The term dwarf star refers to a variety of distinct classes of stars.
- Dwarf star alone generally refers to any main sequence star, a star of luminosity class V.
- Red dwarfs are low-mass main sequence stars.
- Yellow dwarfs are main sequence (dwarf) stars with masses comparable to that of the Sun. The Sun is a yellow dwarf.
- A blue dwarf is a low-mass star which is hypothesized to be the post-main sequence form of a red dwarf.
- A white dwarf is a star composed of electron-degenerate matter, thought to be the final stage in the evolution of stars not massive enough to undergo a Type II supernova—stars less massive than roughly 9 solar masses.
- A black dwarf refers to a white dwarf that has cooled sufficiently such that it no longer emits any visible light.
- A brown dwarf is a sub-stellar object not massive enough to ever fuse hydrogen into helium—less than about 0.08 solar masses.
General references
- Zeilik, Michael A.; Gregory, Stephan A. (1998). Introductory Astronomy & Astrophysics (4th ed. ed.). Saunders College Publishing. ISBN 0030062284.
See also
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