PHYSICS

Astrophysics
AQA A-level
Year 2
Chris Bishop
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ii
CONTENTS
1 Telescopes 2 3 Stellar evolution 39
1.1 Early telescopes and the use of lenses 2 3.1 The birth of a star 39
1.2 Astronomical telescope consisting 3.2 The Hertzsprung–Russell diagram 41
of two converging lenses 3
3.3 Evolution of massive stars post-main
1.3 Chromatic and spherical aberration 5 sequence46
1.4 Reflecting telescopes 6 3.4 Type IA supernovae as standard candles 50
1.5 Limitations of ground-based optical
telescopes8
4 Cosmology 53
1.6 Resolving power of telescopes 9
4.1 What is cosmology? 53
1.7 Collecting power of telescopes 10
4.2 The Doppler effect 53
1.8 Radio telescopes 12
4.3 Doppler shift and the motion
1.9 Infrared, ultraviolet and X-ray telescopes 14 of binary stars 57
1.10 Producing larger-diameter telescopes 17 4.4 The recession of galaxies and quasars 60
1.11 Charge-coupled devices in astronomy 20 4.5 Hubble’s law 62
4.6 Evidence for the Big Bang 65
2 Classification of stars 23 4.7 Quasars 67
2.1 Stellar luminosity, brightness 4.8 Exoplanets 68
and apparent magnitude23
2.2 Astronomical distance 25 Answers 74
2.3 Absolute magnitude 27 Glossary 79
2.4 Classification of stars by their Index 83
temperature31
Acknowledgments 85
2.5 Stellar spectral classes 33

iii
ASTROPHYSICS
Astrophysics is a branch of astronomy concerned
with the physics of the Universe, particularly the
physics of stars and galaxies. Astrophysicists use
many other areas of physics, including mechanics,
thermodynamics, quantum mechanics, optics, debris disc
electromagnetism, atomic and nuclear physics, and size of Saturn’s orbit
special and general relativity, to describe and model around the Sun
astronomical phenomena. The study of exoplanets –
planets orbiting other stars – is just one area where β Pictoris b β Pictoris –
astrophysics can be applied to understand the
location of the star
mysteries of our Universe.
Exoplanets are some of the most important North
discoveries of late 20th century science, made
possible by advances in astronomical image East
processing and measurement (see photo and caption).
Nearly 2000 exoplanets are now known to exist,
some of which are Earth-like, leading to speculation
that life may exist elsewhere in our Galaxy and in the
wider Universe.
A direct image of exoplanet beta Pictoris b next to the star beta
Observations of exoplanetary systems help us to Pictoris, 63 light years from our solar system in the constellation
understand how our own solar system formed and why Pictor in the southern hemisphere. The image was taken by the Very
Large Telescope (VLT) at the European Southern Observatory (ESO)
we have the planets distributed as we see them today. in Chile. The planet has been imaged using special techniques that
They help astrophysicists to develop theories as to suppress the brightness of the star, allowing the planet to be seen.
why we have four rocky planets close to the Sun and
large gas giants much further away, and whether or accumulating that Earth-type exoplanets may exist.
not it is unique that on Earth we have the conditions The Kepler space observatory was launched in 2009
necessary for liquid water to exist and the formation and has surveyed a section of our own Galaxy, looking
of molecular compounds needed to support life. at the dimming of a star as an exoplanet crossed in
front of it. Data from Kepler have allowed scientists
The first discoveries of exoplanets were bodies to deduce the existence of at least three Earth-like
completely unlike those in our own solar system. exoplanets in habitable zones (where liquid water may
‘Hot Jupiters’ are exoplanets as massive as Jupiter exist) around other stars. Our studies of exoplanets
that orbit so close to their parent star that they are are just beginning, and our ability to image and
roasted to high temperatures. Some exoplanets follow catalogue them continually improves. Very soon we
highly elliptical orbits, unlike the nearly circular ones may be able answer the question: ‘Is our own solar
in our solar system. However, evidence is now system unique in supporting life?’

1
1 TELESCOPES

1TELESCOPES
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
From your previous studies at GCSE and in Year 12,
you will have learnt about lenses and mirrors and
how they can reflect and refract light. You may wish
to refer back to the sections in Chapter 5 of Year 1
Student Book on waves, in particular electromagnetic
waves, to Chapter 6 on diffraction and Chapter 7
on reflection and refraction, to refresh your ideas
of wave properties and their measurement. You will
also need to be familiar with the use of the radian
for angular measure – see Year 2 Student Book
Chapter 1.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
In this chapter you will learn how lens telescopes,
reflecting telescopes and radio telescopes are used
to image the Universe, as well as those imaging in
infrared, ultraviolet and X-rays. You will consider
the relative advantages and limitations of different
types of telescope, including the importance of
collecting power and resolution. You will learn about
the use of very sensitive electronic detectors called
charge-coupled devices to store astronomical images
for processing, enhancement and distribution.
Figure 1 One of Galileo’s original telescopes, consisting of two
(Specification 3.9.1.1 to 3.9.1.4)
lenses – a primary convex lens and an eyepiece with a single concave
lens. The best telescope that Galileo made had a magnification of
about ×30.

1.1 EARLY TELESCOPES AND THE USE

To understand how an astronomical telescope works,
OF LENSES you need to know how lenses form images. There
are two basic types of optical lens. A concave lens,
Galileo was the first astronomer known to use a
also called a diverging lens, spreads an incident
telescope to study the night sky some 400 years ago.
beam of light into a diverging emergent beam. A
He made a number of telescopes and used them to
convex lens, also called a converging lens, can focus
observe the moons of Jupiter and the rings of Saturn.
an incident beam. As well as in telescopes, lenses
This revolutionised our understanding not only of our
are used in optical instruments, such as binoculars,
solar system but subsequently of the Universe as a
slide projectors, cameras, spectacles and magnifying
whole. The telescope he used (Figure 1) was based on
glasses, to produce an image.
lenses made of glass, which alter the direction of light
rays by refracting them. For a single converging lens, the line that passes
through the centre of the lens at right angles to it is

2
 1.2
Astronomical telescope consisting of two converging lenses

called the principal axis or optical axis. Light rays

from a distant object that are essentially parallel to the virtual
principal axis of the lens converge to a point called the image F
principal focus, F (Figure 2). The distance between object
the principal focus and the centre of the lens is called
the focal length, f. The shorter the focal length of
a converging lens, the more strongly it converges f
light rays. Figure 4 A ray diagram showing a converging lens producing a
converging lens virtual image

principal focus, F

parallel rays
from a 1.2 ASTRONOMICAL TELESCOPE CONSISTING
distant object
principal OF TWO CONVERGING LENSES
focal axis
length, f Astronomical telescopes that receive light in the
Figure 2 A ray diagram showing the action of a converging lens on a visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum are
beam of light collectively termed optical telescopes. Those that
focus the incident light by refraction through lenses,
just as in Galileo’s instrument (Figure 1), are called
The construction of a ray diagram (Figure 2) is the best
refracting telescopes. They are now much bigger
method to gain a good visual understanding of the way
than in Galileo’s time (Figure 5), allowing a much
an incident light beam behaves on passing through a
greater magnification.
lens system.
A converging lens can produce both a real image and
a virtual image. When an object is further away from
the lens than the focal length, a real image is formed,
inverted, on the far side of the lens (Figure 3). A real
image is one that can be formed on a screen; a virtual
image cannot be.

object
F

image

• Light rays that pass through the centre of the lens are undeviated.
• Light rays parallel to the principal axis converge to the focal point.
• By convention the rays are shown changing direction just once on passing
through the lens.

Figure 3 A ray diagram for a converging lens, showing how a real

image is formed

When an object is closer to the lens than the focal

length, the lens acts as a magnifying glass. A magnified
virtual image is formed, the right way up, on the same
side of the lens (Figure 4).

Figure 5 The Yerkes telescope at the Yerkes Observatory in

Wisconsin, USA. Although its construction was completed in 1895,
it is still the largest refracting telescope currently in use. It has an
objective lens of 1 m diameter and a focal length of 19.4 m.

3
1 TELESCOPES

A simple refracting telescope (Figure 6) has a The angular magnification, M, or magnifying power
converging objective lens, which produces a real of a refracting telescope is given by
image of a very distant object, and a converging
angle subtended by image at eye α
eyepiece lens, which acts as a magnifying glass. The M = =
angle subtended by obje
ect at unaided eye β
light rays leaving the eyepiece are parallel, and so
the final image appears at infinity. This means that
the observer’s eye does not have to keep refocusing In normal adjustment, the magnification can be
between looking at a distant object and looking expressed in terms of the focal lengths of the
through the eyepiece at the image, and this reduces lenses. From Figure 6, we have, by simple geometry
eye strain. This setting is called normal adjustment (properties of vertical angles), that
for an astronomical telescope.
y
tan α =
objective eyepiece fe
lens lens
and that
fo fe
β y
F
tan β =
fo
y
α

intermediate
As the angles a and b are very small, the tangent
image approximation is used (this can be used for angles
final image less than about 6°) – for angles a and b in radians,
appears
tan a ≈ a and tan b ≈ b. This then gives the angular
at infinity
magnification as
Figure 6 The lens arrangement for a refracting telescope. In normal
adjustment, the final magnified image appears to be at infinity. α ( y / fe )
M = =
β ( y / fo )
Light from the edge of the object enters the objective So
lens at an angle b to the optical axis and forms an
fo
intermediate real image between the lenses. The angle M =
fe
b is the angle subtended by the object to the unaided
eye and is a very small angle. An object's angular
size is the angle between the lines of sight to its two The angular magnification (in normal adjustment) is
opposite ends and is a measure of how big the object given by the ratio of the focal length of the objective
appears to the unaided eye (Figure 7). In normal lens to the focal length of the eyepiece lens. Note
adjustment, parallel light emerges from the eyepiece that you can see from Figure 6 that the length of a
lens. This occurs when the focus of the eyepiece lens refracting telescope has to be at least the sum of fo
(focal length fe) is coincident with that of the objective and fe, which explains their long length.
lens (focal length fo). When looking through the
eyepiece, the angle subtended by the image to the eye,
Worked example
a, has now increased.
The James Lick telescope at the Lick Observatory in
California, USA, was built in 1888 and is still in use.
It has a primary convex lens of 36 inches (0.91 m)
and a focal length of 57.8 feet (17.6 m). What is its
image on magnification if used with an eyepiece of focal length
angular
size retina 55 mm? What is the sum of the focal lengths fo and fe?
How would these calculations change for an eyepiece
of focal length 35 mm?
smaller For fe = 55 mm:
object
larger fo 17.6
M = = = 320
object fe 55 × 10−3
Figure 7 The angular size of an object depends on both its actual fo + fe ≈ 17.6 m
size and its distance away.
4
 1.3
Chromatic and spherical aberration

For fe = 35 mm: white light violet

fo 17.6 red
M= = = 503
fe 35 × 10−3
fo + fe ≈ 17.6 m

It is clear that the length of the telescope is dominated

red
by the large focal length of the objective lens.
violet
Figure 8 Chromatic aberration causes light of different wavelengths
(colours) to focus at different positions along the optical axis.
QUESTIONS
1. Calculate the angular magnification of a
telescope with an objective lens of focal
length 1200 mm using an eyepiece of
focal length
a. 25 mm
b. 10 mm.
2. The Moon has an angular size of 0.5° in
the sky when viewed with the naked eye.
Suppose the Moon is viewed through a
telescope with an objective of focal length Figure 9 Chromatic aberration through a lens
100 cm and an eyepiece of focal length
20 mm. What is the angular size of the Moon Because of the curvature of the lens, spherical
as seen through this telescope? aberration results in light rays in a parallel beam
3. The 1 m diameter objective lens of the Yerkes being focused at slightly different positions (Figure 10).
refractor (Figure 5) weighs 225 kg. Suggest Light rays near the edge of the lens are deviated more
two factors that limit the size of refractors for than those near the optical axis. The effect is most
astronomy. pronounced in lenses of large diameter, resulting in a
blurring of the image. The effect can be minimised by
making both surfaces of the lens contribute equally to
1.3 CHROMATIC AND SPHERICAL ABERRATION the ray deviation.

