In ancient times, people thought that the stars were the souls of people, the living ones or the nails that held up the sky. They came up with many explanations for why the stars glow at night, and the Sun long time considered to be a completely different object from the stars.

The problem of thermal reactions occurring in stars in general and on the Sun, the closest star to us, in particular, has long been of concern to scientists in many areas of science. Physicists, chemists, astronomers tried to figure out what leads to the release of thermal energy, accompanied by powerful radiation.

Chemists believed that exothermic chemical reactions occur in stars, resulting in the release of a large number of heat. Physicists did not agree that in these space objects there are reactions between substances, since no reactions could produce so much light for billions of years.

When Mendeleev's famous table began new era in learning chemical reactions- were found radioactive elements and soon the reactions radioactive decay main reason star radiation.

The controversy stopped for a while, as almost all scientists recognized this theory as the most suitable.

Modern theory about the radiation of stars

In 1903, the already established idea of ​​why stars shine and radiate heat was turned over by the Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius, who electrolytic dissociation. According to his theory, the source of energy in stars is hydrogen atoms, which combine with each other and form heavier helium nuclei. These processes are caused by strong gas pressure, high density and temperature (about fifteen million degrees Celsius) and occur during interior areas stars. This hypothesis began to be studied by other scientists, who came to the conclusion that such a fusion reaction is enough to release the colossal amount of energy that stars produce. It is also likely that the fusion of hydrogen would allow stars to shine for several billion years.

In some stars, helium fusion has ended, but they continue to shine as long as there is enough energy.

The energy released in the interior of stars is transferred to the outer regions of the gas, to the surface of the star, from where it begins to radiate in the form of light. Scientists believe that rays of light travel from the cores of stars to the surface for long tens or even hundreds of thousands of years. After that, the radiation gets to the Earth, which also requires a lot of time. Thus, the radiation of the Sun reaches our planet in eight minutes, the light of the second nearest star, Proxima Centrauri, reaches us in more than four years, and the light of many stars that can be seen with the naked eye has traveled several thousand or even millions of years.

We never think that maybe there is some other life besides our planet, besides our solar system. Perhaps there is life on some of the planets revolving around a blue or white or red, or maybe a yellow star. Perhaps there is another such planet earth, on which the same people live, but we still do not know anything about it. Our satellites and telescopes have discovered a number of planets on which there may be life, but these planets are tens of thousands and even millions of light years away.

Blue stragglers are blue-colored stars

The stars that are in star clusters spherical type, the temperature of which is higher than the temperature of ordinary stars, and the spectrum is characterized by a significant shift to the blue region than that of cluster stars with a similar luminosity, are called blue stars stragglers. This feature allows them to stand out relative to other stars in this cluster on the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. The existence of such stars refutes all theories of stellar evolution, the essence of which is that for stars that arose in the same period of time, it is assumed that they will be located in a well-defined region of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. In this case, the only factor that affects the exact location of a star is its initial mass. The frequent appearance of blue stragglers outside of the above curve may be a confirmation of the existence of such a thing as anomalous stellar evolution.

Experts trying to explain the nature of their occurrence put forward several theories. The most probable of them indicates that these stars blue color in the past they were double, after which the process of merging began to occur or is currently taking place. The result of the merger of two stars is the formation new star, which has much a large mass, brightness and temperature than stars of the same age.

If the correctness of this theory can somehow be proved, the theory of stellar evolution would be free of problems in the form of blue stragglers. The resulting star would contain more hydrogen, which would behave similarly to a young star. There are facts to support this theory. Observations have shown that stray stars are most often found in central regions globular clusters. As a result of the prevailing number of stars of unit volume there, close passages or collisions become more likely.

To test this hypothesis, it is necessary to study the pulsation of blue stragglers, since between the asteroseismological properties of merged stars and normally pulsating variables, there may be some differences. It should be noted that it is rather difficult to measure pulsations. This process is also negatively affected by the overcrowding of the starry sky, small fluctuations in the pulsations of blue stragglers, as well as the rarity of their variables.

One example of a merger could be observed in August 2008, when such an incident affected the object V1309, the brightness of which increased several tens of thousands of times after detection, and returned to its original value after several months. As a result of 6 years of observation, scientists came to the conclusion that given object is two stars, the period of revolution of which around each other is 1.4 days. These facts led scientists to the idea that in August 2008 the process of merging of these two stars took place.

