1/4/2024 0 Comments Massive starAs with virtually all astronomic measurements, there's also an inherent margin of inaccuracy in observations due to equipment error and distance, among other factors.įinally, a listing of stars by size must take into account that there may be larger specimens that simply haven't been studied or even detected as yet. With that in mind, the following are the 10 largest stars currently known to astronomers. When a large star (mass > 9 solar) moves past helium fusion, its interior. Our new paper, published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, shows how massive stars in such stellar nurseries can steal planets away from each other and what the signs of such theft are. That means when astronomers study a star such as V838 Monocerotis, they must look at it more than once over a period of time as it expands and shrinks in order to can calculate an average size. Stars that are less massive or only a few times more massive than the Sun. After a few million years, the groups of stars dissipate, populating the Milky Way with more stars. This measurement gives them a general idea of the star's size but there are other factors to consider.įor example, some stars are variable, which means they regularly expand and shrink as their brightness changes. Generally, astronomers look at a star and measure its angular size, which is its width as measured in degrees or arcminutes or arcseconds. Spectroscopic observations of a massive star formation in the ultraviolet and their interpretation are reviewed. Unlike planets, stars have no distinct surface with which to form an "edge" for measurements, nor do astronomers have a convenient ruler to take such measurements. Some of these stars are larger because they evolved that way from the time they were formed, while others are bigger due to the fact that they're expanding as they age.įiguring out a star's size isn't a simple project. While it's much larger than all the planets combined, it's not even medium-sized in comparison to other more massive stars. Our Sun, technically a yellow dwarf, is neither the biggest or the smallest star in the universe. ![]() Yet, aside from the Sun in our own solar system, they appear as tiny pinpoints of light in the sky. Stars are immense balls of burning plasma.
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