Refracting telescopes suffer from fundamental

aberrations (faults), of which there are two main
ones. The first is due to the fact that refraction
by a lens causes white light to separate into its
component colours (wavelengths). This is an effect
called dispersion, which occurs because the
refractive index of the lens material is different Figure 10 Spherical aberration causes rays to focus at different
for different wavelengths of light (see Chapter 7 in positions, causing image blurring.
Year 1 Student Book).
An objective lens focuses the different colours over The objective lens in a refractor is often an
a range of focal lengths, a deficiency known as achromatic doublet (Figure 11). This is made up of
chromatic aberration (Figure 8). This produces two individual lens elements cemented together and
coloured edges to the image, which may be corrected corrected to bring light of two wavelengths (two of red,
by careful design and choice of high-quality optical green and blue) into focus in the same plane. Each
materials. Figure 9 shows chromatic aberration in an lens is made from glass with different dispersion. The
objective lens forming an image of the words 'chromatic convex lens in the doublet is made of crown glass and
aberration' producing a coloured fringe effect due the has a low dispersion; the concave lens, made of flint
lens focusing colours to different focal lengths.
5
1 TELESCOPES

glass, has a higher dispersion and is shaped in such

a way that the chromatic aberration of one lens is
1.4 REFLECTING TELESCOPES
compensated by that of the other. The doublet is also There are several different designs of reflecting
designed to keep spherical aberration to a minimum. telescope, but all use a curved objective mirror, or
flint
‘primary mirror’, to collect light from a distant object
crown
and direct it onto a secondary mirror.
The diameter of the primary mirror determines
white light the ability of the telescope to collect light. The
light-gathering power is proportional to the mirror
area, and so to the square of the diameter of the
mirror. Modern reflecting telescopes use primary
mirrors up to 10 m in diameter.
Spherical aberration (see Astrophysics section 1.3)
occurs for mirrors as well as for lenses, if the mirror
has spherical curvature. The ideal objective mirror
is parabolic in shape because this focuses parallel
light rays from a distant object to a single focal point
Figure 11 An achromatic doublet that brings red and blue light to (Figure 12), so eliminating spherical aberration.
the same focus
The mirror itself consists of a very thin coating of
silver or aluminium atoms that have been deposited
onto a backing material. The thickness of this
coating is often less than 25 nm (2.5 × 10−8 m). This
provides as smooth a surface as possible and so
KEY IDEAS
minimises distortions.
› A simple astronomical refracting telescope is
made of two converging lenses, the objective lens
and the eyepiece lens.
› The final image is magnified, inverted and (in
normal adjustment) at infinity.
F
› The angular magnification is defined as

angle subtended by image at eye

M =
angle subtended by objec
ect at unaided eye

› For a refracting telescope in normal adjustment

Figure 12 A perfectly parabolic reflector eliminates spherical
fo
M = aberration.
fe
The magnification of a reflecting telescope is found by
where fo is the focal length of the objective lens
using the same formula as for a refracting telescope –
and fe is the focal length of the eyepiece lens.
it is the ratio of the focal length of the objective
› Refracting telescopes suffer from chromatic and (mirror) to the focal length of the eyepiece.
spherical aberrations, which respectively produce
coloured edges and blurring in the image.
Worked example
A reflecting telescope with a parabolic mirror has a
diameter of 80 cm and a focal length of 1 m. It is used
with an eyepiece of 15 mm. What is the magnification
of the telescope?

fo 1
M = = = 67
fe 15 × 10−3
6
 1.4
Reflecting telescopes

One important advantage of reflecting telescopes electronic

camera
over refracting telescopes is that they allow the large light from secondary
distant stars mirror
focal length of the objective mirror to be ‘folded up’
to produce an instrument with large magnification
in a compact space. A common design for reflecting primary
mirror
telescopes is the Cassegrain arrangement
Figure 13 The Cassegrain arrangement for a reflecting telescope
(Figure 13). The large primary mirror has a parabolic
shape. A convex secondary mirror with a hyperbolic
shape is used, which sends the rays down an opening Mirrors are unaffected by chromatic aberration.
in the primary mirror (usually in the centre), where the However, if an eyepiece is used in the focal plane of
image is brought to a focus using an eyepiece or an a reflecting telescope, there may be some chromatic
imaging camera. The Hubble space telescope uses a aberration by the lenses in the eyepiece. This can
variation of the Cassegrain design. be minimised by using an achromatic doublet (see
Astrophysics section 1.3).
Table 1 shows the key differences between refracting
and reflecting telescopes.

Disadvantages of refracting telescopes Advantages of reflecting telescopes

• Mounting of the lens and support can only be made using • Large single mirrors can be made, which are light and
the edge of the lens easily supportable from behind

• Using glass of sufficient clarity and purity and free from • Mirror surfaces can be made just a few nanometres thick,
defects to make large-diameter telescopes is extremely giving excellent image properties
difficult
• Mirrors use only the front surface for reflection, so
• Large-diameter lenses are heavy and tend to distort under removing many of the problems associated with lenses
their own weight
• No chromatic aberration, and no spherical aberration
• Suffer from chromatic aberration and spherical aberration when using parabolic mirrors

• Heavy and difficult to manoeuvre quickly • Relatively light mirrors allow rapid response to
astronomical events
• Difficult to mount heavy observing equipment and
associated electronics • Smaller segmented mirrors can be used to form a large
composite objective mirror
• Large magnifications require large objective lenses and
very long focal lengths

Table 1 Comparing refracting and reflecting telescopes

QUESTIONS KEY IDEAS

4. What is the magnification of a Cassegrain ›› Reflecting telescopes use curved mirrors to reflect
reflecting telescope whose mirror has a light from a distant object and form an image.
focal length of 2800 mm and is used with
eyepieces of focal length
›› A common design of reflecting telescopes is
the Cassegrain arrangement, made up of a
a. 5 mm combination of a primary concave (parabolic)
b. 15 mm mirror and a secondary convex (hyperbolic) mirror.
c. 25 mm? ›› The mirrors in a Cassegrain telescope do not suffer
from chromatic aberration but can be affected
by spherical aberration if they are not perfectly
parabolic (or hyperbolic).

7
 1 TELESCOPES

1.5 LIMITATIONS OF GROUND-BASED OPTICAL (see Figure 19 in Astrophysics section 1.8). Optical
telescopes are no good for this – we need special
TELESCOPES non-optical telescopes, for example, radio or
X-ray telescopes.
For ground-based optical telescopes, atmospheric
absorption and distortion in the visible region of the Large ranges of non-visible wavelengths are
electromagnetic spectrum are limiting factors in image also absorbed by our atmosphere (Figure 14).
quality. Ozone, oxygen, water vapour and carbon Atmospheric opacity is a measure of the absorption
dioxide all contribute to the absorption of light, from of electromagnetic radiation by the atmosphere, as a
the ultraviolet through visible to infrared. Dust within function of wavelength. You can see from Figure 14 that
the atmosphere also absorbs and scatters light on the atmosphere is in fact relatively transparent at optical
its way to the telescope, and atmospheric turbulence (visible) wavelengths, and is transparent for a range
(due to convection currents) reduces image quality. of radio wavelengths, which means that they can be
Such problems are avoided by building observatories detected from the ground (see Astrophysics section 1.8).
in dry, pollution-free areas at high altitude, or, better, Gamma rays, X-rays, most ultraviolet and some
by putting telescopes in orbit around the Earth infrared are strongly absorbed, so to probe the
beyond the atmosphere. The Hubble space telescope Universe at these wavelengths we need space-based
is due to be succeeded in 2018 by the James Webb observatories (see Astrophysics section 1.9). There are
space telescope. some exceptions. While much infrared is absorbed,
Visible light is not the only part of the electromagnetic there are infrared windows where observation can
spectrum through which we can explore the Universe. be made at ground level or at high altitudes. Highly
Many astronomical formations and events can only energetic gamma rays can be detected by the large
be detected, or can be imaged much more clearly, air showers of ionised particles and electromagnetic
by detecting emissions of electromagnetic waves radiation they produce, which can be detected
with wavelengths beyond the visible spectrum by instruments mounted in balloons and even at
ground level.

gamma rays, X-rays and visible light – infrared spectrum – radio waves – long wavelength
ultraviolet light – best observable best observed observable radio waves
observed from space from Earth from space (mostly from Earth (blocked by
(blocked by upper (some atmospheric absorbed by atmosphere)
atmosphere) distortion) atmospheric gases)

100%
Atmospheric opacity

50%

0%
0.1 nm 1 nm 10 nm 100 nm 1 µm 10 µm 100 µm 1 mm 1 cm 10 cm 1m 10 m 100 m 1 km
Wavelength
Figure 14 The opacity of the atmosphere to electromagnetic radiation

8
 1.6
Resolving power of telescopes

1.6 RESOLVING POWER OF TELESCOPES The size of the central maximum determines how
much blurring of the image there is: the smaller the
A very important performance parameter for any width of the disc, the less blurring and so the more
kind of telescope is its resolving power. This is its detail will be seen.
ability to produce separate images of closely spaced The angular location of the first dark fringe in the Airy
objects. Electromagnetic radiation travels in the form disc is given (approximately) by the formula
of waves. When the waves pass through an opening or
λ
sinθ =
aperture of a telescope, they will diffract and interfere D
constructively or destructively to produce a diffraction where l is the wavelength of light in metres, D is the
pattern (see section 6.2 in Chapter 6 in Year 1 Student diameter of the mirror or lens in metres and q is the
Book). It is for this reason that an imaging system like angular position in radians. As the angles involved are
a telescope will not focus a star to a perfect point but exceedingly small, we can make the approximation
to a disc instead, called an Airy disc (Figure 15). that sin q ≈ q in radians. Therefore we have

θ ≈ λ
D
This gives us the important result that the width of
the central maximum can be reduced by making the
diameter, D, of the mirror or lens as large as possible,
for a fixed value of the wavelength. Also, the shorter
the wavelength, the smaller the width of the disc.
If two point objects (for example, two stars at a
distance L away) are very close together (distance of
separation x), their Airy discs will overlap. The degree
of overlap will dictate whether or not the two stars can
be resolved as two separate light sources (Figure 16).
Figure 15 Airy disc diffraction pattern of the star Betelgeuse

x x x

L
θ θ
θ

θ
θ
θ

Resolvable Critical Unresolvable

Figure 16 Effect of overlapping two Airy discs from two distinct objects, illustrating the criteria
9
for resolving astronomical objects. The middle image is just resolvable.
1 TELESCOPES

The critical stage is reached when the central

maximum of one of the Airy discs is over the first
minimum of the other Airy disc (the middle intensity QUESTIONS
graph and image in Figure 16). The imaging process 5. The diameter of the objective mirror of the
is said to be ‘diffraction-limited’ at this separation. Hale telescope is 5.1 m, and it is observing a
The two objects will just be resolved, and the star emitting light of wavelength 510 nm.
following holds:
a. What is the minimum angular resolution of
θ = x ≈ λ the telescope in radians?
L D
b. What is the smallest detail the telescope
The Rayleigh criterion states that two point objects can detect on the surface of the Moon?
can be resolved if their angular separation is at least [Distance to Moon = 3.8 × 108 m; take the
wavelength of light detected to be 510 nm]
θ ≈ λ
D
6. Planets have been detected around other
The angle q is known as the minimum angular stars (see Astrophysics section 4.8). Estimate
resolution of the instrument at a particular the diameter of a telescope objective lens
wavelength l. required to resolve a Jupiter-sized planet
orbiting the nearest star, which is about
4 × 1016 m away. Assume you are observing
Angular measure and the size
at a wavelength of 550 nm. The diameter of
of astronomical objects
Jupiter is about 1.5 × 108 m.
Angular measurements are used describe the
apparent size (angular size, see Astrophysics
section 1.2) of an object in space. The angular size
of an object is expressed in degrees, arcminutes
and/or arcseconds. Just as an hour is divided into
1.7 COLLECTING POWER OF TELESCOPES
60 minutes, and a minute into 60 seconds, a degree is
The collecting power of an imaging system such
divided into 60 arcminutes (or ‘minutes of arc’), and an
as a telescope is another important parameter.
arcminute is divided into 60 arcseconds (or ‘seconds
It is a measure of its ability to collect incident
of arc’):
electromagnetic radiation. It is directly proportional
1 degree = 1° = 1/360 of a circle to the square of the diameter of its objective. This
is because the surface area of a circular object of
diameter a is equal to π × ( 1 a) = 1 π a2. So
2
1 arcminute = 1' = 1/60 of a degree 2 4

collecting power ∝ (objective diameter)2

1 arcsecond = 1" = 1/60 of an arcminute
= 1/3600 of a degree An optical telescope, for example, has a collecting
power specifically called its light-gathering power
To get a rough estimate of the angular size of objects (LGP), measured in m2. The LGP is a relative measure
in space, you can go out on a clear night when the for comparing the ability of different telescopes
full Moon is visible. Extend your arm towards the sky. to ‘grasp light’ – the larger the LGP, the brighter
Your fist, at arm’s length, covers about 10° of the sky, the image.
your thumb covers about 2°, and your little finger
It is clear that there are direct advantages, in
covers about 1°. The full Moon is about 0.5°, or 30'
improved resolving power and collecting power,
(30 arcminutes) across. Coincidentally, so is the Sun.
with large-diameter telescopes. Limitations to the
The face of Jupiter is about 50" (50 arcseconds) size of the objective diameters will be discussed
across. A good optical telescope in steady skies can for the various types of telescopes in Astrophysics
resolve down to about 1" (1 arcsecond). section 1.10.

10
 1.7
Collecting power of telescopes

KEY IDEAS
›› The resolving power of a telescope is its ability to or greater, where λ is the wavelength of the light
produce separate images of closely spaced objects. and D is the diameter of the objective.
›› The resolving power is limited by diffraction at ›› The value θ λ
≈ is the minimum angular resolution
the circular aperture (objective). A point object D
becomes a disc. of the telescope.

›› The Rayleigh criterion states that two point objects ›› The collecting power of a telescope is proportional
λ to (objective diameter)2.
can be resolved if their angular separation is θ ≈
D

ASSIGNMENT 1: USING A SIMPLE HOMEMADE ASTRONOMICAL REFRACTOR

(PS1.1, PS1.2, PS2.1, PS3.2, PS4.1) edge of the lens, taking care not to obscure the view
through the tube.
This assignment concerns a simple astronomical
refractor, similar to Galileo’s, which can be easily The telescope is lined up to view a distant (but not
made in the school laboratory. astronomical) object – such as a bright white lamp –
and the eyepiece tube is moved in and out until the
It is constructed of:
object comes into focus. An inverted image is seen.
• Two convex lenses – one with a long focal length,
of 200 mm, and diameter 50 mm (this is the lens Questions
furthest away from the eye, the objective), and a
second lens with a short focal length, of 25 mm, A1 What is the magnification of the
and diameter 30 mm (this is the eyepiece lens). constructed telescope?