Blue stragglers are characterized by high torque. For example, the rotation speed of the star, which is located in the middle of the 47 Tucanae cluster, is 75 times the rotation speed of the Sun. According to the hypothesis, their mass is 2-3 times the mass of other stars that are located in the cluster. Also, with the help of research, it was found that if blue stars are close to any other stars, then the latter will have a percentage of oxygen and carbon lower than their neighbors. Presumably, the stars pull these substances from other stars moving in their orbit, as a result of which their brightness and temperature increase. The “robbed” stars reveal places where the process of transformation of the initial carbon into other elements took place.

Blue Star Names - Examples

Rigel, Gamma Sails, Alpha Giraffe, Zeta Orion, Tau Big Dog, Zeta Korma

White stars - white stars

Friedrich Bessel, who led the Koenigsberg Observatory, made an interesting discovery in 1844. The scientist noticed the slightest deviation of the brightest star in the sky - Sirius, from its trajectory in the sky. The astronomer suggested that Sirius had a satellite, and also calculated the approximate period of rotation of stars around their center of mass, which was about fifty years. Bessel did not find proper support from other scientists, because. no one could detect the satellite, although in terms of its mass it should have been comparable to Sirius.

And only 18 years later, Alvan Graham Clark, who was involved in testing best telescope At that time, a dim white star was discovered near Sirius, which turned out to be its satellite, called Sirius V.

The surface of this star white color heated to 25 thousand Kelvin, and its radius is small. With this in mind, scientists have concluded that high density satellite (at the level of 106 g / cm 3, while the density of Sirius itself is approximately 0.25 g / cm 3, and the Sun - 1.4 g / cm 3). After 55 years (in 1917), another white dwarf was discovered, named after the scientist who discovered it - van Maanen's star, which is located in the constellation Pisces.

Names of white stars - examples

Vega in the constellation Lyra, Altair in the constellation Eagle, (visible in summer and autumn), Sirius, Castor.

yellow stars - yellow stars

Small stars are called yellow dwarfs. main sequence, whose mass is within the mass of the Sun (0.8-1.4). Judging by the name, such stars have a yellow glow, which is released during the thermonuclear process of fusion from helium hydrogen.

The surface of such stars is heated to a temperature of 5-6 thousand Kelvin, and their spectral types are between G0V and G9V. lives yellow dwarf about 10 billion years. The combustion of hydrogen in a star causes it to multiply in size and become a red giant. One example of a red giant is Aldebaran. Such stars can form planetary nebulae, getting rid of the outer layers of gas. This transforms the nucleus into white dwarf, which has a high density.

If we take into account the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, then on it the yellow stars are in the central part of the main sequence. Since the Sun can be called a typical yellow dwarf, its model is quite suitable for considering the general model of yellow dwarfs. But there are other characteristic yellow stars in the sky, whose names are Alkhita, Dabikh, Toliman, Hara, etc. These stars are not very bright. For example, the same Toliman, which, if you do not take into account Proxima Centauri, is closest to the Sun, has a magnitude of 0, but at the same time, its brightness is the highest among all yellow dwarfs. Located given star in the constellation Centaurus, it is also a link complex system, which includes 6 stars. The spectral class of Toliman is G. But Dabih, located 350 light years from us, belongs to the spectral class F. But its high brightness is due to the presence of a nearby star belonging to the spectral class - A0.

In addition to Toliman, HD82943 has spectral type G, which is located on the main sequence. This star, due to its similarity with the Sun chemical composition and temperature, also has two planets large sizes. However, the shape of the orbits of these planets is far from circular, so their approaches to HD82943 occur relatively often. Astronomers have now been able to prove that this star used to have much more planets, but over time, she swallowed them all.

Yellow Star Names - Examples

Toliman, star HD 82943, Hara, Dabih, Alhita

Red stars - red stars

If at least once in your life you have seen red stars in the sky in the lens of your telescope, which burned against a black background, then the memory this moment will help to more clearly present what will be written in this article. If you have never seen such stars, next time be sure to try to find them.

