What does an HR diagram show?
The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram is a graphical tool that astronomers use to classify stars according to their luminosity, spectral type, color, temperature and evolutionary stage. Stars in the stable phase of hydrogen burning lie along the Main Sequence according to their mass.
How was the HR diagram created?
It originated in 1911 when the Danish astronomer, Ejnar Hertzsprung, plotted the absolute magnitude of stars against their colour (hence effective temperature). Independently in 1913 the American astronomer Henry Norris Russell used spectral class against absolute magnitude.
Where is Betelgeuse on the HR diagram?
Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion — X-axis: 3000K, Y-axis 10 5 M. Polaris, the north pole star — X-axis: 6000K, Y-axis between 10 3 and 10 4 M. Sirius, the brightest star visible from Earth after the Sun — X-axis: 9000K, Y-axis 10 and 10 2 M.
Where is Aldebaran on the HR diagram?
Aldebaran is an orange giant star that has moved off the main sequence line of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. It has exhausted the hydrogen fuel in its core and hydrogen fusion has ceased there.
How will Aldebaran die?
How will Aldebaran die? This is when the star expands bigger and bigger, for example after it expanded now Aldebaran is now more then 44 times the diameter of our sun. After it expands more and more then it will eventually after becoming so big and heating up more it will explode.
Where is Rigel on the HR diagram?
Two of the brightest stars in the evening sky lie at opposite corners of the rectangle: bright orange-red Betelgeuse at the northeastern corner (upper left in the photo) and even brighter Rigel at the southwest (lower right in the photo).
What is the life cycle of Rigel?
With an estimated age of seven to nine million years, Rigel has exhausted its core hydrogen fuel, expanded, and cooled to become a supergiant. It is expected to end its life as a type II supernova, leaving a neutron star or a black hole as a final remnant, depending on the initial mass of the star.