• Tubing – one tube for the objective and one A2 What is the telescope’s collecting power
for the eyepiece, which slide inside each other. compared to that of the human eye, which
The diameter of each tube is only very slightly has a lens diameter of about 10 mm?
larger than the diameter of its lens. They can be A3 a. Calculate the theoretical angular
constructed from mailing tubes, plastic piping or resolution of your telescope for the
thick cardboard. The sum of the lengths of the following wavelengths: i. red (685 nm),
two tubes is greater than the sum of the focal ii. green (550 nm) and iii. blue
lengths of the lenses. The outside of the tubes (445 nm). Which wavelength gives the
can be greased (for example, with Vaseline) best angular resolution?
where they slide inside one another, to ensure
b. Explain what is meant by a telescope
smooth operation.
being diffraction-limited. Why is the
The arrangement is shown in Figure A1. home-constructed telescope unlikely to
eyepiece lens be diffraction-limited?
c. Epsilon Lyrae is a star known as ‘the
Double Double’. When seen through
a telescope with high magnification,
two stars can be seen, but on closer
inspection each of those is also
objective lens
a double star. The first double is
Figure A1 Sliding tube telescope arrangement 2.8 arcseconds apart, and the other
is 2.2 arcseconds apart. Comment on
The lenses are attached to either end of each tube whether the telescope would be able to
using sticky tape or a thin layer of glue around the resolve this double star system.

11
1 TELESCOPES

A4 The image of a white lamp seen through A6 What practical problems might be
the telescope may have colours and may be encountered in viewing an image, as the
slightly distorted in shape. Explain why this is. magnification of the telescope is increased?
A5 Suggest ways in which you can improve the
telescope by
a. giving a brighter image
b. increasing the magnification
c. improving the angular resolution.

1.8 RADIO TELESCOPES atmosphere is transparent to a large range of radio

wavelengths (see Astrophysics section 1.5).
The science of radio astronomy was born when a The simplest radio telescope consists of a single
telephone engineer, Karl Jansky, was looking for parabolic ‘dish’ antenna (the ‘objective’) by which
sources of static noise affecting radiotelephony radio energy is collected and brought to a focus in
communication circuits, in the 1930s. Using a radio a receiver where it is amplified and displayed as an
antenna, Jansky discovered that some of this ‘noise’ intensity trace (Figure 17). Radio astronomy uses
was coming from radio sources in space – from the radio frequencies allocated by international agreement
central region of the Milky Way. Radio telescopes in the megahertz (MHz) and gigahertz (GHz) bands,
were then developed to study these signals. Radio although there is some overlap with domestic
telescopes can be ground-based because the communication channels.

radio waves,
wavelength λ
parabolic dish aerial, diameter D
receiver

trace

electronic
amplifier

Figure 17 Single-dish radio telescope

Compared to an optical telescope, a radio telescope optical astronomy, and so to resolve objects with
has a low angular resolution (see Astrophysics small angular sizes it is necessary to use a much
section 1.6) because of the dependence on wavelength larger-diameter aperture (the aperture being the
in the Rayleigh criterion, parabolic dish). The largest single-dish radio telescope
in the world is the 305 m diameter spherical-shaped
θ ≈ λ fixed dish located at Arecibo, Puerto Rico (Figure
D
18a). Other radio telescopes need large mechanical
This is why radio telescopes have very large structures to support them and most are steerable
dishes. Radio astronomy wavelengths are on the rather than fixed (Figure 18b).
scale of metres, as opposed to nanometres in

12
 1.8
Radio telescopes

(a) (a)

(b)

(b)

Figure 19 (a) Optical image of the Milky Way. (b) A false-colour

radio intensity map of the Milky Way at a wavelength of 21cm

Figure 18 (a) The Arecibo radio telescope, Puerto Rico, was

constructed inside a natural geologic depression. (b) The Parkes radio
telescope in New South Wales, Australia, has a fully steerable 64 m Radio telescopes are not immune from interference.
diameter dish. Below the lower band limit of 30 MHz, the ionosphere
itself strongly absorbs the signal, while above 60 GHz
absorption by water vapour in the atmosphere is
Unlike optical telescopes, radio telescopes can
a significant problem. Between these frequencies,
operate during the day as well as at night. They are
artificial interferences, such as those produced
usually situated away from radio transmitters and
from mobile phones, radio telephones and radar
other sources of Earth-based radio emissions, which
scanners, can pose serious problems with sensitive
can drown out the signals from astronomical objects.
instrumentation, and so radio telescopes tend to be
The images formed by radio telescope look quite
located in isolated areas.
different from those formed by optical telescopes.
Figure 19a shows an optical image of the sky at
visible wavelengths, with the Milky Way dominating
the centre of the image. Figure 19b shows the same
part of the sky but produced by a radio telescope
operating at a wavelength of 21 cm, and shows a map
of the radio intensity of the Galaxy. This 21 cm radio
emission is produced by changes in the energy state
of neutral hydrogen atoms from hydrogen gas in the
Milky Way and can penetrate thick dust clouds. This
allows us to see the distribution of the gas in our
Galaxy that is obscured at optical wavelengths.

13
1 TELESCOPES

1.9 INFRARED, ULTRAVIOLET AND X-RAY

QUESTIONS TELESCOPES
7. a. The Arecibo radio telescope in Figure Infrared telescopes
18 has a dish diameter of 305 m and Infrared astronomy is used to make observations of
has been used for observations using cool regions (temperatures between a few tens and a
radio wavelengths as low as 4 cm. What hundred kelvin), such as interstellar gas, cooler stars,
is its theoretical angular resolution at star formation regions and active galaxies, and of
this wavelength? How does this compare the large-scale structure of the Universe. An infrared
with the resolution of the Hale optical (IR) telescope is designed to observe astronomical
telescope calculated in question 5a? objects at IR wavelengths. These range from about
b. Compare the collecting powers of the 0.7 to 450 µm (one micrometre, 1 µm = 10−6m, and is
Lovell radio telescope at Jodrell Bank in sometimes called a ‘micron’). Since most IR radiation
Cheshire, UK, which has a diameter of is strongly absorbed in the atmosphere by water
76.2 m, the Arecibo radio telescope, with vapour, carbon dioxide and other gases (see Figure 14),
a nominal diameter of 305 m, and the the surface of the Earth is not ideal to observe objects
Hale optical telescope, which has a mirror at IR wavelengths. Space-based observatories are
diameter of 5.1m. used that can observe high above the atmosphere.
However, there are some infrared ‘spectral windows’
8. Give one advantage and one disadvantage
where the atmosphere is transparent to IR
that radio telescopes have compared with
wavelengths and objects can be observed from the
optical telescopes.
ground or at altitude with little absorption. These
windows lie approximately at 3–5 µm and 7–14 µm.
An infrared telescope has the same components and
follows the same principles as visible light telescopes.
A combination of lenses and mirrors gathers and
KEY IDEAS
focuses radiation onto an infrared detector for
›› Radio telescopes can be ground-based because analysis. The detector itself is designed to detect very
the atmosphere is transparent to a large range of small changes in temperature caused by absorption
radio wavelengths. of IR radiation. It is usually a collection of specialised
›› Radio telescopes focus radio energy by means of metallic semiconductor devices and commonly the
a parabolic (or spherical) ‘objective’ dish antenna. superconductor alloy mercury cadmium telluride
is used. It is important that the IR detector is kept
›› The diameter of the dish antenna needs to be very cold – it must be cooled by a cryogenic fluid
large in order to obtain good angular resolution, such as liquid nitrogen or helium to temperatures
because of the long wavelength of radio waves. approaching absolute zero. It must be well shielded in
›› Radio dish antennae need large structures to order to avoid ‘thermal contamination’ from its own IR
support them and to steer them. emissions and those of surrounding heat sources.

›› Radio telescopes can operate during the day The Spitzer space telescope, launched in 2003, was
and night and are situated away from artificial the largest ever space-based infrared telescope. It
sources of radio interference. used a Cassegrain optical assembly, similar to that
of the Hubble telescope. It was designed to observe
the sky at wavelengths between 3 and 180 µm and
has given valuable information as to how stars form.
Its detector was cooled to −268 °C, and although
the coolant has now run out, it is still able to make
measurements over a reduced wavelength range.

14
 1.9
Infrared, ultraviolet and X-ray telescopes

which operated from 1992 to 2001, observed the

Universe in the extreme-UV wavelength range between
QUESTIONS 7 and 76 nm. Other more recent UV observatories
9. a. Explain why most IR observations have are the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE)
to be carried out above the atmosphere. launched in 1999, which looked at UV wavelengths
between 95.5 and 119.5 nm, and the Galaxy
b. What is meant by infrared windows? Evolution Explorer (GALEX) launched in 2003, which
10. SOFIA is a flying IR observatory housed in an observed in the range 140 to 280 nm. The Hubble
aircraft (Figure 20), with a telescope objective space telescope has also been able to serve as an
dish of diameter 2.4 m. If it is observing an ultraviolet telescope, since a detector sensitive to UV
object at a wavelength of 24 µm, what is its wavelengths between 115 and 320 nm was installed
minimum angular resolution? How would this by space shuttle astronauts in 2009.
compare with that of an optical telescope of The detection and analysis of ultraviolet radiation can
the same diameter observing at 510 nm? tell us a great deal about astrophysical processes.
Ultraviolet spectral measurements are used to
determine the chemical composition and temperature
of the interstellar medium and also the temperature
and composition of hot young stars. Young massive
stars, very old stars, white dwarf stars, active
galaxies and quasars shine very brightly at ultraviolet
wavelengths. UV telescopes have revealed the
existence of a hot gaseous halo surrounding our own
Galaxy, and, even closer to home, UV emissions from
the Sun help us to understand the solar corona.

Figure 20 SOFIA’s reflector dish in situ

QUESTIONS
11. a. The IUE had a parabolic mirror of
diameter 45 cm and focused UV
Ultraviolet telescopes radiation. For a wavelength of 120 nm,
Ultraviolet (UV) telescopes are used to examine compare its minimum angular resolution
objects in the UV part of the electromagnetic and its collecting power with that of an
spectrum, with wavelengths from about 400 nm optical telescope of the same diameter
down to about 10 nm. The ozone layer in the Earth’s operating at 510 nm.
atmosphere blocks all UV wavelengths shorter than
b. The detector on a UV telescope uses the
300 nm from reaching the ground, so rocket-launched
photoelectric effect to convert UV photons
satellites are needed for UV astronomy. Like optical
to electrons. Calculate the energy of a
and IR reflecting telescopes, a UV telescope uses
UV photon with a wavelength of 120 nm.
a Cassegrain mirror system, which brings the
[Planck constant = 6.63 × 10−34 J s]
UV radiation to a focus, where it is detected by
special solid-state devices. These detectors use the
photoelectric effect to convert UV photons to
electrons (see section 8.4 in Year 1 Student Book).
From 1978 to 1996 a space-based UV observatory X-ray and gamma ray telescopes
called the International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) X-ray astronomy is the study of astronomical
observed astronomical objects at UV wavelengths objects that emit in the X-ray part of the
from 120 to 340 nm. It collected data on the electromagnetic spectrum – wavelengths from 0.01
composition of cometary tails and on the energy to 10 nm. As X-rays are absorbed by the Earth’s
profiles of exploding stars. Another UV space atmosphere, they can only be observed from space,
observatory, the Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer (EUVE), using X-ray counters on rockets or space-based

15
1 TELESCOPES

observatories. The first X-ray source, Scorpius X-1,

was discovered in 1962, and since then dedicated
X-ray observatories such as XMM-Newton have
been used to undertake whole-sky surveys, revealing
hundreds of thousands of cosmic X-ray sources. X-rays
come from extremely hot gas, in the temperature
range 106–108 K, associated with highly energetic
processes, and as such provide a rich array of objects
to study, including interacting binary stars, active
galaxies, galaxy clusters and supernova remnants (see
Astrophysics section 3.3). Interest has also focused on
pulsars, neutron stars and black holes.
An X-ray telescope is an instrument that can form
an image by bringing X-rays to a focus. X-rays have
such high energies that reflecting mirrors such as
those in an optical or infrared telescope cannot be Figure 22 A supernova remnant imaged by XMM-Newton
used because the X-rays would penetrate into the
mirror. Instead, the mirror for an X-ray telescope has
to be extremely smooth and be specially shaped as Gamma ray astronomy is the study of astronomical
a combination of parabolic and hyperbolic surfaces objects in the gamma ray part of the electromagnetic
(Figure 21). For lower X-ray energies (up to 10 keV), spectrum, down to wavelengths shorter than 0.01 nm.
this causes the X-rays coming into the telescope Gamma ray telescopes, such as the orbiting Fermi
to just skim off the surface of the mirror instead of Gamma-ray Space Telescope, do not use mirrors at
penetrating it, in what is called ‘grazing incidence’, all; instead, they have special detectors to measure
rather like a stone skipping on water. They are then the energy and direction of gamma rays.
brought into focus at the focal plane and detected The major sources of such high-energy radiation
using charge-coupled devices (CCDs) (see Astrophysics include solar flares, pulsars, quasars, active galaxies
section 1.11) that are optimised to detect and supernova remnants. Sudden bursts of gamma
X-ray energies. radiation that last from 0.01s to 1000 s have also
paraboloid mirror been detected in all parts of the sky. The origin of
hyperboloid mirror these gamma ray bursts (GRBs) is unknown (see
Astrophysics section 3.3) and there is a very active
research programme to study these.

