Based On Its Location On The Hr Diagram What Can We Say About Rigels Mass And Lifetime

100000 10000 1000000 105 500 1200 80 08 120 800 nothing because it is not on the main sequence. Often referred to as rigel b it has a combined apparent magnitude of 67 but is still over 400 times fainter than the primary star rigel a and visible only with a telescope.

Understanding The H R Diagram

The length of time a star spends in the main sequence phase depends on its mass.

Based on its location on the hr diagram what can we say about rigels mass and lifetime. Nothing because it is not on the main sequence. If we have a look at the two examples below the first shows two quantities x and y that an object may have. Patterns in the h r diagram.

Constructing a plot called the hr diagram of the stars in the cluster scientists can determine the mass of the stars that are just ending this phase and moving on to the next phase of their life the red giant phase. Correct the mass and lifetime labels on the h r diagram apply only to main sequence stars. A stars luminosity is the.

Rigel is only around 8 million years old and has already exhausted the supply of hydrogen in its core. In the image above you can see a schematic hr diagram with plots of lines that represent the main sequence for a number of open clusters. So the range of luminosity from bottom to top in this diagram is enormous.

Each star in the sky can be placed in a unique place on this diagram. Our sun which is already 45 billion years old will continue to fuse hydrogen in its core for another 5 or 6 billion years. In attempting to make sense of data and see if two quantities are related we can plot them and seek trends.

Its lifetime is about 10 9 years but we cannot determine its mass. A stars temperature is the temperature of the gas on the surface of the star. From the location of the main sequence turn off you can see that ngc 2362 is the youngest then h χ persei and m67 is the oldest of the clusters.

Its brightness changes are caused by pulsations and it is classified as an alpha cygni variable. Less luminous cooler smaller and less massive compared to a main sequence star with a short lifetime a main sequence star with a long lifetime is. Knowing those two we can calculate its absolute magnitude which is how bright the star would be if it were 10 parsecs away from us and its luminosity relative to the sun.

Based on its location on the hr diagram what can we say about rigels mass and lifetime. Its mass is about 5 m sun and its lifetime is about 10 9 years. Rigels brightest companion is itself a likely triple star system separated from rigel by 95.

The hertzsprung russell diagram graphing or plotting data is an essential tool used by scientists. Rigel has exhausted the hydrogen in its core and expanded to over 70 times the suns radius. Based on its location on the hr diagram what can we say about rigels mass and lifetime.

For example the sun is a yellow star of 1 solar luminosity by definition so you can find it near the center of the diagram.

Hr Diagram

Basic Astronomy Labs