If you undertake to compile a list of the brightest red stars in the sky, which can be easily found even with an amateur telescope, you can find that they are all carbon. The first red stars were discovered in 1868. The temperature of such red giants is low, in addition, their outer layers are filled with huge amount carbon. If earlier such stars were two spectral classes - R and N, now scientists have identified them in one general class- S. Everyone spectral type there are subclasses - from 9 to 0. At the same time, class C0 means that the star has a higher temperature, but less red than stars of class C9. It is also important that all carbon-dominated stars are inherently variable: long-period, semi-regular, or irregular.

In addition, two stars, called red semi-regular variables, were included in such a list, the most famous of which is m Cephei. William Herschel also became interested in her unusual red color, who dubbed her “pomegranate”. Such stars are characterized by an irregular change in luminosity, which can last from a couple of tens to several hundred days. Such variable stars belong to the class M (cold stars, the surface temperature of which is from 2400 to 3800 K).

Given the fact that all the stars in the rating are variables, it is necessary to introduce some clarity in the designations. It is generally accepted that red stars have a name that consists of two constituent parts- letters Latin alphabet and the name of the variable constellation (for example, T Hare). The first variable that was discovered in given constellation, the letter R is assigned, and so on, up to the letter Z. If there are many such variables, a double combination of Latin letters is provided for them - from RR to ZZ. This method allows you to "name" 334 objects. In addition, stars can also be designated using the letter V in combination with a serial number (V228 Cygnus). The first column of the rating is reserved for the designation of variables.

The next two columns in the table indicate the location of the stars in the period 2000.0. As a result of the increased popularity of Uranometria 2000.0 among astronomy enthusiasts, the last column of the rating displays the number of the search chart for each star that is in the rating. In this case, the first digit is a display of the volume number, and the second - serial number cards.

The rating also displays the maximum and minimum values shine magnitudes. It is worth remembering that a greater saturation of red color is observed in stars whose brightness is minimal. For stars whose period of variability is known, it is displayed as a number of days, but objects that do not have the correct period are displayed as Irr.

It doesn't take much skill to find a carbon star, it's enough that your telescope has enough power to see it. Even if its size is small, its pronounced red color should draw your attention. Therefore, do not be upset if you cannot immediately find them. It is enough to use the atlas to find a nearby bright star, and then already, move from it to red.

Different observers see carbon stars differently. To some, they resemble rubies or an ember burning in the distance. Others see crimson or blood red hues in such stars. For starters, there is a list of the six brightest red stars in the ranking, and if you find them, you can enjoy their beauty to the fullest.

Red Star Names - Examples

Differences in stars by color

There is a huge variety of stars with indescribable color shades. As a result, even one constellation has received the name "Jewel Box", which is based on blue and sapphire stars, and in its very center is a brightly shining orange star. If we consider the Sun, then it has a pale yellow.

A direct factor influencing the difference in color of stars is their surface temperature. It is explained simply. Light by its nature is radiation in the form of waves. Wavelength - this is the distance between its crests, is very small. To imagine it, you need to divide 1 cm by 100 thousand meters. identical parts. A few of these particles will make up the wavelength of light.

Considering that this number turns out to be quite small, each, even the most insignificant, change in it will cause the picture we observe to change. After all, our vision different length perceives light waves as different colors. For example, blue has waves whose length is 1.5 times less than that of red.

Also, almost every one of us knows that temperature can have the most direct influence on the color of the bodies For example, you can take any metal object and put it on fire. As it heats up, it will turn red. If the temperature of the fire increased significantly, the color of the object would also change - from red to orange, from orange to yellow, from yellow to white, and finally from white to blue-white.

Since the Sun has a surface temperature in the region of 5.5 thousand 0 C, it is typical example yellow stars. But the hottest blue stars can warm up to 33 thousand degrees.

Color and temperature have been linked by scientists using physical laws. The temperature of a body is directly proportional to its radiation and inversely proportional to the wavelength. Waves of blue color have shorter wavelengths than red. Hot gases emit photons whose energy is directly proportional to the temperature and inversely proportional to the wavelength. That is why the blue-blue range of radiation is characteristic of the hottest stars.