QUESTIONS
Figure 21 X-rays enter the XMM-Newton telescope at grazing
incidence and are doubly reflected off first a highly polished 12. Explain why it is necessary for most IR and
paraboloid mirror, and then a highly polished hyperboloid mirror. all UV and X-ray telescopes to be positioned
The XMM-Newton X-ray telescope was launched in 1999. It has an in space.
angular resolution of 5–14 arcseconds and a collecting power of
4425cm2 at an X-ray energy of 1.5 keV and 1740  cm2 at 8 keV.

Figure 22 shows an X-ray image taken by

XMM-Newton of a supernova remnant in the Large
Magellanic Cloud. These remains of a supernova
explosion appear as a complete ring of more than 100
light years in diameter. A central point X-ray source
was also found from the XMM-Newton image.

16
 1.10
Producing larger-diameter telescopes

the Subaru Cassegrain telescope on Mauna Kea

Observatory in Hawaii, which has a primary mirror
KEY IDEAS diameter of 8.2 m.
›› Telescopes can be built that operate in the IR, UV However, telescope designers have come up with ways
and X-ray parts of the electromagnetic spectrum. of increasing the diameter of telescope objectives
›› Infrared telescopes are similar in construction to to increase both the resolving power and the
reflecting optical telescopes, but their detectors collecting power.
have to be kept very cold and shielded from other
heat sources. Segmented mirror telescopes
A segmented mirror telescope is an optical telescope
›› Most IR observations are made from whose objective is an array of smaller mirrors,
space-based observatories or at high altitude to which act as segments of an equivalent single large
avoid absorption by the atmosphere. curved mirror. The segments themselves are curved
›› There are some infrared windows (wavelength and ground to a precise shape and mechanically
ranges) for which infrared observations positioned by a computer-controlled system using
from the ground are possible with minimal actuators that accurately align them. This ‘active
atmospheric absorption. optics’ system allows objective mirrors to be built with
very large diameters. One of the largest segmented
›› UV and X-ray telescopes are positioned in space mirror telescopes is the Gran Telescopio Canarias
because of the atmospheric absorption at
(GTC) on the Canary Islands, which has 36 separate
these wavelengths.
mirror segments, giving an effective aperture diameter
›› By observing at different wavelengths using of 10.4 m (Figure 23).
detectors in the focal plane matched to these
wavelengths, we can learn different information
about different astrophysical processes.

1.10 PRODUCING LARGER-DIAMETER

TELESCOPES
We saw in section 1.6 that the resolving power of
any telescope is diffraction-limited and depends on
the wavelength l of the light and the diameter D
of the telescope. The Rayleigh criterion states that
the minimum angular resolution is q ≈ l/D. This is
the main reason why radio telescopes are so large
compared to optical ones. The large-diameter dish
also gives a large collecting power to maximise Figure 23 Primary mirror of the GTC telescope, showing its
the signal strength of the low-energy radio waves. segmented mirrors
However, the weight and size of the large dish pose
engineering challenges.
For a large optical reflecting telescope, there is a limit Radio telescope interferometers
to the maximum size of a primary mirror that is made To improve the resolution of a radio telescope, a radio
out of a single piece of glass with a reflective coating. interferometer can be used. To see how this works,
The mass of a large primary mirror can cause it to look at Figure 24.
deform under its own weight. Other considerations,
such as cost and mechanical strength, mean that the
largest single primary mirror for a reflecting telescope
is limited to few metres in diameter. The largest is

17
1 TELESCOPES

object

path difference = L sin θ

intensity
θ fringes
signal 1 signal 2
mixer
L
output
Figure 24 The principle of a radio interferometer. If the path difference of the radio signal from the object is a whole number of wavelengths, then
the two received signals constructively interfere. The angular resolution is approximately l/L.

Two identical parabolic dish antennas are placed The Very Large Telescope (VLT) interferometer in the
a distance L apart, called the baseline, and their Atacama Desert in Chile and the Keck interferometer
signals, including their phase and amplitude, are on Mauna Kea, Hawaii, are two examples of
fed into a receiver, which mixes them together. If optical interferometers.
an astronomical radio source is directly overhead,
then the signals will arrive at the antennas in phase
and constructively interfere, giving a strong signal. Worked example
Conversely, when the signals are 180° out of phase, A radio interferometer has an angular resolution
the signals destructively interfere. As the source of one milliradian (1 mrad) and is observing the
moves across the sky, an interference pattern of 21 cm wavelength from hydrogen gas in the Milky
maxima and minima is recorded exactly like that for Way. What would the diameter of a single-dish
light passing through a double slit (see Chapter 6 in radio telescope have to be with the same
Year 1 Student Book). resolving power?
The angular distance between successive
maxima is the angular resolution of the radio
interferometer, and it can be shown that this Minimum angular resolution
is approximately λ/L – equivalent to that of
a single-dish antenna of diameter L. So if the λ
q=
baseline between the individual antennas can D
be made very large, the image resolution can be so
hugely improved. The simplest interferometer
λ 0.21
consists of just two radio telescopes, but more can D= = = 210 m
θ 1.0 × 10−3
be added to further improve the resolution and
overall collecting power.
Even better resolution can be obtained by using very
large baseline interferometry (VLBI). The signals
from a common radio source are received by radio QUESTIONS
telescopes that are very long distances apart, and 13. If the twin Keck telescopes on Mauna
may even be on different continents. The signals Kea, Hawaii, are operating as an optical
are recorded and stored in a computer, and if the interferometer with a baseline of 85 m, what
time of observation and the locations are accurately is the theoretical angular resolution at a
known, then the signal can be combined to give a wavelength of 2.2 µm?
detailed image.
It is possible to connect optical telescopes together
in a similar manner to increase their resolving power.

18
 1.10
Producing larger-diameter telescopes

KEY IDEAS
›› The advantages of large-diameter telescopes ›› Interferometers allow large-aperture objectives
are improved angular resolution and greater to be realised by combining signals from
collecting power. two or more separate telescopes in phase
and amplitude.
›› Mass and mechanical strength of the primary
mirror limit how large the primary objective in a
single reflecting telescope can be.

ASSIGNMENT 2: ASSESSING RADIO INTERFEROMETERS

(MS 0.1, MS 0.2, MS 0.3, MS 1.4, MS 2.3) at a wavelength of 6 cm, what is the
theoretical resolution in arcseconds?
The Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer
Network (MERLIN) is a radio interferometer made c. Compare the resolution of MERLIN in
up of seven radio telescopes spread across England your answer to b with the minimum
(Figure A1). MERLIN has a minimum angular optical angular resolution of the Hubble
resolution of 40 milliarcseconds, which is similar to that space telescope, which is 0.05 arcsecond.
of the Hubble space telescope at optical wavelengths, d. Suppose that two of MERLIN’s
and is equivalent to measuring the diameter of a antennas were placed on the equator at
one-pound coin from a distance of 100 km. opposite ends of the Earth’s diameter.
What would the theoretical angular
Jodrell Bank Lovell resolution at this wavelength then be?
Jodrell Bank Mk2 [Radius of Earth = 6400 km]
Pickmere e. Explain the advantage of having seven
dishes across England linked up as
Darnhall
a network.
Knockin Cambridge A2 ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/
submillimeter Array) is a large radio
Defford
interferometer sited at an altitude
of 5000 m in northern Chile, at the
European Southern Observatory (see
the introductory page of Chapter 8 in
Year 1 Student Book). You can find more
Figure A1 Locations of the telescopes in the MERLIN radio information on ALMA at www.eso.org. Use
interferometer array
your research to answer these questions.

Questions a. Why is ALMA situated at high altitudes?

b. What is the theoretical resolution at a
A1 a. One of MERLIN’s antennas, at Jodrell
radio frequency of 1THz of
Bank, has dish diameter of 28 m. What
is its theoretical angular resolution in i. a single dish
arcseconds when used alone to observe ii. the whole array?
1.5 cm radio waves? iii. By what order of magnitude is the
b. The longest baseline currently possible resolution improved?
with MERLIN’s antennas is 217 km. c. What kind of objects is ALMA designed
If they are observing a radio source to investigate?

19
1 TELESCOPES

1.11 CHARGE-COUPLED DEVICES IN would have a QE of 100%. The human eye, which, of
course, is also a light detector, has a low QE of about
ASTRONOMY 4–5%, whereas CCDs can have QEs in excess of 80%,
making them very efficient light detectors.
A charge-coupled device (CCD) is a semiconductor
device in which light is converted directly into digital A high QE means that the time needed to acquire
information. CCDs are divided into small regions called an image of the same intensity relative to other
pixels. A typical CCD array used in astronomy may imaging devices is much smaller, so CCDs require
have several million pixels extending over an area of a shorter exposure times. The collecting power of a
few square centimetres arranged in rows and columns smaller telescope equipped with a CCD as a detector
(Figure 25). gives comparable performance to a much larger
telescope using a detector with a lower QE, such as
photographic film, which is typically less than 10%.
Additionally, a CCD has a wider spectral range able to
detect wavelengths from 200 nm to over 1100 nm.

Resolution
The resolving power of a CCD is defined differently
from that of an optical system and is dependent
on the number of pixels and their size (typically a
few micrometres) relative to the size of the image
projected on it. The smaller the size of the pixel,
the better the resolution will be and the clearer the
image. CCDs can work over a large wavelength range
Figure 25 CCD array for the 8.3 m Subaru telescope at and can be optimised in sensitivity for particular
Mauna Kea, Hawaii wavelength bands.
In comparison, the theoretical angular resolution
When light strikes the CCD, electric charge is of the human eye may be found using the Rayleigh
accumulated in the pixels. The amount of charge is criterion (Astrophysics section 1.6), but, in practice,
proportional to the brightness at a particular pixel the spacing between the light-sensitive cells on the
location. This makes the response of the CCD linear, eye’s retina determines the usable resolution. The
which means that it is easy to calculate the number retina contains two types of light-sensitive cells called
of photons that hit the detector from the object, and rods and cones. Cones are responsible for colour
then to measure the object’s brightness. vision and rods, which have higher sensitivity than
cones, for black and white. The cones are concentrated
One huge advantage of CCDs over other types of light
towards the centre of the retina and are fewer in
detector, such as photographic film, is that the image
number, whereas the rods are situated further out to
is produced and stored digitally as a file that can be
the retina’s periphery. Most astronomical observations
image-processed, transmitted to research centres
are due to rod vision, since they are more numerous
around the world and archived for easy retrieval. This
and more sensitive to low levels of illumination, with
is particularly important for space-based telescopes,
about 108 rods and about 6 × 106 cones in total. The
where the entire image acquisition is automated.
actual resolution of the eye is about 1–2 arcminutes.

Quantum efficiency
Worked example
An important measure of a photon detector’s sensitivity
is its quantum efficiency (QE). This is defined as A CCD detector looking at a very faint object detects
3500 of the 4000 photons incident on it during a
quantum efficiency (QE)efficiency (QE)
quantum given time period. What is the quantum efficiency of
number of photons
numberdeof
tected
photons detected the CCD?
= = × 100% × 100%
number of photons
numberincident
of photons incident

The quantum efficiency tells us how well a detector

3500
can capture photons and make them available for QE = × 100% = 87.5%
4000
further amplification and imaging. An ideal detector

20
 1.11
Practice questions

QUESTIONS KEY IDEAS

14. If the quantum efficiency of the human eye ›› Charge-coupled devices (CCDs) are used for
is about 4%, and 10 000 photons fall onto a astronomical imaging because they have much
light-sensitive cell on the back of the retina, greater quantum efficiency than other types of
how many photons will the eye detect? light detector.
15. Summarise the main reasons why CCDs are ›› Quantum efficiency (QE)
the detector of choice for modern astronomy. number of photons detected
= × 100%
number of photonss incident
Stretch and challenge
›› CCDs have a linear response, which means
16. Light of intensity 5.3 × 10−3 W m−2 and that they can be used for making accurate
frequency 3.9 × 1014 Hz falls onto a pixel measurements of the brightness of objects.
of area 4.2 × 10−12 m2 in a CCD detector in
the focal plane of a telescope. The quantum
›› The resolution of a CCD depends on the size of
the individual pixels and their number.
efficiency of the CCD is 85%. How many
photons of light are incident on the pixel per ›› The information from a CCD can be stored
second? How many of these photons are digitally and transmitted for remote image
actually detected and produce a signal? processing and analysis.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. a. Explain, with the help of a diagram, what 2. a. Draw the ray diagram for a Cassegrain
is meant by a refracting telescope being in telescope. Your diagram should show the
normal adjustment. Your diagram should paths of two rays, initially parallel to the
include the paths of two rays and show the principal axis, as far as the eyepiece.
position of the focus of the objective and
A telescope design very similar to the
the eyepiece.
Cassegrain was first proposed by James
b. A refracting telescope used by an amateur Gregory in 1663. His telescope design
astronomer is in normal adjustment was also the first to include a parabolic
when looking at the Moon. The telescope primary reflector. The use of a parabolic
is 1 m long and has a maximum useful reflector overcomes the problem of
magnification of 200. State the focal spherical aberration.
lengths of
b. i. Draw a ray diagram to show how
i. the objective lens spherical aberration is caused by a
ii. the eyepiece lens. concave spherical mirror.
c. A spacecraft is in orbit around the Moon ii. The first telescope constructed to
at an altitude of 50 km. It is trying to this design had a primary mirror
find the landing site of one of the Apollo of diameter 0.15 m. Calculate the
moon missions of the 1970s. The descent minimum angular separation that
stage of the Apollo Lunar Module that could be resolved by this telescope
was left on the Moon is 4.3 m wide. The when observing point sources of
orbiting spacecraft is equipped with a light of wavelength 630 nm. State an
telescope with an angular magnification of appropriate unit.
200. What is the angle subtended by the
image of the Apollo descent stage by the
spacecraft above the Moon’s surface?

