The Hertzsprung-Russell diagram is an important tool in the classification of stars and the understanding stellar evolution. The H-R diagram was discovered independently by two astronomers in early 20th century using observations of star luminosity and surface temperature. With this lab exercise, you will use Stellarium to collect stellar information and then form your own H-R diagram and see if you can find how stars are group into different luminosity classes.
For this project piece, use a computer simulation to measure the characteristics of a sample of stars and then organize your data into a Hertzspung-Russel diagram. Please read through the assignment background information and follow the steps listed in the lab assignment instructions. You will be asked to form a hypothesis, state the lab objective, record your measurements and calculations, and answer each of the lab questions.
Follow the instructions contained within and submit your results as this project deliverable.
Submit your paper with a title page and in APA format.
Module 04 – Measuring and Classifying Stars Instructions
The Hertzsprung-Russell diagram is an important tool in the classification of stars and the understanding stellar evolution. The H-R diagram was discovered independently by two astronomers in early 20th century using observations of star luminosity and surface temperature. With this lab exercise, you will use Stellarium to collect stellar information and then form your own H-R diagram and see if you can find how stars are group into different luminosity classes.
Background Question – Describe the four major groups of stars and where they are located on the H-R diagram.
Object: Explain the purpose of this laboratory assignment in your own words. What do you think you will accomplish or learn from this exercise?
Hypothesis: Write a simple hypothesis connected to different stars and the H-R diagram that you will be able to test up the Stellarium software (for example, most bright stars visible in the night are supergiants)
Procedure:
Q1: Based on the location of the Sun on your H-R diagram, what luminosity group (main sequence, giant, supergiant, or white dwarf) does the Sun belong to?
Q2: What stars did you find to be supergiants?
Q3: What luminosity group and spectral classes are most nearby stars?
Q4: What luminosity groups and spectral classes do most of the bright stars belong to?
Q5: Is there any part of the H-R diagram that you do not find any stars?
Conclusion: In 1-2 paragraphs, explain if your observations and data support or conflict with your hypothesis and if you have met your assignment objective. Was there any portion of the assignment that was particularly interesting or difficult?
Brightest Stars in the Night Sky |
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# |
Star |
Spectral Class |
Absolute Magnitude |
1 |
Sirius A |
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2 |
Canopus |
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3 |
Alpha Centauri A |
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4 |
Arcturus |
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5 |
Vega |
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6 |
Capella A |
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7 |
Rigel |
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8 |
Procyon A |
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9 |
Betelgeuse |
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10 |
Hadar |
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11 |
Altair |
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12 |
Aldebaran |
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13 |
Spica |
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14 |
Antares A |
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Nearest Stars |
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# |
Star |
Spectral Class |
Absolute Magnitude |
1 |
Sun |
G2 |
4.8 |
2 |
Proxima Centauri |
M6 |
15.6 |
3 |
Alpha Centauri A |
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4 |
Alpha Centauri B |
K1 |
5.7 |
5 |
Barnard’s Star |
M4 |
13.2 |
6 |
Wolf 359 |
M6 |
16.7 |
7 |
Lalande 21185 |
M2 |
10.5 |
8 |
Sirius A |
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9 |
Sirius B |
wd use B1 |
11.2 |
10 |
Epsilon Eri |
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11 |
61 Cyg A |
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12 |
61 Cyg B |
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13 |
Procyon A |
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14 |
Procyon B |
wd use A6 |
13 |
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