Since the nuclear fuel on the stars is not unlimited, it tends to be consumed, which leads to the cooling of the stars. Therefore, middle-aged stars are yellow, and we see old stars as red.

As a result of the fact that the Sun is very close to our planet, its color can be accurately described. But for stars that are a million light-years away, the task becomes more complicated. It is for this purpose that a device called a spectrograph is used. Through it, scientists pass the light emitted by the stars, as a result of which it is possible to analyze almost any star spectrally.

In addition, using the color of a star, you can determine its age, because. mathematical formulas allow you to use spectral analysis to determine the temperature of a star, from which it is easy to calculate its age.

Video secrets of the stars watch online

Step outside on a dark moonless night. Look up. If it's December or January, look out for Betelgeuse, glowing red on Orion's shoulder, and Rigel, the bright blue star at his knee. A month later, a yellow Chapel will appear in the constellation Auriga.

If it is July, look for Vega, Lyra's blue sapphire, or Antares, the orange-red heart of Scorpio.

No green stars! At any time of the year in the sky you can find different stars. Most appear white, but the brightest show color. Red, orange, yellow, blue - almost every color of the rainbow... But wait, where are the greens? Shouldn't we see those too?

No. This is very frequently asked question, and we do not see any green stars. And that's why.

Take a blowtorch (you can mentally) and heat up a bar of iron. At first it will glow red, then orange, then white-blue. Then it will melt. Better to use a grip.

Why is he glowing? Any substance with a temperature above absolute zero(about -273 °C) emits light. The amount of light and its wavelength depends on temperature. The warmer the object, the shorter the wavelength.

Cold objects emit radio waves. Very hot ones emit ultraviolet or X-rays. In a very narrow range of temperatures, hot objects will emit visible light, wavelengths roughly from 300 nm to 700 nm.

Note that objects do not emit light at a single wavelength. They emit photons in a range of wavelengths. If you were to use some kind of detector that is sensitive to the wavelengths of light emitted by an object, and then plot the number of those wavelengths on a graph, you would get a lopsided graph called "black body radiation characteristic" (it doesn't matter why it's called that, but if you interesting, you can search. Just turn on the search results filter. Seriously). She looks a little like a curved bell normal distribution, but at short wavelengths it falls off faster, and at long wavelengths it falls off more slowly.

Here are examples of several curves for various temperatures:

The x-axis is the wavelength (or color, if you prefer), and a spectrum is superimposed on the graph for reference. visible colors. A characteristic bell-shaped shape can be noted. For hot objects, the peak shifts to the left, to shorter wavelengths.

An object with a temperature of 4500 Kelvin (about 4200 °C) has a peak in the orange part of the spectrum. Heat it up to 6000 K (approximately the temperature of the Sun, 5700 °C) and the peak will move into the blue-green region. Heat it up more, and the peak will move into the blue region, or even further, to shorter wavelengths. The hottest stars emit most of their light in the ultraviolet, at shorter wavelengths than what we see with the naked eye.

Hm, wait a second. If the Sun has a peak in the green-blue region, why doesn't it appear green-blue? This is the key question. The thing is that although the peak falls on the green-blue region, it emits light of other colors.

Look at the graph of an object with a temperature close to the sun. The peak is in the green-blue region, so most of photons are emitted there. But both blue and red photons are emitted. Looking at the Sun, we see all these colors at once. Our eyes mix them up and give out one color - white. Yes, white. Some people say that the Sun is yellow, but if it really were yellow, then the clouds and snow would be yellow too (all the snow, not just the part in your yard where the dog walks).

Therefore, the Sun does not appear green. But can we play around with the temperature to get a green star? Maybe one that is slightly warmer or colder than the Sun?

It turns out we can't. More warm star will give out more blue, and cold - more red, and in any case our eyes will not see green there. The blame for this should not be placed on the stars (not entirely, according to at least), but on ourselves.

Our eyes have light-sensitive cells, cones and rods. Rods are brightness sensors, they do not distinguish colors. Cones see colors, and there are three types of them: sensitive to red, blue and green. When a color falls on them, each is excited differently: red excites red cones, while blue and green remain indifferent to it.

