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The sun is a ....
Someone described the sun as a yellow dwarf. I don't think this is
correct. What is the correct description? TIA Lawrence |
#2
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The sun is a ....
"Lawrence" lawrence@astronomer wrote in message s.com... Someone described the sun as a yellow dwarf. I don't think this is correct. What is the correct description? TIA Lawrence Actually, it is correct. The Sun is a main sequence star, and main sequence stars are termed "dwarfs" (or dwarves"). Stars of the same exact spectral class as the Sun look pale yellow through a telescope (Capella is similar enough to show this) provided the star is bright enough to use the colour receptors in the human eye. It is hard to gain an easy appreciation of the Sun's colour as yellow simply because it is so bright as to overwhelm the eye, saturating and bleaching out the colour receptors. White light is a combination of sunlight and the light of the much bluer sky, which is scattered sunlight. A star seen through a telescope is much less bright. To gain an idea of how strongly circumstances govern our perception of colour of the source of illumination, look around yourself at night in a room lit by incandescent lamps. It seems pretty white. Then switch on the same lamps during daylight (or even better, outdoors) and look at their colour, which will seem a yellow-orange caste. -- Mike Dworetsky (Remove "pants" spamblock to send e-mail) |
#3
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The sun is a ....
"Lawrence" lawrence@astronomer wrote in message s.com... Someone described the sun as a yellow dwarf. I don't think this is correct. What is the correct description? TIA Lawrence Actually, it is correct. The Sun is a main sequence star, and main sequence stars are termed "dwarfs" (or dwarves"). Stars of the same exact spectral class as the Sun look pale yellow through a telescope (Capella is similar enough to show this) provided the star is bright enough to use the colour receptors in the human eye. It is hard to gain an easy appreciation of the Sun's colour as yellow simply because it is so bright as to overwhelm the eye, saturating and bleaching out the colour receptors. White light is a combination of sunlight and the light of the much bluer sky, which is scattered sunlight. A star seen through a telescope is much less bright. To gain an idea of how strongly circumstances govern our perception of colour of the source of illumination, look around yourself at night in a room lit by incandescent lamps. It seems pretty white. Then switch on the same lamps during daylight (or even better, outdoors) and look at their colour, which will seem a yellow-orange caste. -- Mike Dworetsky (Remove "pants" spamblock to send e-mail) |
#4
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The sun is a ....
"Lawrence" lawrence@astronomer wrote in message s.com... Someone described the sun as a yellow dwarf. I don't think this is correct. What is the correct description? Looking up "Hertzsprung Russell" on google should give you plenty of information. Marcus |
#5
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The sun is a ....
"Lawrence" lawrence@astronomer wrote in message s.com... Someone described the sun as a yellow dwarf. I don't think this is correct. What is the correct description? Looking up "Hertzsprung Russell" on google should give you plenty of information. Marcus |
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