21
1 TELESCOPES

iii. The astronomer Edmund Halley claimed 4. There is a supermassive black hole at the
to have used this telescope to observe the centre of the Milky Way galaxy. It is difficult
Cassini division, a dark band in the rings to resolve images of the region around this
of Saturn. Calculate the angle subtended black hole directly. Astronomers investigating
by the width of this band at the Earth, the supermassive black hole detect radio
and comment on whether Halley’s claim is waves at a frequency of 230 GHz. By
likely to be valid. correlating the information from several radio
[Width of Cassini division = 4.8 × 103 km, telescopes, they can obtain images with the
distance from Earth to Saturn same resolution as a single radio telescope
= 1.4 × 109 km] with a diameter of 5000 km.
Calculate the minimum angular separation
AQA Unit 5A June 2011 Q1
(in rad) which could be resolved by a radio
telescope of diameter 5000 km detecting
3. Astronomical objects emit the full range of
waves of frequency 230 GHz.
electromagnetic wavelengths. Observations
in different wavelength ranges can provide a AQA Unit 5A June 2013 Q2 part c (i)
huge amount of information about the nature
of the objects. Telescopes of different designs 5. Explain what is meant by chromatic
are needed to collect this information. aberration, and how it may be corrected in a
Discuss the factors that need to be taken into convex lens.
account when deciding
a. the size of telescopes
b. the siting of different types of telescope.

22
 2.1


2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
You will need knowledge of how light is emitted
from atoms, the concept of atomic energy levels and
characteristic spectral lines – you may wish to refer
back to Chapter 8 of Year 1 Student Book. You will
need to be familiar with the use of logarithms and
their manipulation.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
In this chapter you will learn how we can classify
the many different stars into types by their physical
Figure 1 Some stars in the night sky appear brighter than others.
properties, such as temperature and spectral
characteristics. You will learn how we can measure
their brightness on the magnitude scale and how the The luminosity L of a star is the amount of energy
physics of thermal radiation allows us to estimate in joules it actually radiates per second (that is, its
how large and how hot they are. We will also power) and is measured in watts, W. If we imagine a
introduce the common units used in astronomical star as a ‘point source’ centred on a sphere of radius r,
distance measurements. the energy passing through each square metre every
second is the luminosity divided by the surface area
(Specification 3.9.2.1 to 3.9.2.4)
of the sphere. This is the intensity of the radiation and
we define it as the brightness b of a star:

2.1 STELLAR LUMINOSITY, BRIGHTNESS b =

L
4 πr 2
AND APPARENT MAGNITUDE
When you look up at the stars at night (Figure 1), it The unit of brightness is W m−2. The radiation from a
is obvious that some stars are brighter than others. star illuminates an ever-increasing area of a sphere as
However, this is deceptive, because the observed the distance from the star increases, so the brightness
brightness of an object clearly depends on how far decreases as the square of the distance (Figure 2).
away you are from it. A 60 W light bulb at a distance
of 7.5 m and a 100 W bulb at a distance of 9.7 m
have the same apparent brightness, but put side by
side, the 100 W bulb is clearly the more luminous of
the two. As it spreads out from distant objects, light
obeys an inverse square law – so, for example, a bulb
appears 1/100 times dimmer at a distance 10 times
further away.

23
2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

star
r=1
r=2
r=3

Figure 2 The brightness of the star is nine times less at C than it is at A.

Stellar magnitude corresponds to a brightness ratio of 100. A magnitude

Astrophysicists prefer to talk about a star’s brightness, difference of 1 therefore corresponds to a brightness
as seen from Earth, rather than its luminosity. Relative ratio of (100)1/5 or 2.51. The magnitude scale is
brightness is expressed on the Hipparchus scale, therefore a logarithmic scale. An English astronomer,
based on a convention first devised by Hipparchus of Norman Pogson, in 1856 formulated the Hipparchus
Nicaea (190–120 BC). On this scale, stars are classified scale into a precise mathematical law, called Pogson’s
by their apparent magnitude, m, with the brightest law, expressed as
stars that can be seen with the naked eye as magnitude
1.0 and the faintest as magnitude 6.0. Subsequently, b 
with the invention of the telescope, the scale was m2 − m1 = −2.5 log10  2 
 b1 
extended to classify stars with magnitudes greater than
6.0. It has also been extended to values less than 1.0
where m1 = apparent magnitude of star 1,
for very bright objects such as the Sun. The star Vega is
b1 = received brightness of star 1, m2 = apparent
assigned a magnitude of 0, the Sun has a magnitude of
magnitude of star 2, b2 = received brightness of star
–26.74, and the full Moon has a magnitude of –12.6.
2, and log means log to the base 10, that is, log10.
It is important to understand that the more negative
We can see that Pogson’s law is consistent if we note
the value of apparent magnitude, the brighter the star
that the minus sign ensures that magnitudes are
appears. Conversely, the larger (more positive) the
a measure of faintness. If b2 is less than b1 (star 2
magnitude, the fainter the star appears.
is fainter than star 1), then the brightness ratio is
Brightness measured in this way is a subjective scale, as less than 1 and the log of the ratio is negative. So
we need to know how far away a star is from us in order m2 − m1 is positive and the fainter star has the larger
to know its true luminosity. Also, note that apparent magnitude, as expected. The multiplier 2.5 is simply
magnitude (and absolute magnitude, see Astrophysics a scaling factor that ensures that a brightness ratio
section 2.3) refers to the brightness of a star in the of 100 corresponds to a magnitude difference of 5.0.
visible part of the spectrum (what we can see). Very hot (Note that the factor of 2.5 in the equation above is
stars radiate much of their power outside the visible not the value 2.51 rounded down. It is an exact value,
spectrum, so their luminosity may be greater than that due to the fact that log10(2.51) = log10(1001/5)
we can detect only in the visible region. = 0.2 log10(100) = 0.2 × 2 = 0.4 = 1/2.5, exactly.)
The human eye perceives equal ratios of brightness
at equal intervals. So, on the Hipparchus scale, the Worked example
brightness coming from stars of magnitude 1.0 was The apparent magnitude mSun of the Sun is−26.8
about 100 times greater than from stars of magnitude and the apparent magnitude mMoon of the full Moon
6.0. Therefore, a difference of 6−1 = 5 magnitudes is−12.6. By what factor is the Sun brighter than
the Moon?
24
 2.2
Astronomical distance

Using Pogson’s law:

 b  KEY IDEAS
mSun − mMoon = −2.5 log10 Sun 
 bMoon 
›› The luminosity L of a star is the amount of
b  energy in joules that it radiates per second. It is
−26.8 − (−12.6) =−2.5 log10  Sun  measured in watts, W.
 bMoon 

b 
›› The brightness b of a star at a distance r is
−14.2 =−2.5 log10  Sun 
 bMoon  L
b=
b  4 πr 2
5.68 = log10  Sun  in W m−2.
 bMoon 
Therefore ›› The Hipparchus scale of apparent magnitude, m,
assigns a perceived brightness to stars seen from
 bSun  Earth. The value of m is a number with no unit.
  = 105.68 = 478 000
 bMoon  The more negative the value of m, the brighter
the star appears.
The Sun is about 480 000 times brighter than the
full Moon. ›› Pogson’s law relates a difference in magnitude to
a ratio of brightness:

b 
m2 − m1 = −2.5 log10  2 
 b1 
QUESTIONS
A difference of 1 magnitude corresponds to a
1. By what factor is a star of apparent brightness ratio of 2.51.
magnitude 1 brighter than one of apparent
magnitude 3?
2. a. Table 1 shows a number of stars and
their apparent magnitudes. Rank them in
2.2 ASTRONOMICAL DISTANCE
increasing order of brightness. The astronomical unit
Star Apparent magnitude A natural starting point as a unit for astronomical
Aldebaran 1.0 distances is the mean distance from the Earth to the
Sun. This distance is called the astronomical unit (AU)
Arcturus −0.1
and 1 AU is equal to 1.50 × 1011 m. However, this unit
Sirius −1.5
is only appropriate on interplanetary scales, as the
Deneb 1.3 distances to other stars are so great as to render it
Rigel 0.2 too small to be useful.
Altair 0.9
Canopus −0.9 The parsec
Mizar 2.2 For interstellar distances, astronomers use a unit
called the parsec. In order to understand how
Table 1
the parsec is defined, we need to look at some
b. By how much is the star Canopus brighter trigonometry and what is meant by parallax.
than Altair?
Imagine looking at a candle held at arm’s length. If you
3. The Sun has a luminosity of 3.90 × 1026 W. alternately open one eye and close the other, several
What is its brightness, in W m−2, at times, then the candle will appear to jump back and
a. the top of the Earth’s atmosphere (mean forth relative to a fixed point in the background. The
distance from Sun = 1.50 × 1011 m) angle that the candle makes with your eye as it shifts
b. the surface of Pluto (mean distance from to and fro is called the parallax angle of the candle.
Sun = 5.93 × 1012 m)? We can see parallax happening on an astronomical
scale, as the Earth orbits the Sun. This time the candle

25
2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

background stars

nearby star

1 AU position of Earth in January

position of Earth in July Sun

Figure 3 As the Earth orbits the Sun, a nearby star appears to shift its position
with respect to the background of distant stars.

is a nearby star, and the fixed point corresponds to and substituting for p (rad) in the equation above,
the background of distant stars that do not appear we get
to change their positions as the Earth orbits the Sun
206 265
(Figure 3). Suppose we record the position of a nearby d =
p (arcsecond)
star at two points on the Earth’s orbit separated by
a time interval of six months. These positions of the
Earth are separated by a distance of 2 AU. We are now in a position to define the distance unit
parsec (pc). The word is an abbreviation of parallax
Owing to parallax, the nearby star appears to shift
and arcsecond and
in position relative to the background stars. By using
simple trigonometry, we can show that the parallax 1 parsec (1 pc) = 206 265 AU
angle p (measured in radians) is related to the
distance d of the star by We can then write

1AU 1AU 1
d = = d =
tan p p p

using the fact that, for small angles, tan p = p.

where the unit of d is parsec and the unit of p is
One radian = 57° 17′ 45″ and if we now measure all arcsecond. Thus
angular sizes in the unit of arcsecond (″), then
1 parsec is the distance at which the observed
1 rad = (57 × 3600)″ + (17 × 60)″ + 45 = 206 265″ parallax angle of the star is equal to 1 arcsecond
(1 second of arc).
So

p (arcsecond)
p (rad ) =
206265

26
 2.3
Absolute magnitude

It is now apparent why this unit is so useful. Once

the parallax of a star in arcsecond is known, then
its distance in parsec is found simply by taking the
reciprocal. Since huge distances are dealt with in
astronomy, the following units are common:

1 kiloparsec (1 kpc) = 103 pc

1 megaparsec (1 Mpc) = 106 pc

The light year

One light year (ly) is the distance that a photon of
light travels through space in one year. Since light
travels at 3 × 108 m s−1, we calculate this value as

3.00 × 108 m s−1 × 365 day × 24 hour × 3600 s

= 9.46 × 1015 m

Sub-units are:
Figure 4 Proxima Centauri, a red dwarf, imaged by the Hubble
telescope. It is 4.2ly from Earth and is our nearest star (other than
1 light minute = 3.00 × 108 m s−1 × 60 s
the Sun).
=1.80 × 1010 m

1 light second = 3.00 × 108 m s−1 × 1 s

= 3.00 × 108 m KEY IDEAS
›› One astronomical unit (1 AU) is the distance
Also: between the Earth and the Sun.
1 pc = 3.26 ly ›› One light year (1 ly) is the distance travelled by
light in one year.
›› One parsec (1 pc) is the distance at which the
observed parallax angle is equal to 1 arcsecond
QUESTIONS
(1 second of arc).
4. a. Explain what is meant in astronomy by a
parallax angle.
b. A measurement of the parallax of the
star 61 Cygni in the constellation of 2.3 ABSOLUTE MAGNITUDE
Cygnus (the Swan) is found to be 0.316˝.
What is its distance from the Earth in the Suppose you could place all the stars at a fixed
following units: distance from the Earth. Differing distances would
i. parsec not then be a factor in how bright the stars appeared.
Instead, the differences in magnitude would be
ii. astronomical unit
due only to differences in luminosity, and as such
iii. light year? these values would be absolute. Astronomers use
5. Figure 4 shows Proxima Centauri. a standard distance of 10 parsecs for absolute
a. What is its distance from Earth in parsec? magnitude comparison. We therefore define the
b. What would its parallax angle be? magnitude that a star would have if it was placed
10 pc from the Earth as its absolute magnitude, M.
What is the relationship between a star’s apparent
magnitude m (which we observe), and its absolute
magnitude M? Consider a star with luminosity L,
absolute magnitude M, apparent magnitude m and

27
2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

brightness received at Earth, a distance d from the It may seem unlikely that we would know the absolute
star, bd. Let b10 be the brightness the star would have magnitude of a star. But Cepheid variable stars have
at a distance of 10 pc. Then using Pogson’s law we a remarkable property. They have a periodic variation
find that in luminosity that has a constant known relationship
with their maximum luminosity. From measuring the
b 
m − M = −2.5 log10  d  period of their variation in luminosity, their absolute
 b10  magnitude can be calculated. Such stars have been
used to determine distances to star clusters or
but the brightness is equal to L , assuming that galaxies well beyond what is possible from parallax
4 πr 2 measurements (because the angular displacements
the luminosity is radiated uniformly over the area of a
would be too small to measure). Astronomical
sphere of radius r, so that
objects such as these, for which the luminosity can be
bd L L L 4 π(10)2 10 
2 calculated directly, are called standard candles.
= ÷ = × = 
b10 4 πd 2
4 π(10)2
4 πd 2
L d 
Worked example
where d is expressed in parsecs. Therefore A Cepheid variable star is observed in another galaxy
that is close to the Milky Way. From its periodic
2
10  variation in luminosity, its absolute magnitude is
m − M = −2.5 log10  
d  determined as being 15.56. It is observed to have an
apparent magnitude of −3.60. Estimate how far the
Or, using the properties of logarithms, galaxy is from Earth in parsecs.

