) Orange stars – about 4,000 CRed stars – about 3000 C
Star Color
Star Size
• Vary from dwarf stars (size of the earth) to super giants that are 1000 times bigger than sun
Star sizes
Brightness of stars (magnitude)
Absolute Magnitude – true brightness of a star – Depends upon temperature and size
Apparent magnitude – brightness of a star as viewed from earth. Depends upon temperature, size, and distance to earth
Absolute magnitude
Classification of Stars – Hertzsprung-Russell (H-R) diagram – Comparison of absolute magnitude and temperature of stars.
• Main Sequence -most common star – (sun)
• Red Giants - very large, cool bright star• Supergiants - extremely large bright star• White dwarf – small, hot, dim star
H-R Diagram