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The main factors that determine how stars look when observed from earth, are: 1) The distance from earth 2) The size thereof 3) Whether it`s a young star (brighter) or a star near the end of it`s lifetime (dimmer).
Wiki User
∙ 15y ago
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoNo. A star that is twice as bright but four times further away will seem to have half the luminosity. There are stars much much brighter than the sun but because the sun is so close it appears much brighter.
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoBecause not all stars have the same intrinsic (actual) magnitude.
A lot like the same reason why all people standing the same distance
from you don't all appear to have the same height.
And why, when you're sitting in the back of the hall, all the band instruments
on the same stage don't all sound equally loud to you.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoBecause the nearest star outside of our solar system is 278,000 times farther from us
than the sun is, and all of the others are even farther away than that one.
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoPersonally, I haven't noticed such a phenomenon, and I've been looking at them for a lotta years. But if you do see such an effect, I can offer the following hypothesis ... take it for what it's worth. The path between you and outer space through the least air is straight up over your head. As the elevation of the path decreases toward the horizon, it traverses more and more atmosphere. This is the simple reason behind the more-reddish appearance of the sun and moon when they are near the horizon. The dimming of stars with decreasing sight-line elevation could likewise be no more than the effect of increasing absorption by atmospheric gases and dust.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoAbsolute magnitude is how bright the stars would be at a set distance, their distance from earth is taken out of the equation so that their brightness can be directly compared.
Apparent magnitude is how bright they look from an observer from Earth.
So to answer the question, you could have two stars which are the same size and luminosity, the same brightness at a set distance (the same absolute magnitude). But if one was 10 light years from earth, while the other is 200 light years from earth, then the first will appear to be a lot brighter as it is much closer. It will have a higher apparent magnitude.
You could even go one step further by considering a very large, hot, bright star and a small dim red dwarf. The red dwarf has a much lower absolute magnitude, but it could have a higher apparent magnitude than the much hotter, bigger and brighter one, if it was only a few light years away and the bright one was thousands of light years away.
Wiki User
∙ 11y agoThere are two parts of this.
First, some stars are just brighter than others (kind of like with people).
Second, two stars that are equally bright intrinsically but which are at different distances will have different apparent magnitudes. A star half as far away appears four times brighter.
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoBecause not all stars have the same luminosity (Brightness) and not all stars are the same distance away from us.
A star can be very luminous (absolute magnitude) but be millions of light years away - so it appears dimmer as viewed from Earth (apparent magnitude).
Imagine a 60w light bulb 6 inches from your face, now move that same light but a mile away. It is the same light bulb but will appear significantly dimmer.
It's the same with stars.
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoStars are composed of whatever material it's nebula was near. Meaning that every star in made up of different gasses, and since every gas burns at a different rate and brightness, you get dimmer or lighter stars. The factor that they may be closer then others could also apply for all we know, however that may no be as a strong a factor since the closet star to earth is like a light year away from Pluto!
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoThere are 2 reasons - What the color the star is and distance. For instance, our nearest star, Alpha Centuria, is a red dwarf. Even though it's only 4.5 light years away, we can't see it without a telescope.
Distance. If a star is 1,000,000 light years away, even if it's a blue giant, the light will be quite dim.
One more reason - Novas and Supernovas. When a star goes Nova or Supernova, such as Eta Carine, it puts out a HUGE amount of energy. If we could somehow harnass the power of a Supernova, Humans wouldn't have to worry about energy for another Quadrillion years. The brightness and apparent brightness of a supernova also seems to change around quite alot.
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Why stars are not as bright as the moon?
In terms of actual brightness the stars are much brighter than the moon and some are even brighter than the sun. They only appear dim because they are much farther away than either the sun or the moon.
Are planets dimmer than stars?
Actually planets are non luminous objects , so Planets are totally dim . It seems like they are quite bright , because they reflect the Sunlight ( Stars light ) falling on them . So , yes of course , they are far dimmer than stars .
Why there were no stars in the photos of Apollo 11 mission?
The cameras were set up to take picture of bright white objects in direct sunlight, they were not set up to take pictures of dim stars in black space. Stars require a longer shutter speed and larger aperature than bright white sunlit objects.
Why does the moon outshine the dim stars?
It's because it is much closer to us, and also because it reflects the light from the Sun, which is very bright.
What best describes stars?
hot,dim stars.
Which starts are more common bright or dim?
Dim stars are far more common than bright ones. But because they are dim, we can't see them without good telescopes.
What are the brightness of stars?
magnitude, dim stars have positive magnitudes and bright stars have negative magnitudes
What best describes giant star?
hot, bright stars
Why some stars appear bright while other are dim?
1). Some stars are brighter or dimmer than others. 2). Some stars are nearer or farther from earth than others. So any given star can be bright and near, bright and far, dim and near, or dim and far. It's kind of like the reason why some instruments in the band sound louder than others. A piccolo has to be a lot nearer to you in order to sound as loud as a far-away Trumpet.
You and a friend are looking at the stars and you notice two stars close together one bright and the other fairly dim your friend comments that the bright star must emit much more light?
You and a friend are looking at the star and you notice two stars close together one bright and the other fairly dim your friend comments that the bright star must emit much more light. This might not be true because the other star could just be farther away or smaller.
Why stars are not as bright as the moon?
In terms of actual brightness the stars are much brighter than the moon and some are even brighter than the sun. They only appear dim because they are much farther away than either the sun or the moon.
Is the Milky Way bright or dim?
It is quite dim and can only be seen on clear night away from most street lights. It is a milky - as the name implies - swath across the sky that is more like a fuzzy dim haze, yet composed of billions of stars.
Are planets dimmer than stars?
Actually planets are non luminous objects , so Planets are totally dim . It seems like they are quite bright , because they reflect the Sunlight ( Stars light ) falling on them . So , yes of course , they are far dimmer than stars .
What is the most common star category?
Bright stars are rare, dim stars are common, so class M are the most common that we can see, but even dimmer ones are postulated to be even more common.
Will bright blue light eject more electrons than dim light of the same frequency?
Brighter light has more energy.
Why there were no stars in the photos of Apollo 11 mission?
The cameras were set up to take picture of bright white objects in direct sunlight, they were not set up to take pictures of dim stars in black space. Stars require a longer shutter speed and larger aperature than bright white sunlit objects.
Is Orion a single star or a group of stars?
Technically, neither. "Orion" is a name for a specific patch of sky which contains a few bright stars, a rather larger of dim-but-still-visible stars, and millions upon millions of stars that are so far away that they are invisibly dim.