10 
m − M = −5 log10   The distance modulus is m−M = 15.56−(−3.60)
d 
= 19.20
= −5 (log 10 10 − log 10 d )
= 5 (lo
og 10 d − log 10 10) So

d = 10(19.2+ 5)/ 5 = 104.84 = 69000pc

So we finally obtain

m − M = 5 log10 (10d )
QUESTIONS
The quantity (m − M) is called the distance modulus
6. a. Explain the difference in meaning
since it is directly related to the star’s distance d from
between apparent magnitude and
the Earth. For example, the absolute magnitude M
absolute magnitude.
of Capella is 0.40 and its apparent magnitude m is
0.08; therefore, its distance modulus is b. The star Procyon A has an apparent
magnitude of +0.34 and is at a distance
0.08−0.40 = −0.32 of 3.5 pc. What is its absolute magnitude?
The above equation shows that if a star’s distance is c. The star Regulus has an apparent
known and its apparent magnitude is measured, then magnitude of +1.35 and an absolute
we can determine its absolute magnitude. Conversely, magnitude of −0.30. What is its
if we know the absolute magnitude of a star and its distance modulus?
apparent magnitude, we can determine the distance. d. How far away from us is Regulus
Rearranging the above equation gives in parsecs?
m−M
5 ( )
= log 10
d
10
7. Why is there a limit to distances that can be
measured using parallax?
d
10( m − M )/ 5 =
10
10[( m − M )/ 5]+1 = d
d = 10( m − M + 5)/ 5

28
 2.3
Absolute magnitude

KEY IDEAS
›› The absolute magnitude of a star is ›› Apparent magnitude m and absolute magnitude M
its apparent magnitude if it were located are related by
at a distance of 10 parsecs from the
Earth. m − M = 5 log10 (10d )
where d is the distance in parsecs. The quantity
(m − M) is called the distance modulus.

ASSIGNMENT 1: USING CEPHEID VARIABLES AS STANDARD CANDLES

(PS 2.2, PS 2.3, PS 2.4, PS 3.1, PS 3.2, MS 1.2, If the period of the variability of a Cepheid is
MS 2.5, MS 3.2, MS 3.10) measured, then its absolute magnitude can be
predicted. In this assignment you will see how
A standard candle is an astronomical object that
Cepheid variables can be used to calculate the
has a known luminosity and so allows distance to
distance of galaxies.
be calculated. In 1908, the American astronomer
Henrietta Swan Leavitt discovered Cepheid variable Figure A1 shows the brightness variation of four
stars, whose luminosity varies with a regular period Cepheid variable stars HV 837, HV 1967, HV 843
of a few hours, days or weeks, dependent on their and HV 2063 in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC),
maximum luminosity. The stars were so-called a galaxy close to the Milky Way, plotted as apparent
because the first to be identified was observed in magnitude against time in days.
the constellation Cepheus.

12.5
HV 837
13.0

13.5

13.0
HV 1967
Apparent magnitude

13.5

14.0

14.0
HV 843
14.5

15.0

15.5

HV 2063
14.0

14.5

15.0

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60
Time / day
Figure A1 Apparent magnitude against time for four Cepheid variables

29
2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

Questions
A1 For each of the stars, read off from Figure The astronomer Harlow Shapley used a parallax
A1 their maximum and minimum apparent method to work out the distance to a group
magnitude values (mMax and mMin) to the of Cepheids in our own galaxy. Shapley then
nearest 0.1 magnitude. Take the mean provided a table of absolute magnitude M
of these two values. For each star find its and period T for nearby Cepheids, which is
period T in days and take the logarithm of reproduced in Table A2.
the period to two decimal places. Enter your
values in a table like Table A1. Log10 P Absolute Log10 P Absolute
magnitude M magnitude M
Star mMax mMin Mean m p / day log10 p
0.0 −0.4 1.0 −2.9
HV 837 12.60 13.65 13.13 42 1.62
0.2 −0.8 1.2 −3.6
HV 1967 13.00 14.00 13.50 26 1.41
0.4 −1.2 1.4 −4.4
HV 843 14.35 15.30 14.83 15 1.81
0.6 −1.6 1.6 −5.1
HV 2063 14.10 14.80 14.45 11 1.04
0.8 −2.2 1.8 −5.8
Table A1
Table A2 Shapley’s data
Using a spreadsheet such as Excel (or other
graph plotting tool), plot for each star the mean Questions
apparent magnitude against log10 T. Draw a
straight line to fit the four data points as well A6 Using a spreadsheet such as Excel (or other
as possible. graph plotting tool), plot the data from Table
Your plot gives a relation between the apparent A2, with M against log10 T, and draw the
magnitude and the variability period for the best straight line though the points. You now
Cepheid variable stars in the LMC. have a similar plot to the one you drew before
but with absolute magnitude plotted against
A2 Suggest why you have plotted apparent log10 T.
magnitude against log10 T and not against T. A7 Explain how both of your graphs can be used
A3 How could the accuracy of the plot to work out the distance to a galaxy in which
be improved? Cepheids are observed.

A4 Why can all the Cepheids in the LMC be A8 What important assumption is made about
regarded has being the same distance Cepheid variables in galaxies?
from us? A9 Suggest a reason why we cannot use this
A5 Why can the plot you have made not method to find the distance to very distant
be used to determine the distance of galaxies in the Universe.
the Cepheids?

30
 2.4
Classification of stars by their temperature

2.4 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS BY THEIR This statement implies that, if an object is an efficient
absorber of radiation at a given wavelength, then it
TEMPERATURE will also be an efficient radiator at that wavelength. It
was shown by Boltzmann that Stefan’s law is valid only
Stefan’s law for a body that is a perfect absorber of energy. Such
We have seen that stars can be classified by their an object is known as a black body, because it does
luminosity. They emit thermal radiation, which is not reflect any light. Its radiated energy flux depends
electromagnetic radiation generated by the thermal only on its temperature and not on its surface
motion of charged particles in matter. The luminosity, composition, in accordance with Stefan’s law.
the rate of thermal energy radiated, depends on the
temperature of the star and its size. The Sun and other stars emit radiation very much
like an ideal black body. Intuitively, this seems rather
In the late 19th century, the Austrian physicist strange. Why are they called ‘black’ when they most
Josef Stefan carried out a series of experiments obviously are not? We have to understand that stars
which showed the relationship between the rate are black bodies because they absorb light at any
of thermal energy emitted by a hot object and its wavelength but do not reflect any back – if you were
temperature. This empirical relationship was also to shine a beam of light at the Sun, it would not be
derived theoretically by another physicist, Ludwig reflected back to you.
Boltzmann, using thermodynamic assumptions about
atoms and molecules. They were both led to the For a spherical star of radius R, the surface area
following conclusion: is 4πR2. The total power radiated, P, defines the
luminosity of the star, L:
A body, when heated, will emit electromagnetic
radiation over a range of wavelengths with a total L = σAT 4 = 4 πR 2σT 4
intensity that is proportional to the fourth power of its
absolute temperature. So stellar luminosity is proportional to R2 and to
This can be written as T4. In the case of the Sun, taking the Sun’s surface
temperature to be 5800 K and its radius to be
I ∝ T4 7 × 108 m, the luminosity of the Sun is

where I is the intensity, or radiated power per unit LSun = σAT 4 = 4 πR 2σT 4
area, and T is the absolute temperature in kelvin. We = 4 π × (7 × 108 )2 × 5.67 × 10−8 × (5800)4
then obtain the Stefan–Boltzmann law, or Stefan’s
= 3.97 × 1026 W
law as it is more commonly known,

P = σ AT 4 Stefan’s law forms the basis for all estimates of stellar

size. But in order to determine R, we need to know the
where P is the total power in watts radiated by temperature, T. Fortunately, the colour of a star is a
an object of surface area A, and σ is a constant good guide to its approximate surface temperature, as
of proportionality called the Stefan–Boltzmann we will see in the next subsection.
constant, which is equal to
5.67 × 10−8 W m−2 K−4. Wien’s displacement law
Stefan’s law holds true for an object that is in Suppose we take a metal bar and heat it with a
thermal equilibrium. This means that it is at a steady blowtorch. At first the bar will glow a dull red. As
temperature, so the rate of energy absorbed by the it grows hotter, the bar will change colour from red
body from its surroundings must equal the rate of through to orange and then yellow; and if it gets
energy flowing out from it. Kirchhoff’s law of thermal extremely hot (and could be prevented from melting),
radiation states: to a brilliant bluish white. This suggests that, as an
object is heated further, it emits radiation of shorter
For any given temperature, the ratio of the capacity wavelengths (see section 8.1 in Chapter 8 in Year 1
of a body to emit radiation to its capacity to absorb Student Book).
it (at a particular wavelength) is constant and is
independent of the composition of the body. To understand why the bar changes colour when
its temperature increases, we need to consider
the properties of thermal radiation. A black body
emits electromagnetic radiation over a wide range
31
 2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

of wavelengths, but there will be one wavelength, These curves are called black-body curves. It is
called the peak wavelength, for which the emission important to realise that when you see a black-body
of radiation has its maximum intensity. In 1894, the curve you know that the processes that give rise to
German physicist Wilhelm Wien discovered a simple the emission of radiation depend only on temperature
relationship between the absolute temperature T of a and not on any other property, such as the chemical
black body and the peak wavelength lmax at which the composition of the object.
radiated energy reaches its maximum intensity.
Measurements made above the Earth’s atmosphere
The wavelength of the peak emission intensity of the intensity distribution of sunlight over a broad
is inversely proportional to the absolute range of wavelengths show that the Sun is a good
temperature of the object. approximation to a black body when compared with
the theoretical black-body curve at a temperature
This can be written as
of 5800 K, with its peak in the yellow region of the
λmaxT = constant = 2.90 × 10−3 m K visible spectrum. While the entire star is not in
thermal equilibrium and has a temperature gradient
This relationship is known as Wien’s displacement towards its centre, the photosphere of the star, where
law or sometimes simply Wien’s law. Note that the emitted light is generated, is close to thermal
‘m K’ is metre kelvin, not millikelvin. It shows that equilibrium and maintains a common temperature
the dominant wavelength of a black-body radiator over a long period of time.
decreases as its gets hotter, just as we observe when
It is because stars are so much like black bodies
we heat the metal bar. An object at room temperature
that astrophysicists are able to deduce their surface
(300 K), for example, emits mainly infrared radiation.
temperatures. Hotter stars emit most of their
A very cold object of temperature a few kelvin above
radiation at shorter wavelengths and will appear to be
absolute zero emits primarily microwaves, whereas
bluer, whereas cooler stars emit at longer wavelengths
an object of a few million kelvin would emit at
and will appear to be redder (Figure 6).
X-ray wavelengths.
(a)
The intensity distribution of black-body radiation
always has a characteristic shape, and a graph
showing the intensity with wavelength is a continuous
one. Figure 5 shows the intensity distribution of
black-body radiators at different temperatures. Notice
that the higher the temperature, the shorter the
wavelength of maximum intensity, just as we would
expect from Wien’s law.

12000K (hot)
Relative intensity (power radiated)

(b)
Wien’s displacement law

6000K (Sun)

5000 K
4000 K
3000 K (cool)

0 1000 2000 3000

Wavelength / nm

visible range
Figure 6 The colour of stars depends on their temperature. (a) Vega is
Figure 5 The intensity–wavelength curves of black-body radiators at a hot bluish star with a surface temperature of 9600 K. (b) Aldebaran
different temperatures is a cooler red giant star with a surface temperature of 3900 K.