Most objects do not emit or reflect a single color, so the cones fire all at once, but varying degrees. For example, an orange excites red cones twice as much as green cones, and leaves blue cones alone. When the brain receives a signal from three cones, it says: "It must be an orange object." If green cones see as much light as red cones and blue cones see nothing, we interpret the color as yellow. Etc.

So, the only way for a star to look green is only to radiate green light. But the graph above shows that this is not possible. Any star that emits green will also emit quite a lot of red and blue, making it white. Changing a star's temperature will turn it orange, yellow, red, or blue, but it won't turn green. Our eyes just won't see it like that.

Therefore, there are no green stars. The colors emitted by the stars and how our eyes interpret them guarantee this.

But that doesn't bother me. If you look through a telescope and see a glowing Vega or a ruddy Antares or a deep orange Arcturus, you won't care too much either. Stars do not come in all colors, but there are enough of them, and because of this they are amazingly beautiful.

"I came into this world

To see the Sun and the blue outlook.

I came into this world

To see the Sun and the heights of the mountains.

our planet and earth dwellers cannot exist without the familiar, warm solar globe. A person is sad in cloudy weather, and when the sun shimmers cheerfully in the sky, the fiery luminary inspires hope and confidence that everything will be fine. Why is the sun yellow? Have you thought about it?

What is the Sun

The solar star is a hot ball of gas, central figure solar system. The center of the cluster of planets, celestial bodies, consisting of heavy elements. Hydrogen in the composition of the Sun is compressed under the influence of gravitational forces. Inside the luminary flows continuously thermonuclear reaction that creates helium from hydrogen.

The solar star arose after a series of supernova explosions five billion years ago. Thanks to the ideal location to the Sun, life originated on the third planet. This is Earth.

Helium leaks and radiates through the photosphere (thin surface layer of a star) in space. The star has a boundary atmosphere - the solar corona, which merges with the interstellar medium. We cannot see the corona because the gas is very rarefied. It becomes visible during eclipses.

The main luminary of the solar system has the 11th cycle of activity. During this period, the number of sunspots(darkened zones of the photosphere), flares (dazzling glows of the chromosphere), prominences (hydrogen clouds condensing in the corona).

The chromosphere is the boundary layer between the photosphere and the corona. The person sees it solar eclipses in the form of a bright red rim. The mass of the star is gradually decreasing. A star loses some of its weight when converting hydrogen into helium (synthesizing energy).

The warmth that makes people happy is the lost stellar mass ( Sun rays). Weight is also lost due to the winds on the Sun, regularly blowing the star's electrons and protons into space.

Why is the heavenly body yellow?

Not every person is able to explain the reason for the pleasant, warm shade of a solar star. For scientific explanation need knowledge about the structure of celestial bodies, properties earth's atmosphere, abilities of the human eye. The explanation why the Sun is yellow is given from two perspectives.

beautiful illusion

In fact, the color of the sun star is white. But human eyes stubbornly present a shade of yellow. This is the color perception of light waves in humans. When the sun's rays pass through the earth's atmosphere, they lose part of the light spectrum, but retain their wavelength.

Nature arranged human eye in a tricky way. We perceive only three colors: blue, red, green.

Alone spectral radiation long, others shorter. A short spectrum of waves are scattered with more speed people perceive them more sensitively. The shortest color spectrum consists of blue wavelengths. Therefore, the sky seems to be a noble blue hue.

The white rays of the Sun are longer. When they penetrate the atmosphere and merge with the blue spectrum, the result is the yellow color that we see. The more piercing the shade of the sky, the brighter, the more yellow the luminary seems. Pay attention - this optical effect noticeable after rain in cloudless weather.

And in winter, when the sky is gloomy, bleak, the sun dims and is perceived by people as a whitish circle.

Astronomy speaks

What color is the Sun according to astronomers? The warm luminary is the "yellow dwarf". This is the type of star that determines the size. Compared to other stars in the galaxy, solar star tiny, and the range of its color radiance is yellow.

The color of the radiance of a star depends on the size, distance from the Earth, and the characteristics of the chemical reactions taking place inside.

The young star has a bright glow and long light pulses certain frequency. Such "newborn" stars have a sparkling white with a blue glow (young stars are white). Our middle-aged sunny lady has rays of a different frequency and is perceived by people as yellow.

