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Question
- analyze: what relationship, if any, do you see between a stars color and its temperature?
Stars emit light across a range of wavelengths. The color we perceive is related to the peak wavelength of this emitted light. According to Wien's displacement law, the peak wavelength ($\lambda_{max}$) of the light emitted by a black - body (stars approximate black - bodies) is inversely proportional to its temperature ($T$), i.e., $\lambda_{max}=\frac{b}{T}$, where $b = 2.898\times10^{-3}\ m\cdot K$ (Wien's constant). Shorter wavelengths correspond to higher - energy light (e.g., blue light has a shorter wavelength than red light). So, hotter stars (higher $T$) have shorter $\lambda_{max}$ (more blue - white color), and cooler stars (lower $T$) have longer $\lambda_{max}$ (more red - orange color).
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There is an inverse relationship. Hotter stars (higher temperature) tend to be blue or blue - white in color (shorter peak wavelength of emitted light), while cooler stars (lower temperature) are red or orange (longer peak wavelength of emitted light).