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Why does the sun have the lowest magnitude number of all stars?
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Brighter sources get lower magnitude numbers. Dimmer objects get higher magnitude numbers.
So the sun gets the lowest number, unless you know of something in the sky that's brighter.
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
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The brightness of stars as they appear from Earth is measured by magnitude?
Stars are measured in brilliance called magnitude. The faintest stars visible to the naked eye are mag.6. Brighter ones are mag. 1 or 2, the even brighter stars have negative magnitude. So its like a number line in math: Brighter Fainter -6_-5_-4_-3_-2_-1__0__1_2_3_4_5_6
How do you describe the stars of the first magnitude?
"First magnitude" usually means the brightest 21 stars, as seen from Earth. Another definition is stars with apparent magnitudes 0.5 to 1.5. This definition excludes the very brightest stars, like Sirius. They are the first stars that become visible after sunset and they all have names. Examples are Altair, Aldebaran, Capella, Spica, Antares, Fomalhaut, Deneb, Regulus, Sirius, etc. There can be confusion because First Magnitude stars are not stars with an "apparent magnitude" of exactly "one". They are just the brightest stars, but naturally their magnitudes are close to one.
What things must an astronomer measure to calculate a star's absolute brightness?
Telescopes, combined with spectroscopy are used for the colors. The apparent brightness can be measured using a telescope with a special "CCD camera". To measure the "real" brightness ("absolute magnitude") you also need to be able to work out the distance to the star.
What planets has the most stars around it?
Because the stars are relatively so far away, all planets of this solar system have the same number of stars near them.
Does Polaris reflect light?
Polaris (North Star or Pole Star) has an apparent magnitude of +1.97 (Variable)
What is the magnitude of a star if all stars were the same distance from earth?
Absolute magnitude
Are all of the stars in ursa major of equal magnitude?
No, not even close.
The brightness of stars as they appear from Earth is measured by magnitude?
Stars are measured in brilliance called magnitude. The faintest stars visible to the naked eye are mag.6. Brighter ones are mag. 1 or 2, the even brighter stars have negative magnitude. So its like a number line in math: Brighter Fainter -6_-5_-4_-3_-2_-1__0__1_2_3_4_5_6
How many stars does ursa major the constellation use?
It has more stars as you set the brightness threshold lower. If you include all stars down to magnitude 13 there are thousands, maybe even millions. The brightest stars are magnitude 2 so they are easily visible.
What is the magnitude of the unamed star?
There are so many un-named stars it's impossible to give one of them a magnitude, they are all different.
How do you describe the stars of the first magnitude?
"First magnitude" usually means the brightest 21 stars, as seen from Earth. Another definition is stars with apparent magnitudes 0.5 to 1.5. This definition excludes the very brightest stars, like Sirius. They are the first stars that become visible after sunset and they all have names. Examples are Altair, Aldebaran, Capella, Spica, Antares, Fomalhaut, Deneb, Regulus, Sirius, etc. There can be confusion because First Magnitude stars are not stars with an "apparent magnitude" of exactly "one". They are just the brightest stars, but naturally their magnitudes are close to one.
What is the stellar magnitude of Lyra?
'Lyra' is a constellation ... a collection of stars ... and each one has a different magnitude. The brightest star in Lyra is 'Vega'. Vega was actually chosen as the standard for the magnitude measurements of all stars, and its brightness was originally defined as Zero Magnitude. Naturally, astronomical instruments have gotten better since then, and Vega is now listed as having a magnitude of 0.03 .
Is stars shining an example of s continuous variable?
No, it is a continuous process but not a continuous variable. The magnitude of star-shine, across all stars is a continuous variable. The magnitude of a star's shine over time is a continuous variable.
Why is the absolute magnitude of some stars greater their apparent magnitude?
The apparent magnitude is how bright the star appears to us, but stars are all at different distances so that a star that is really bright might look dim because it is very far away. So the absolute magnitude measures how bright the star would look if it was placed at a standard distance of 10 parsecs. When the absolute magnitude is greater than the apparent magnitude, it just means that it is closer than 10 pc. The brightest stars have absolute magnitudes around -7.
What things must an astronomer measure to calculate a star's absolute brightness?
Telescopes, combined with spectroscopy are used for the colors. The apparent brightness can be measured using a telescope with a special "CCD camera". To measure the "real" brightness ("absolute magnitude") you also need to be able to work out the distance to the star.
Is there a lowest number if all the numbers in a set are equal?
If all the names are equal e.g. 7, then the lowest number = the highest number = the mean etc. = 7.
What are the three brightnesses of the stars?
I think you are referring to what astronomers call magnitude, which is defined in several different ways. Apparent magnitude is how bright a star looks compared to others. The dimmest stars we can see with the naked eye in good conditions are magnitude 6, and the brightest ones are about 1. Really bright objects like some of the planets have negative magnitude. Absolute magnitude is a way to compare how bright stars really are, because the apparent magnitude is affected by their distance from us. It's the magnitude the star would have if it were exactly ten parsecs away. Bolometric magnitude is more complex, but is an attempt to quantify the star's luminosity over all wavelengths, not just those we can see.
