Oh, Be A Fine Girl: Kiss Me!

7/21/03

BRIGHTNESS OF STARS:

The sequence of brightness and colour among normal stars is arranged by the spectral types in an order using the letters O, B, A, F, G, K, & M (a classification students still remember with the help from the sentence, “Oh, Be A Fine Girl: Kiss Me!”).

Each element represent a range of colour and temperature. For e.g.

O:- Massive, brilliant O-stars at one end of the spectrum are hot and blue and range 50000^oC down to 25000^oC in the surface temperature UV region

M:- Light, dim; Cool and Red; 3500 ^o to 1500^oC IR region

G:- Middle weight; yellow (like Sun); 5500^oC to 5000^oC; Visible region