Astronomy
1st Edition
ISBN: 9781938168284
Author: Andrew Fraknoi; David Morrison; Sidney C. Wolff
Publisher: OpenStax
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Textbook Question
Chapter 22, Problem 11E
Why are star clusters so useful for astronomers who want to study the evolution of stars?
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Question 41
.Suppose you are looking at H-R diagrams of two similar star clusters. The most luminous main
sequence stars in the Porcini cluster are much more luminous than the most luminous main
sequence stars in the Morel cluster. What can you conclude?
O the Porcini cluster is younger than the Morel cluster
O the Porcini cluster is farther away than the Morel cluster
O the Porcini cluster is lower in metallicity than the Morel cluster
O the Porcini cluster is larger in diameter than the Morel cluster
If the RR Lyrae stars in a globular cluster have average apparent magnitudes of +19, how far away (in pc) is the cluster? (Hints: See the following figure, and use the magnitude-distance formula: d = 10(mv - My+5)/5.)
Туре
(Classical)
Cepheids
104
103
Туре II
Cepheids
102
RR Lyrae stars
0.3
1
10
30
100
Pulsation perlod (days)
pc
Absolute magnitude
Luminosity, L L.
Looking for ___ pc
Chapter 22 Solutions
Astronomy
Ch. 22 - Compare the following stages in the lives of a...Ch. 22 - What is the first event that happens to a star...Ch. 22 - Astronomers find that 90% of the stars observed in...Ch. 22 - Describe the evolution of a star with a mass...Ch. 22 - Describe the evolution of a star with a mass...Ch. 22 - A star is often described as “moving” on an HR...Ch. 22 - On which edge of the main sequence band on an HR...Ch. 22 - How do stars typically “move” through the main...Ch. 22 - Certain stars, like Betelgeuse, have a lower...Ch. 22 - Gravity always tries to collapse the mass of a...
Ch. 22 - Why are star clusters so useful for astronomers...Ch. 22 - Would the Sun more likely have been a member of a...Ch. 22 - Suppose you were handed two HR diagrams for two...Ch. 22 - Referring to the HR diagrams in Exercise 22.13,...Ch. 22 - The nuclear process for fusing helium into carbon...Ch. 22 - Pictures of various planetary nebulae show a...Ch. 22 - Describe the two “recycling” mechanisms that are...Ch. 22 - In which of these star groups would you mostly...Ch. 22 - Explain how an HR diagram of the stars in a...Ch. 22 - Where did the carbon atoms in the trunk of a tree...Ch. 22 - What is a planetary nebula? Will we have one...Ch. 22 - Is the Sun on the zero-age main sequence? Explain...Ch. 22 - How are planetary nebulae comparable to a...Ch. 22 - Which of the planets in our solar system have...Ch. 22 - Would you expect to find an earthlike planet (with...Ch. 22 - In the HR diagrams for some young clusters, stars...Ch. 22 - If the Sun were a member of the cluster NGC 2264,...Ch. 22 - If all the stars in a cluster have nearly the same...Ch. 22 - Suppose a star cluster were at such a large...Ch. 22 - Suppose an astronomer known for joking around told...Ch. 22 - Stars that have masses approximately 0.8 times the...Ch. 22 - Automobiles are often used as an analogy to help...Ch. 22 - The text says a star does not change its mass very...Ch. 22 - The text explains that massive stars have shorter...Ch. 22 - You can use the equation in Exercise 22.34 to...Ch. 22 - You can estimate the age of the planetary nebula...Ch. 22 - If star A has a core temperature T, and star B has...