32
 2.5
Stellar spectral classes

Stars are classified by their temperature using letters

of the alphabet. There are seven main types of
QUESTIONS stars denoted, in order of decreasing temperature,
8. The star Arcturus has a radius of 25 O, B, A, F, G, K and M (Table 2). This order may
times the radius of the Sun and a surface be remembered by the mnemonic: Only Bright
temperature of about 4300 K. Estimate the Astrophysicists Fight Green Killer Martians (but you
luminosity of Arcturus. [Radius of can think up your own).
Sun = 6.96 × 108 km]
Spectral class Intrinsic colour Temperature / K
9. a. The star Rigel has a luminosity 66 000 O Blue 25 000–50 000
times that of the Sun. If its surface
B Blue 11 000–25 000
temperature is 11 000 K, estimate
A Blue-white 7500–11 000
the radius of Rigel. [Luminosity of
Sun = 3.9 × 1026 W] F White 6000–7500

b. What is the peak wavelength of emission G Yellow-white 5000–6000

of Rigel? K Orange 3500–5000
M Red <3500

Table 2 The alphabetic classification of stars by their surface

temperatures

KEY IDEAS
However, the radiation detected on Earth from a star
›› The luminosity of a star depends on its size can tell us much more than this, and we can further
and its temperature. classify stars by their spectral characteristics. Stellar
›› Stars may be regarded as black bodies with a spectroscopy is a method of analysing the spectrum
characteristic black-body curve depending on of stars and is a powerful tool in determining not
their surface temperature. only the precise surface temperature but also the
composition of and physical conditions within stars.
›› Stefan’s law states that
Spectroscopy gives rise to three types of spectra:
P = σ AT 4
› an emission line spectrum
for a black-body radiator, where P is the total
power radiated by an object of surface area A, › an emission continuous spectrum
T is the absolute temperature of the object, › an absorption spectrum.
and σ is a constant of proportionality called the
Each of these gives different information about its
Stefan–Boltzmann constant.
source (see Chapter 8 in Year 1 Student Book).
›› Wien’s displacement law relates the peak
wavelength lmax of a star’s black-body spectrum In a gas at low temperature and pressure, almost all
to its temperature: the atomic electrons are in the lowest energy level
(ground state). As the temperature increases, more
λmaxT = constant = 2.90 × 10−3 m K atomic collisions take place and electrons are raised
to excited states. These electrons eventually return
to lower energy levels, emitting photons at precise
characteristic energies corresponding exactly to the
spacing of the energy levels within the atoms of the
2.5 STELLAR SPECTRAL CLASSES gas. The spectrum recorded is of bright lines on a dark
background, an emission line spectrum
The intensity–wavelength distribution of a star –
(Figure 7), with the intensity and position of these
a black-body curve like those in Figure 5 – is its
lines corresponding to particular electronic transitions
emission spectrum, which is a continuous spectrum.
in the atoms of the gas.
The distribution depends only on the star’s surface
temperature. Dull red stars are cool and bluish white
stars are very hot.

33
2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

Hydrogen
656.3 486.1 434.0 410.1

700 600 500 400

Wavelength / nm

Figure 7 An emission line spectrum for hydrogen, showing bright Balmer lines on a dark continuous background

In a hot star, the gas is at high pressure. Atoms have n=∞

considerable kinetic energy and undergo multiple
n=4
collisions and their electrons are in excited states. By n=3
the time the excited electrons fall back into one of the Paschen
series
discrete energy levels, further atomic collisions have n=2
occurred. This results in a blurring of the emission Balmer
series
spectrum and the loss of any detail about the atoms in
the gas, giving rise to a continuous spectrum (Figure 8).
This is typical of the emission spectrum obtained from
the region of a star, the photosphere, from where the
light is radiated.

n=1
Lyman
series
Figure 9 Transitions between energy levels giving rise to line series in
the hydrogen spectrum
Figure 8 The continuous spectrum of the photosphere of the Sun

The photosphere acts as a source of visible light.

This light then passes through the outer layers of the
Sun, which are much cooler and composed mainly of 656 486 434 410
wavelength, λ (nm)
hydrogen gas. Photons of the characteristic energies
of the transitions in the gas will be absorbed and Figure 10 An absorption spectrum for hydrogen, showing dark
atomic electrons raised to an excited state (perhaps to Balmer lines on a continuous background. The dark lines in an
the second level or shell, n = 2, or even higher shells, absorption spectrum correspond exactly to the bright lines in an
emission line spectrum produced by the same gas. Compare this
n = 3, 4, 5, 6 and so on). As electrons fall back to the
spectrum with that in Figure 7.
first level, n = 1 (the ground state), or intermediate
levels (Figure 9), photons are emitted, but in random
directions. The resulting spectrum comprises dark
lines (undetected photons) characteristic of an
absorption spectrum (Figure 10).

34
 2.5
Stellar spectral classes

The absorption lines for hydrogen in the visible part within the gas in the outer layers (Figure 11). A full
of the spectrum result from electrons moving from the analysis of the absorption lines also reveals the state
first excitation level (n = 2) to higher energy levels of the atoms, that is, whether they are neutral or
(see sections 8.2 and 8.3 in Chapter 8 in Year 1 ionised, which also depends on the temperature.
Student Book). This leads to a series of dark lines The absorption spectrum therefore not only enables
shown in Figure 10 called the Balmer series. The identification of the elements present in the star
intensity of the absorption lines depends on the but also allows the temperature of the star to be
particular temperature of the star’s photosphere. determined accurately.
Other dark lines in a star’s absorption spectrum
are characteristic of other particular elements

Figure 11 Absorption spectrum of the Sun showing the absorption of light by elements in the cooler outer part of the Sun’s atmosphere (although
the O2 absorption lines at 628 and 687 nm are actually due to the absorption of light in the Earth’s atmosphere, before reaching the ground-
based telescope).

The relative strength of particular absorption lines classification by temperature (summarised in Table 2)
(see Figure 12), and hence temperature, gives the with a description of the prominent spectral
spectral class of a star. We can further define the absorption lines, as shown in Table 3.

Temperature (non-linear scale)

50000K 3000 K
Relative intensity of absorption line

H Balmer series
Ca+
He+ TiO
He

Fe+ Fe Ca

Q F B G AK M
Spectral class
Figure 12 The intensity of particular absorption lines depends on the temperature,
and hence can be used to determine the star’s spectral class. The Balmer series is
particularly useful for this classification.

35
2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

Spectral class Colour Temperature range / K Prominent absorption Example star

lines
O Blue 25 000–50 000 He+, He, H 10 Lacertae
B Blue 11 000–25 000 He, H Rigel, Spica
A Bluish white 7500–11 000 H (strongest), ionised metals Sirius, Vega
F White 6000–7500 Ionised metals Procyon
G Yellow-white 5000–6000 Ionised and neutral metals Sun, Capella
K Orange 3500–5000 Neutral metals Aldebaran
M Red <3500 Neutral atoms, TiO Betelgeuse, Antares

Table 3 The classification of stars by spectral class, including the prominent absorption lines in each class

Figure 13 shows the spectrum of the star Vega,

spectral class A, in which the prominent hydrogen
absorption lines can be clearly seen. KEY IDEAS
›› A star has an absorption spectrum – a
Hδ Hγ Hβ Hα
series of dark lines – superimposed on its
black-body continuous emission spectrum,
400nm 500nm 600 nm 700nm
characteristic of the elemental composition of
its outer layers.
Figure 13 The spectrum of Vega
›› The position and intensity of the absorption
lines allow an accurate determination of the
star’s temperature.
QUESTIONS ›› Stars are classified into spectral classes based on
10. Barnard’s star, the fourth nearest star to the their temperature. There are seven main classes,
Earth, has a surface temperature of 3134 K. O, B, A, F, G, K and M in order of decreasing
Which spectral class does it belong to? temperature, from over 50 000 K to below
3500 K.
11. When you look up at the night sky on a clear
night and observe some of the brightest
stars with the naked eye, is there any
way you can tell which are hot and which
are cooler?
12. The helium atom has a transition between
electronic states that produces an emission
line at 587.56 nm. Using a diffraction
grating, a German telescope maker, Joseph
von Fraunhofer (1787–1826), discovered
784 dark lines in the spectrum of the Sun,
now called Fraunhofer lines. One of these
was an absorption line at a wavelength of
587.56 nm that did not correspond to any
known element on Earth. Explain how this
led to the discovery of helium.

36
 2.5
Practice questions

PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. Sirius is a binary system consisting of two b. The power output of Deneb is 70 000
stars, Sirius A and Sirius B, the properties of times greater than the Sun. Calculate the
which are summarised in Table Q1. radius of Deneb.
[Surface temperature of the Sun = 5700 K,
Sirius A Sirius B
radius of Sun = 6.96 × 105 km]
Absolute magnitude 1.4 11.2
Apparent magnitude −1.4 8.4 AQA Unit 5A June 2011 Q2 part b
Diameter / 103 km 2400 12
4. a. Bellatrix and Betelgeuse are stars in
Black-body 10 000 25 000
the constellation of Orion. Some of their
temperature / K
properties are summarised in Table Q2.
Table Q1
Bellatrix Betelgeuse
a. Calculate the distance to Sirius A, giving
Absolute −6.0 −2.7
an appropriate unit.
magnitude
b. i. Calculate the ratio
Apparent 0.4 1.6
power output of Sirius A magnitude
power output of Siriius B Black-body 22 000 2400
temperature / K
ii. Show that the data in Table Q1 suggest
that one star is about 8000 times Table Q2
brighter than the other.
iii. With reference to the spectra of the two i. Explain what is meant by absolute
stars, explain why the value in part b ii is magnitude.
much greater than the answer to part b i. ii. Which of the two stars is closer to the
Earth? Explain your answer.
AQA Unit 5A June 2010 Q2
b. i. Calculate the wavelength of the peak
intensity in the black-body radiation
2. Hydrogen Balmer absorption lines are
curve of Bellatrix.
seen in the spectra of many stars. Explain
how these arise. The quality of your ii. Sketch a relative intensity versus
written communication will be assessed in wavelength black-body radiation curve
your answer. for Bellatrix. Label the wavelength axis
with a suitable scale.
3. Deneb is the brightest star in the
constellation Cygnus.
a. The black-body radiation curve for
Deneb shows a peak at a wavelength of
3.4 × 10−7 m. Calculate the black-body
temperature of Deneb. Give your
answer to an appropriate number of
significant figures.

37
2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS

c. Detailed analysis of the light from both 5. Table Q3 summarises some of the properties
stars reveals the presence of prominent of two stars in the constellation of Ursa Minor.
absorption lines in the spectra.
Name Apparent radius of star Spectral
i. To which spectral class does magnitude radius of the sun class
Bellatrix belong?
Polaris 2.0 50 F
ii. Prominent features in the Bellatrix Kocab 2.0 50 K
spectrum are the Balmer absorption
lines due to hydrogen. State the other Table Q3
element responsible for the prominent
a. Using these data, describe and explain
absorption lines in the spectrum
one similarity and one difference in the
of Bellatrix.
appearance of the two stars as seen
iii. Why does the spectrum of Betelgeuse with the unaided eye by an observer on
not contain prominent hydrogen the Earth.
Balmer absorption lines?
b. Deduce which of the two stars is further
AQA Unit 5A June 2012 Q3 from the Earth.

AQA June 2013 Q4 part a

38
 3.1


3 STELLAR EVOLUTION
the least massive stars can have extremely long
lifetimes – exceeding the current estimated age of the
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE Universe. The changes in stars as they evolve occur
too slowly for us to detect. Instead, astrophysicists
You will need to be familiar with concepts from
observe numerous stars at different points in their
Astrophysics Chapter 2 about the classification of
lifetimes and construct computer models of their
stars – absolute and apparent magnitude, spectral
structure and evolution.
class and luminosity – and also with the use of
astronomical distance units, such as the light year
and parsec. You will need an understanding of nuclear
fusion reactions, how they release energy and how to
express them as nuclear equations, so you may want
to refer back to Chapter 10. You should recall how
heat can be transferred from one point to another
by convection and radiation. You will need to be
able to manipulate the equation for escape velocity
(Chapter 4).

