Star Classification Flashcards

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Questions and Answers

What is a dwarf star?

  • A large star with high luminosity
  • A star that is the same size as the sun
  • A small star up to 20 times larger than our sun (correct)
  • A star that has no nuclear fusion

What type of star is the Sun?

  • Blue giant
  • Red giant
  • Yellow dwarf (correct)
  • Neutron star

What temperature characterizes a red dwarf?

Under about 4,000 K

What is a red giant?

<p>A star whose diameter is about 100 times bigger and cooler than it originally was.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What characterizes a blue giant?

<p>A huge, very hot star that burns helium.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What happens when supergiants die?

<p>They explode in supernovae (B), They become black holes (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is a white dwarf?

<p>A small, very dense, hot star made mostly of carbon.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is a brown dwarf?

<p>A 'star' whose mass is too small for nuclear fusion.</p> Signup and view all the answers

A pulsar is a rapidly spinning ______ star that emits energy in pulses.

<p>neutron</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is a binary star?

<p>A system of two stars that rotate around a common center of mass.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is an eclipsing binary?

<p>Two close stars that appear to be a single star varying in brightness.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What characterizes X-ray binary stars?

<p>One of the stars is a collapsed object like a white dwarf or neutron star.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What are Cepheid variable stars known for?

<p>Regularly pulsating in size and changing in brightness.</p> Signup and view all the answers

What is a Mira variable star?

<p>A variable star that cycles brightness and size over a long time period.</p> Signup and view all the answers

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Study Notes

Dwarf Stars

  • Dwarf stars are small stars, ranging up to 20 times the size of the Sun and up to 20,000 times its brightness.
  • The Sun qualifies as a dwarf star.

Yellow Dwarf

  • Yellow dwarfs are small, main sequence stars.
  • The Sun is categorized as a yellow dwarf.

Red Dwarf

  • Red dwarfs are small, cool stars with surface temperatures under 4,000 K.
  • These stars are the most common type in the universe; an example is Proxima Centauri.

Giant and Supergiant Stars

  • Giant and supergiant stars are characterized as large, older stars.

Red Giant

  • A red giant is significantly larger in diameter, around 100 times its original size, and cooler (surface temperature under 6,500 K).
  • Betelgeuse is a notable red giant, about 20 times more massive than the Sun and roughly 14,000 times brighter.

Blue Giant

  • Blue giants are massive, hot stars that burn helium and are post-main sequence.

Supergiant

  • Supergiants are the largest known stars, some nearly as expansive as the solar system.
  • Betelgeuse and Rigel are examples; they are rare and may end their life cycle as black holes after a supernova.

White Dwarf

  • White dwarfs are small, dense stars primarily composed of carbon, remnants of red giants after they shed outer layers.
  • They are around the size of Earth but significantly heavier and will eventually cool into black dwarfs. The Sun will evolve into a white dwarf.

Brown Dwarf

  • Brown dwarfs have insufficient mass for nuclear fusion; they are dim and have a mass range of 10^28 kg to 8.4 x 10^28 kg.

Neutron Star

  • Neutron stars are incredibly dense, composed mainly of neutrons, with diameters of 5-10 miles (5-16 km) and extreme densities of approximately 10^15 gm/cm³.

Pulsar

  • Pulsars are rapidly spinning neutron stars emitting radiation in pulses.

Double Star

  • A double star system consists of two stars appearing close to each other; some are true binaries while others are optical doubles.

Binary Star

  • A binary star system involves two stars orbiting their common center of mass (barycenter); about half of all stars pair with at least one other star.

Eclipsing Binary

  • Eclipsing binaries are two stars that periodically obscure or enhance each other's brightness, viewed edge-on from Earth.

X-ray Binary Star

  • X-ray binaries contain a collapsed star (like a white dwarf or neutron star) paired with a normal star; X-rays are produced as matter is drawn from the latter towards the collapsed object.

Cepheid Variable Stars

  • Cepheid variables regularly change in size and brightness; as they expand, brightness decreases, and vice versa.
  • Examples include Polaris and Delta Cephei.

Mira Variable Star

  • Mira variables undergo prominent changes in brightness and size over long periods, sometimes varying by as much as 6 to 8 magnitudes.
  • Named after the star Mira, which had its fluctuations discovered in 1596.

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