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- Are supergiant stars also extremely massive? Explain the reasoning behind your answer.arrow_forwardIn the HR diagrams for some young clusters, stars of both very low and very high luminosity are off to the right of the main sequence, whereas those of intermediate luminosity are on the main sequence. Can you offer an explanation for that? Sketch an HR diagram for such a cluster.arrow_forwardYou can use the equation in Exercise 22.34 to estimate the approximate ages of the clusters in Figure 22.10, Figure 22.12, and Figure 22.13. Use the information in the figures to determine the luminosity of the most massive star still on the main sequence. Now use the data in Table 18.3 to estimate the mass of this star. Then calculate the age of the cluster. This method is similar to the procedure used by astronomers to obtain the ages of clusters, except that they use actual data and model calculations rather than simply making estimates from a drawing. How do your ages compare with the ages in the text? Figure 22.10 NGC 2264 HR Diagram. Compare this HR diagram to that in Figure 22.8; although the points scatter a bit more here, the theoretical and observational diagrams are remarkably, and satisfyingly, similar. Figure 22.12 Cluster M41. (a) Cluster M41 is older than NGC 2264 (see Figure 22.10) and contains several red giants. Some of its more massive stars are no longer close to the zero-age main sequence (red line). (b) This ground-based photograph shows the open cluster M41. Note that it contains several orange-color stars. These are stars that have exhausted hydrogen in their centers, and have swelled up to become red giants. (credit b: modification of work by NOAO/AURA/NSF) Figure 22.13 HR Diagram for an Older Cluster. We see the HR diagram for a hypothetical older cluster at an age of 4.24 billion years. Note that most of the stars on the upper part of the main sequence have turned off toward the red-giant region. And the most massive stars in the cluster have already died and are no longer on the diagram. Characteristics of Main-Sequence Starsarrow_forward
- You have discovered two star clusters. The first cluster contains mainly main-sequence stars, along with some red giant stars and a few white dwarfs. The second cluster also contains mainly main-sequence stars, along with some red giant stars, and a few neutron stars-but no white dwarf stars. What are the relative ages of the clusters? How did you determine your answer?arrow_forwardIn which of these star groups would you mostly likely find the least heavy-element abundance for the stars within them: open clusters, globular clusters, or associations?arrow_forwardAutomobiles are often used as an analogy to help people better understand how more massive stars have much shorter main-sequence lifetimes compared to less massive stars. Can you explain such an analogy using automobiles?arrow_forward
- Explain how an HR diagram of the stars in a cluster can be used to determine the age of the cluster.arrow_forwardDescribe the two “recycling” mechanisms that are associated with stars (one during each star’s life and the other connecting generations of stars).arrow_forwardAccording to the text, a star must be hotter than about 25,000 K to produce an H II region. Both the hottest white dwarfs and main-sequence O stars have temperatures hotter than 25,000 K. Which type of star can ionize more hydrogen? Why?arrow_forward
- Calculate the mass-to-light ratio for a globular cluster with a luminosity of 106LSunand 105 stars. (Assume that the average mass of a star in such a cluster is 1 MSun.)arrow_forwardIf an open cluster contains 450 stars and is 21 pc in diameter, what is the average distance between the stars? (Hint: On average, what share of the volume of the cluster surrounds each star? Note: The volume of a sphere is 4 3 ?r 3.)arrow_forwardQUESTION 16 Use the figure shown below to complete the following statement: A low-mass protostar (0.5 to 8M the mass compared to our sun) remains roughly constant in decreases in until it makes a turn towards the main sequence, as it follows its evolutionary track. Protostars of different masses follow diferent paths on their way to the main sequence. 107 Luminosity (L) 10 105 10 107 10² 101 1 10-1 10-2 10-3 Spectral type 0.01 R 0.001 Re 60 M MAIN SEQUENCE 40,000 30,000 20 Mau 10 Mgun 5 Mun 0.1 Run Ren radius; temperature luminosity; radius 3 Min. 05 BO temperature; luminosity Oluminosity: temperature radius: luminosity 1 M 10,000 6000 Surlace temperature (K) 1,000 Rs 2 M STAR L 0.8 M B5 AO FOGO КБ МБ -10 +10 3000 Absolute visual magnitude andarrow_forward
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