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Anything with heat emits electromagnetic radiation, even if it is only in the infrared (IR) wavelengths. As matter gets hotter, it tends to change color. For example, if you've ever seen glowing metal at a steel mill or in a blacksmith shop (like on a movie) you notice hot metal glows red, hotter metal glows yellow, and even hotter metal glows white.

If you apply this concept to stars, you can start to see that by measuring the color, you are also measuring the temperature - how? because a star at a certain temperature glows a certain color.

Reds are the "cooler" stars (still very hot) and blues are the hottest stars - at least when we are talking visible spectrum.

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Q: How do scientist use the electromagnet spectrum to determine the temperature of a star?
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At what temperature will the peak of a black body spectrum be at 157.9 nm?

use Wien's Equation: b = 2.8977685 x 10-3 meter-Kelvin


What do astronomers use to determine the chemical composition in star?

The light that comes from the star. The light is spread out into its spectrum and the pattern of spectral lines allow the composition (and temperature) to be determined. The temp can also be found by looking at the black body curve for the star (also from spectrum), or, by looking at the color of the star (difference in intensity of the light through two different color filters typically B and V. The light that comes from the star. The light is spread out into its spectrum and the pattern of spectral lines allow the composition (and temperature) to be determined. The temp can also be found by looking at the black body curve for the star (also from spectrum), or, by looking at the color of the star (difference in intensity of the light through two different color filters typically B and V.


What are the two ways you can classify stars?

The two ways are by their surface temperature (spectrum) and by their absolute magnitude (intrinsic brightness). The HR diagram has spectrum along the horizontal axis and absolute magnitude along the vertical axis. Each star occupies a point in the HR diagram.


Why are peaks important in spectroscopy?

In the field of spectroscopy absorption a peak means the wavelength of radiation where a sample absorbs. Different molecules absorb radiation of different wavelengths. An absorption spectrum will show a number of absorption bands, each one corresponding to structural groups within the molecule. Each band is represented by peak if you plot absorbance vs wavelength. By knowing which structural groups correspond to which peaks, you can often identify a compound by it's spectrum. For many molecules, the spectrum has been characterized, and you can use the spectrum to determine the purity, concentration, or other properties of the molecule by looking at the position and intensity of the peaks in the absorption spectrum.


What are some of the star characteristics that can be identified by spectral analysis?

Spectroscopic surveys are based on the fact that the colors you see in everything are not in the object being observed, but is the result of the fact that the elements that make up the object, are reflecting that part of the spectrum of light that strikes it. Spectroscopic analysis will give researchers an idea of the basic makeup of the star.

Related questions

What can a scientist learn about from a stars spectrum?

scientists can tell the stars composition and temperature from its spectrum. Hope tht helps :]


What determines where electromagnet waves fall on the electromagnet spectrum?

Frequency determines this.


If you wanted to determine the temperature of a star what measurement would you take?

emission spectrum


How do scientist determine the composition of a star?

the colors and lines in the spectrum of a star indicates the elements that make up a star


Which waves on the electromagnet spectrum are the strongest?

Gamma rays ;)


If you wanted determine the temperature of a star what measurements would you make?

Emission Spectrum


How do scientist estimate the temperature of the sun?

We don't need to estimate it, we can measure it (at least the surface temperature) using the cavity radiation equation and experimental observation of the solar spectrum.


How electromagnet spectrum was found?

Electromagnetic spectrum is formed due to the difference of wavelengths and frequency of electromagnetic radiations as they are orderly distributed.


Which are the two most penetrating rays in the electromagnet spectrum?

X-rays and Gamma rays are the two most penetrating rays in the electromagnetic spectrum.


One way in which scientists can determine the surface temperature of a star is by its?

There are several things scientists can do to determine the surface temperature of a star. Formulas utilizing Wein's law and the Stefanâ??Boltzmann law can calculate stellar temperatures. However, for a rough estimate, scientists can also use the color of a star in order to determine surface temperature.


Does temperature affect whether or not a spectrum shows?

Temperature does affect whether or not a spectrum shows up and how. The higher the temperature is, the more red the spectrum will appear, while the cooler it is, the more blue it will appear.


What scientist made up the word spectrum?

Larry arriaga