S3 New Curriculum Physics
Theme: Earth and space physics
Chapter 7 – Stars and galaxies
Stars
A star is a massive, glowing ball of hot gas—mostly hydrogen and helium—held together by
gravity and powered by nuclear fusion at its core. Our Sun is the closest and most familiar
example.
What makes a star shine?
Deep in a star’s core, hydrogen atoms fuse into helium, releasing enormous amounts of
energy in the form of light and heat. This process, called nuclear fusion, is what makes stars
shine for billions of years.
The sun
- The sun is the nearest star and largest object in the solar system.
- The mass of the sun is about 330,000 times the mass of the earth.
- It is the main source of energy (light and heat) on the earth.
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- The Sun’s total energy output, or luminosity, is about 3.86 × 10²⁶ watts of which the
earth receives about 1.75 × 10¹⁷ watts.
- Sun light is used for photosynthesis
Brightness of the stars
The variation in a star’s brightness—what astronomers call stellar variability— depends on
two categories of reasons.
1. Intrinsic Variability or reasons due to star itself:
Pulsating stars (like Cepheids or RR Lyrae) expand and contract rhythmically, causing
their brightness to rise and fall.
Eruptive stars experience flares or mass ejections that temporarily increase their
luminosity.
Explosive events like novae or supernovae cause dramatic, often one-time spikes in
brightness2.
2. Extrinsic Variability or reasons independent of the star
Eclipsing binaries: Two stars orbit each other, and one periodically blocks the other
from our view—like a cosmic game of peekaboo3.
Rotating stars: If a star has dark spots (like sunspots), its brightness can dip as it
spins and those spots come into view.
The light from some stars takes millions of years to reach us, so when you look up at
the night sky, you’re seeing the past.
Even our own Sun varies slightly in brightness over its 11-year solar cycle—proof that the
night sky is far more dynamic than it seems.
Color of the stars
The color of a star depends on its surface temperature—it’s like a cosmic thermometer!
Star Colors and What They Mean:
Blue: Hottest stars, with temperatures around 25,000 K or more. Examples: Rigel,
Spica.
White/Blue-white: Still very hot, around 10,000 K. Example: Sirius.
Yellow: Medium temperature (~6,000 K), like our Sun.
Orange: Cooler stars, around 4,000 K. Example: Aldebaran.
Red: Coolest stars, about 3,000 K. Examples: Betelgeuse, Antares.
These colors come from the type of light the star emits most strongly, based on its
temperature. Hotter stars emit more blue and ultraviolet light, while cooler stars glow red
or orange.
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Life cycle of a star:
The life cycle of a star is a cosmic journey shaped by gravity, nuclear fusion, and mass. Each
stage reveals how stars are born, live, and eventually die—releasing or transforming energy
along the way.
1. Nebula (Stellar Nursery): A star begins as a giant cloud of gas and dust called nebulae.
Gravity pulls the material together, and as it contracts, it heats up—marking the start of
energy buildup.
2. Protostar: As the cloud collapses, it forms a protostar—a hot, dense core that glows
from gravitational energy. Fusion hasn’t started yet, but the temperature is rising.
3. Main Sequence Star: Once the core is hot enough, nuclear fusion begins—hydrogen
atoms fuse into helium, releasing immense energy. The star enters its longest and most
stable phase. Our Sun is currently in this stage.
4. Red Giant or Supergiant: When hydrogen runs out, fusion slows, and gravity causes the
core to contract. The outer layers expand and cool, forming a red giant (for medium
stars) or supergiant (for massive stars). Fusion of helium and heavier elements begins,
releasing more energy.
5. Final Stages (Depends on Mass):
Low/Medium Mass Stars: The outer layers drift away, forming a planetary nebula,
while the core becomes a white dwarf—a hot, dense remnant that slowly cools.
High Mass Stars: They explode in a supernova, releasing a burst of energy and
scattering elements into space. The core may collapse into a neutron star or a black
hole.
Neutron Stars
A neutron star is the collapsed core that forms when a star about 8 to 20 times the mass of
our Sun explodes in a supernova.
Supernova is a large explosion that takes place at the end of a stars life cycle.
Black Holes
If the original star is more than about 20 times the Sun’s mass, the core collapse goes even
further. Gravity overwhelms all other forces, and the core compresses into a black hole—a
place in space where gravity pulls so much that even light cannot get out of it.
Black holes come in different sizes—from stellar-mass black holes to supermassive ones at
the centers of galaxies.
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