Science 9 Quarter 3

Activity no. 9
Activity Title: characteristics of a star: Brightness, Color, Size and surface Temperature
Learning target: Infer the characteristics of stars based on the characteristics of the Sun.
Brightness
How do we know about stars when they are so very far away? Scientists study our sun. They use the following characteristics to
classify stars: brightness, color, temperature, size, and composition.
Brightness: A star’s brightness is described in terms of its magnitude and luminosity. The Ancient Greeks learned that the brightness
of a star depended on its size and distance from the Earth. The brightest stars were classified as first magnitude stars or magnitude 1
stars, and the faintest were sixth magnitude stars or magnitude 6 stars. A magnitude 1 star is 100 times brighter than a magnitude 6
star. Very bright stars, such as our sun, can destroy one’s eyes permanently, if viewed directly by the naked eye. The brightest star is
Sirius with an absolute magnitude of 1.4
Luminosity : It describes the rate at which a star radiates energy. The size of the star and its surface temperature affect luminosity.
The sun’s luminosity is 400 trillion watts, which is used as the standard to describe the luminosity of other stars. The luminosity of
Alpha Centauri A is 1.3 times that of the sun.
Color :The color of a star ranges from red to yellow to blue depending on surface temperature.
Table 1.Color and temperature of selected stars
Star Color Surface Temperature in Celsuis
Sun Yellow 5, 700
Proxima Centuari Red 2,300
Epsilon Iridani Orange 4,600
Vega White 9,900
Sirius White 10,000
Alnilam Blue 27,000

The coolest stars appear reddish because they radiate their energy in the red to infrared region of the spectrum. Hottest stars
appear bluish to white because they emit their energy in the blue to ultraviolet wavelengths. Our Sun is a mid-range temperature
star and appears yellow because it radiates its energy in the mid-orange or yellow region.
Size : Stars can be larger or smaller than our sun. As the mass of the star increases, its size will also increase, affecting the star’s
luminosity, color, and rate of fusion of hydrogen to form helium. In terms of size, stars are classified as dwarf, giant, or super giant.
Dwarfs stars are very small, about seventy-five to eighty percent the size of the sun. Giant stars are twice to 10 times larger than our
sun while super giant stars are more than 10 times the size of our sun.
Surface Temperature : Surface temperatures of stars are expressed in Kelvin, which is the standard unit for temperature. An
absolute zero Kelvin is equal to -273.150C. The table below shows the surface temperature ranges vis-à-vis the color of the stars.
Color and Surface Temperature of Stars

Surface Temperature
Classification Color of Star
Kelvin Degrees Celsius
Cool star Dark red 2,500 2,226.85
Cool star Bright red 3,500 3,226.85
Mid- Range Yellow (e.g., sun) 5,500 5,226.85
Hot star Blue 10,000-50 000 9,726.85-49,726.85
Exercises:
1. Cite the difference between brightness and luminosity.
2. How does color affect the characteristic of a star?
3. Describe a dwarf, giant and super giant stars.
4. What is the relationship of the color and surface temperature of stars?
Science 9 Quarter 3
Activity no. 10
Activity Title: Constellation
Learning Target: Define Constellation

Stars form recognizable patterns in the sky. The sections of the sky that contains these patterns are called constellations.
If you look at the sky and see all the stars forming a maze of bright dots, you can “connect the dots” and create your own
cluster arrangement of stars or constellations.
Many constellations can be traced to Greek civilizations.
Constellations are used since ancient times in terms of religion, harvest, travel and time. Polaris has long been an important star to
sailors, and traveller’s caravans with the tail of the Little Bear, Ursa Minor and the brightest star of that constellation.
Biodynamic agriculture works from two poles -- the cosmic and the earthly. Understanding and using the rhythms of the cosmos for
sowing and planting in conjunction with the practice of soil fertility, makes organic farming truly work.
The Moon planting calendar for fruit, vegetables and flowers are used as a guide. The Gardeners crops fared better when
planted whilst the moon was in a specific constellation and the Biodynamic Cycle.
While the rotation of the Earth’s orbit on its axis causes the apparent nightly movement of the different stars across the sky, the
revolution is responsible for the fact that we can see different parts of the sky at different parts of the year.
Exercises:
1. Define constellation?
2. Why do we see different parts of the sky at different parts of the year?