For astronomers sunny color important. Via special device With a spectroscope, scientists study other stars by spectral decomposition. Determine the composition (metal or helium with hydrogen, remaining in space after big bang). Understand the surface temperature of the stars.

• Cold red stars (Gliese, Arcturus, Cepheus, Betelgeuse).
• The hot ones (Rigel, Zeta Orion, Alpha Giraffe, Tau Canis Major) have a glow of a pleasant bluish tint.

Outside the atmosphere, the Sun looks like a white star. The color of the bewitching heavenly beauties is surprisingly diverse. From white-blue to crimson-red. The hotter the star, the longer the wavelength range.

Blue has shorter wavelengths than red. Therefore, hot stars radiate more strongly in the blue range and appear blue, while cold stars pierce the red spectrum more powerfully, we see them in a red hue.

Interesting fact. Why the sun is yellow was explained in 1871. British physicist John Rayleigh created the theory of molecular scattering of a light beam. The law that explains the intensity of light scattered by air was named after him - Rayleigh's law.

Explanation for children

The mind of children is inquisitive and inquisitive. The young "why" asks thousands of questions. Sometimes adults get lost, choosing the answer so that the baby understands better. How to explain the obvious little man(why does the sun shine, why is it yellow and the sky is blue)? How to choose words so as not to scare away with abstruse phrases, but to push the little researcher to study and knowledge? Consider the age of the child in the explanation.

We explain to kids. To tell little children about the spectra of colors, light waves too early. Come up with a fascinating fairy tale to satisfy the curiosity of the crumbs.

“In the world lived a fairy-tale wizard. He loved to draw, and wore magic colors all the time. Every morning he painted the sky blue and the sun yellow, so that people would be cheerful, warm and joyful. The magician has an older fairy sister. She watches over him, and in the evenings, when the children get tired, the fairy wraps the sky, the sun in a dark blanket and scatters the stars so that the kids have wonderful dreams.

When a wizard is sad, his colors also cry. Then the blue color of the sky is blurred, hiding the sun. It becomes sad, but not for long. The fairy sister comes to the aid of the magician, draws a multi-colored rainbow and again paints the sun, giving it a golden ray. After all, wizards do not know how to be sad!

Or this story: “Once upon a time there were magical colors. They loved to walk and went outside every day. Once they woke up in the morning, ran out into the yard - and there everything was gray, dull! It doesn’t matter, said the paints, we will return the colors! Blue painted the sky, puddles, river - let the kids splash in the water!

Yellow went to decorate the sun so that it would become warm and warm everyone around. Green decorated grass, trees, black - pebbles, earth. Then the paints painted the flowers together - look how colorful they are! The colors worked well, they got tired, they went to sleep. And on the street, everything remained painted - after all, the colors are magical!

Older kids. Older children can be explained why the Sun seems yellow, in adult language, but in accessible words:

"Remember the rainbow? It has seven colors. But in the rainbow, the colors go separately, one after another. The light of a solar star is the same rainbow, but the colors of a bright star are connected, mixed. The sun is far away from us and launches the sun's rays towards our planet.

The sky has an atmosphere, it is like a sieve. sunlight, reaching the Earth, "splashes into separate colors (like a rainbow). Rays pass through the heavenly "sieve" in different ways. They are fast, while other colors are so lazy that they don’t even reach us and “get stuck” in the strainer atmosphere. The most persistent, strong - blue and yellow rays. Therefore the sun is yellow and the sky is blue. This is how we see them."

Come up with your own answers, turn on your imagination, awaken the storytellers in yourself!

"Colorful" star

If you are one of the observant people, then you know that the Sun comes in a different color. Not only yellow or whitish. Before leaving or ascending into the sky, a solar star shines with an orange, purple or reddish hue.

Why was it red at sunset and pink at dawn? Our planet rotates around its axis, receding and approaching the Sun. In the evening, morning, the Earth occupies the most distant distance from the hot star.

In order to fly to the evening or morning earth's surface the sun's rays take longer to travel. On the way, they disperse faster, mixing with large quantity blue color waves. Therefore, at this time the Sun is a different color.

