STUDY: Vocabulary

Vocabulary

Star Cluster Hodge 301. Photo courtesy of NASA. Public domain.

Black hole: the result of a massive star collapsing. Gravity acts so strongly on black holes that nothing can escape it.

Brown Dwarf: Collection of matter that could not achieve nuclear fusion.

Protostar: cloud of gas that is beginning the process of nuclear fusion.

Main Sequence: Longest part of a star's lifespan. Stars with larger mass have shorter main sequences. Stars with smaller mas have longer main sequences.

Neutron stars: One of the last stages of a mid-sized star. Neutron stars have a core of densely-packed neutrons.

Red giant: Stage in a star's lifespan in which it burns helium instead of hydrogen.

Supergiant: Another name for a red giant. Supergiants are larger than red giants.

White Dwarf: Stage in which a star stops fusion. White dwarfs can have high temperatures, but they produce less light than a star in main sequence.

Last modified: Friday, 30 April 2010, 1:54 PM

Skip Navigation