If a hot star closes black cloud ash or smoke (during a strong fire, volcanic eruption) - the luminary will acquire a lilac-violet, frightening hue. The more dust in the air, the richer the hue of the star becomes. Microscopic dust particles pass only violet and red light waves, they "take" the rest of the spectrum, absorb it.

The same thing happens when the humidity rises. Water vapor transmits only red spectral waves. Therefore, during a period of high humidity, before heavy rain, the sun star acquires a red hue.

Do not be alarmed when the familiar yellow sun appears before us in a different color guise. These are the "jokes" of the human visual perception, optical effect. Any shade of the Sun is explainable, and does not pose any threat to people.

Interesting observations!

Stars are the main objects of the Universe visible to us. space world extraordinary and varied. The theme of universal luminaries is inexhaustible. The sun was created to shine during the day, and the stars - in order to illuminate the earthly path for a person at night. This article will discuss how the light we see is formed, coming from amazing celestial bodies.

Origin

The birth of a star, as well as its extinction, can be visually seen in the night sky. Astronomers have been observing these phenomena for a long time and have already made many discoveries. All of them are described in a special scientific literature. Stars are luminous fireballs of incredibly large sizes. But why do they glow, twinkle and shimmer in different colors?

These celestial bodies are born from a diffuse gas and dust medium that has arisen as a result of gravitational compression in more dense layers, plus the effect of its own gravity. Compound interstellar medium- it is mainly gas (hydrogen and helium) with dust of solid mineral particles. Our main luminary is a star named the Sun. Without it, life for everything that exists on our planet is impossible. Interestingly, many stars are much larger than the Sun. Why do we not feel their influence and can we easily exist without them?

Our source of heat and light is located close to the Earth. Therefore, for us it is essential to feel its light and warmth. The stars are hotter than the Sun, larger than it, but they are at such far distances that we can only observe their light, and then only at night.

They seem to be just shimmering dots in the night sky. Why don't we see them during the day? Starlight is like the rays from a flashlight, which you can barely see during the day, but you can’t do without it at night - it illuminates the road well.

When is the brightest and why do the stars shine in the night sky?

August is the best month for stargazing. At this time of the year, the evenings are dark and the air is clear. It feels like you can touch the sky with your hand. Children, raising their eyes to the sky, always ask themselves the question: “Why do the stars shine and where do they fall?” The fact is that in August people often observe starfall. This is an extraordinary spectacle that beckons our eyes and souls. There is a belief that when you see a shooting star, you need to make a wish that will certainly come true.

However, what is interesting is that in fact it is not a star falling, but a meteor burning down. Whatever it was, but the phenomenon is very beautiful! Times go by, generations of people succeed each other, but the sky is still the same - beautiful and mysterious. Just like us, our ancestors looked at it, guessed the figures of various mythological characters and objects in star clusters, made wishes and dreamed.

How does light appear?

Space objects called stars emit an incredibly large amount of thermal energy. Energy emissions are accompanied by a strong emission of light, certain part which reaches our planet, and we have the opportunity to observe it. This is the short answer to the question: “Why do the stars shine in the sky, and is everything heavenly bodies These include?" For example, the Moon is a satellite of the Earth, and Venus is a planet in the solar system. We don't see them own light but only its reflection. The stars themselves are the source light radiation resulting from the release of energy.

Some celestial objects have White light while others are blue or orange. There are also those that shimmer in different shades. What is the reason for this and why do the stars glow in different colors? The fact is that they are huge balls, consisting of red-hot to very high temperatures gases. As this temperature fluctuates, the stars have a different glow: the hottest are blue, followed by white, even colder - yellow, then orange and red.

flicker

Many people wonder: why do the stars glow at night and their light twinkles? First of all, they don't flicker. It just seems to us. The fact is that starlight passes through the thickness of the earth's atmosphere. A beam of light, overcoming such long distances, is subjected to a large number breaks and changes. For us, these refractions look like scintillations.

The star has its life cycle. On the different stages this cycle, it glows differently. When the time of its existence comes to an end, it begins to gradually turn into a red dwarf and cools. The radiation of a dying star pulsates. This creates the impression of flickering (blinking). During the day, the light from the star does not disappear anywhere, but it is overshadowed by too bright and close Sun shine. Therefore, at night we see them due to the fact that there are no rays of the Sun.