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
In this chapter you will learn that stars do not remain
constant but change their luminosity and temperature
with time. You will find out how this information may
be represented graphically using the Hertzsprung–
Russell diagram, which is a plot of the evolutionary
stages of stars – the main sequence, giants and
dwarfs. You will gain an understanding that what
happens at the end of a star’s life depends on its mass Figure 1 The Orion nebula. This is a star-forming region in the
constellation of Orion 24 ly across where numerous stars are in the
and how it may explode as a supernova, one of the process of being born.
most energetic events in the Universe, leaving behind
an exotic object such as a neutron star or a black hole.
Stars are born in the ‘space’ between stars called the
(Specification 3.9.2.5, 3.9.2.6)
interstellar medium, which contains molecular
clouds (Figure 1) that are mostly made up of cold
hydrogen gas in the form of atoms, molecules and
ions at temperatures of 10–50 K and densities of
3.1 THE BIRTH OF A STAR 108–1015 molecules per cubic metre. About 1% of this
material is ‘dust’ in the form of silicates and graphite
Protostars
material. Molecular clouds have masses many times
Stars do not shine for ever. Stellar evolution is
greater than the mass of a single star, and contain
the process by which stars are ‘born’, start to shine,
fragments of varying masses which clump together
continue shining in a stable state until eventually (after
under gravitational attraction. The irregular clumps
a time depending on their mass) they change, ending
tend to rotate, and a combination of the action of
up as a variety of different stellar objects (again
gravity and the conservation of angular momentum
depending on their mass). Compared with the age of
spins them inwards to form a denser spherical centre,
the Universe, high-mass stars can have relatively short
lifetimes – possibly just a few million years – whereas

39
3 Stellar Evolution

forming a protostar. It is surrounded by a rotating flat The stable period of a star’s life
disc of material called the circumstellar disc, where Eventually, when nuclear fusion in the star’s core has
planets may form (Figure 2). become established, an equilibrium state is reached.
The star now has a fixed mass, and its energy comes
only from nuclear fusion, not from gravitational
Molecular cloud fragments form
gas clump
a rotating clump of gas and dust
contraction. It is now a main-sequence star. Its
through gravitational attraction. mass will determine its future evolution.
The fusion of hydrogen nuclei with a release of nuclear
binding energy, known as hydrogen burning, is the
infalling
matter primary source of energy generation in main-sequence
Angular momentum spins the stars. There are two principal nuclear reaction
circumstellar
disc clumped material into a hot pathways in which hydrogen burning occurs in a
core with a circumstellar disc
where planets may form.
star, determined by the core temperature of the
star. These are the proton–proton chain (or p–p
chain) and the carbon–nitrogen–oxygen cycle (or
CNO cycle). In each of these reactions, four protons
Thermonuclear reactions begin combine by nuclear fusion to form a single helium
as the temperature in the core
nucleus with a small loss of mass, which, by the
increases and a stellar wind is
produced, blowing away the mass–energy relation ΔE = Δmc2 (see Chapter 10) is
surrounding material. A released as energy.
pre-main-sequence star is
stellar formed. For stars that have masses not exceeding that of the
wind
Sun, the temperature in the core of the star does not
Figure 2 The formation of a protostar from a molecular cloud clump get higher than about 16 × 106 K and hydrogen burning
occurs via the proton–proton chain. In stars with masses
greater than that of the Sun, the core temperatures
Infalling matter from the cloud fragment causes the
exceed this value, and hydrogen burning proceeds
protostar to increase in size, and the density and
through the CNO cycle. (See the following subsection on
temperature also increase. It begins to shine dimly in
‘Nuclear reaction pathways’ for more details.)
the infrared, the energy source being the gravitational
energy of the infalling material. Nuclear fusion reactions like these continue in the
core and provide the star’s energy source for most
After a time that may be as much as a few million years,
of its life. The star is held in equilibrium because of a
the temperature of the star is such that the mutual
balance between the star’s own gravitational force due
electrostatic repulsion between hydrogen nuclei can be
to the tremendous mass of its outer layers pushing
overcome and nuclear fusion reactions begin in its
inwards and the internal gas pressure caused by
core. A strong outward stellar wind is produced, which
hydrogen burning pushing outwards.
opposes the infall of material. It starts to shine in the
visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum, and is now Energy from the fusion reactions is transported from
known as a pre-main-sequence star. the core to the outermost layers by convection and
radiative (photon) diffusion. Convection occurs when
hot gases rise towards the star’s surface and cooler
gases sink back down, setting up circulation currents
in which heat energy is transferred to the outer layers
QUESTIONS of the star from its interior. In the fusion reactions,
1. a. Explain how a protostar is formed from photons are created that also carry away energy. The
the interstellar medium. photons diffuse outwards from the hot core towards
the outer layers of the star. Although the motion of
b. What is the source of energy of a protostar
these photons is entirely random (Figure 3), because
before nuclear fusion reactions begin?
they are absorbed and re-emitted when they interact
c. Why are high temperatures needed for with atoms and free electrons in the star’s interior,
nuclear fusion in stars to start? their net motion is towards the cooler, outer layers of

40
 3.2


the star. This photon migration towards the surface Notice that, as in the p–p chain, the CNO cycle takes
and then their escape into space can take tens of four hydrogen nuclei (protons) and converts them
thousands of years. The sunlight that you feel on into a single helium nucleus together with positrons,
a sunny day is therefore due to photons that were neutrinos and some high-energy gamma rays.
created in the Sun thousands of years ago!
The 126 C nucleus acts as a catalyst for the reaction.
While it is consumed in the first step, it is replaced
in the last step, so that, in the CNO reaction chain,
carbon is not used up.
escape
start

KEY IDEAS
›› Interstellar molecular clouds of hydrogen gas and
Figure 3 Radiative diffusion in a star. Photons from the core dust form clumps that collapse under their own
follow a random path as they travel to the surface, taking thousands gravity to form protostars.
of years to do so.
›› As the density and temperature of a protostar
increase, it begins to shine, first in the infrared.
Stretch and challenge
Then nuclear fusion reactions start in its core and
Nuclear reaction pathways it becomes a pre-main-sequence star.
The proton–proton chain converts hydrogen
into helium in three steps by the following
›› When fusion reactions are established, a stable
equilibrium state is reached and the star shines
nuclear reactions:
visibly as a main-sequence star for most of its life.
1
1H + 11H → 21H + 01e + ν e ›› The fusion of hydrogen into helium is the primary
source of energy in a main-sequence star.
1
1 H + H → He + γ
2
1
3
2 ›› The energy from the core is transferred by
convection and radiative diffusion to the
star’s outer layers and escapes into space
3
2 He + 32He → 42He + 11H + 11H as photons.

The CNO cycle has six steps:

12
C + 11H → 13
N+γ
3.2 THE HERTZSPRUNG–RUSSELL DIAGRAM
6 7

13
7 N→ 13
6 C + 01e + ν e In Astrophysics section 2.3 the absolute magnitude
of a star was introduced as a measure of the actual
13
C + 11H → 14
N+γ luminosity of a star, independent of the star’s distance
6 7
from Earth. In Astrophysics section 2.5 we classified
stars according to their surface temperature by
14
7 N + 11H → 15
8 O+γ assigning them a spectral class, O to M in order of
decreasing temperature. Suppose we plot a graph of
absolute magnitude versus spectral class for all types
15
O→ 15
N + 01e + ν e
8 7 of star for which these variables can be measured.
Then we obtain a diagram like the one illustrated in
15
N + 11H → 12
C + 42He Figure 4, which is known as a Hertzsprung–Russell
7 6
diagram (or HR diagram), after Enjar Hertzsprung
and Henry Norris Russell, the two astronomers who
first made this kind of plot.

41
 3 Stellar Evolution

supergiants 3. Supergiants have masses typically 10–100

10 Betelgeuse times that of the Sun and are therefore
Rigel substantially larger and more luminous
even than the red giants. In their cores the
5 Spica temperatures are hot enough for nuclear
red giants fusion reactions to produce carbon and
heavier elements.
Aldebaran
Absolute magnitude

Sirius A
0 4. White dwarfs are old stars that have a high
m surface temperature but are not very luminous,
ai
n Sun because they no longer generate energy by
se
pr
qu nuclear fusion, and because they are small
e
5 en
ce -m (planet sized). They are extremely dense.
ain
Sirius B
se
qu Eventually, they cool to the point of emitting
en no heat or light and become black dwarfs,
10 white dwarfs which appears to be the end state of all
ce

low-mass stars.

spectral
The significance of the HR diagram is that it tells us
15 O B A F G K M
class that there exist fundamentally different kinds of stars.
50 000 20 000 10 000 5000 2500
‘Normal stars’ like the Sun are those which lie along
Surface temperature / K
the main sequence. ‘Unusual stars’ are the giants and
Figure 4 The Hertzsprung–Russell diagram, showing examples of white dwarfs, which seem to have a very different
different types of star
relationship between luminosity and temperature.
From the HR diagram, we can see different stages
An HR diagram is essentially a plot of the luminosity of stellar evolution – how stars are born, grow old
of stars against their surface temperature, and a great and die.
deal of information about the properties of stars can
be obtained from it. First of all, you will notice that the Evolution of a Sun-like star on the
stars on the HR diagram are not randomly scattered. Hertzsprung–Russell diagram
They are divided into four principal groupings. The evolutionary life cycle of a star can be tracked
on the HR diagram. Its fate depends on its mass at
1. The long diagonal band is called the main various stages. Figure 5 shows the evolutionary path
sequence. The stars with observational for an average star like the Sun.
properties that place it on this band are what
we have called main-sequence stars. This is 10
where stars are stable and long-lived, and where
red giant
nuclear fusion of hydrogen is the dominant
5
energy-producing mechanism in the star.
Absolute magnitude

Approximately 90% of observable stars are on

pre-main
the main sequence. The Sun is a main-sequence 0
sequence
star of average mass and luminosity, spectral
class G, and its position is shown in Figure 4. At
5 main
the top of the main sequence are the hot and
sequence
luminous blue stars, and at the bottom are the
cool and dim reddish stars. 10
white
2. Red giants are similar in mass to our Sun dwarf
but have an expanded outer shell and hence 15
50000 20000 10000 5000
large size and surface area. They are cooler
Temperature / K
and hence redder but highly luminous. Nuclear
fusion of helium occurs in their cores. Figure 5 The evolution of a star like the Sun on the
Hertzsprung–Russell diagram

42
 3.2


The star begins as a protostar in an interstellar gas at high densities, this prevents electrons occupying
cloud. As nuclear fusion reactions begin, it becomes the same space, and as a result they exert a powerful
a pre-main-sequence star, just before moving to a outward pressure called ‘degeneracy pressure’ that
position on the main sequence along the line running opposes any further contraction by gravity. The star
from top left to bottom right. It then remains in that is then said to be in a degenerate state and gradually
position on the main sequence for most of its life (for a cools to become a black dwarf star, which emits no
star of one solar mass, this is about 10 billion years) – significant amount of heat or light.
until the hydrogen in its core is used up. The star then
starts to burn hydrogen in its outer layers, causing it
to expand in size greatly into a red giant with a lower
surface temperature but higher luminosity. It moves QUESTIONS
off the main sequence to the right-hand top corner of
the HR diagram. 2. The HR diagram tells us that there exist
different types of stars. List the four main
Eventually, when the red giant star has exhausted all categories of stars found on the HR diagram.
of its nuclear fuel, its outer layers are ejected (thrown
off), forming a planetary nebula (Figure 6), and its 3. Two protostars, A and B, form in the same
core collapses into a dense white dwarf. The star molecular cloud. As pre-main-sequence stars,
has lost its outer layers but its core is still initially very A is five solar masses and B is one solar
hot, and its position on the HR diagram is now in the mass. Suggest which star would reach the
bottom left-hand corner. main sequence first. Explain your reasoning.

The lifetimes of stars

The lifetime of a star is determined by its mass –
see Table 1. Stars spend roughly 90% of their
lives converting hydrogen into helium on the main
sequence, and the mass of a star determines the rate
of hydrogen burning. In more massive stars fusion
reactions proceed at a faster rate than in lower mass
stars due to the higher temperature and pressures in
their cores. They therefore use up their hydrogen fuel
more rapidly. For this reason they spend shorter times
on the main sequence before evolving into red giants.

Mass / MSun Spectral class Main-sequence

lifetime / 106 year
25 O 3
Figure 6 The Eskimo nebula. This is a planetary nebula formed by 15 B 15
the ejected outer layer of a star similar to the Sun. 3 A 500
1.5 F 3000
Since nuclear burning has ceased, there is no more 1.0 G 10 000
outward pressure to halt the crushing force of gravity, 0.75 K 15 000
and the core of a white dwarf is compressed to a size
0.50 M >200 000
roughly the same as that of the Earth. The density
of its matter rises to some 108–109 kg m−3. If you Table 1 The main-sequence lifetimes for stars of spectral classes
O to M
had a teaspoonful of white dwarf matter on Earth,
it would weigh several tonnes! The star is eventually The Sun, a G type star, has a main-sequence lifetime
prevented from further collapse by a quantum rule of about 1010 years. It is currently about 5 × 109
(the Pauli exclusion principle), which, loosely stated, years old. Stars higher along the main sequence than
means that no two particles can be together in exactly the Sun (spectral classes O to F) must be younger
the same quantum state at the same time. For matter than the Sun or they would have used up all the

43
3 Stellar Evolution

hydrogen in their cores and would have moved off the It should be understood that the HR diagram
main sequence. At the other end of the scale, given is a ‘snapshot’ of a collection of different types
that the age of the Universe is believed to be about of stars. Stars do not move along the main
13.7 × 109 years (see Astrophysics Chapter 4), sequence. Depending on its mass when it is a
every M type star in existence is still on the main pre-main-sequence star, the star reaches a point
sequence. The oldest stars in the Universe are on the main sequence and stays there. Then, at a
called red dwarfs, which have low mass, low far future time when it is nearing the end of its life,
temperature and low luminosity. This means that it moves off the main sequence and evolves into a
they burn through their supply of hydrogen very different type of star.
slowly, giving them extremely long lifetimes well in
Figure 7 summarises the evolutionary stages of a star
excess of Sun-like stars and longer than the age of
similar to the Sun during its lifetime.
the Universe.

protostar main sequence white

red giant planetary
(for about dwarf
nebula
10 × 109 years) (cools and dies
(1–2 × 109 years) over 2–3 × 109 years)

Figure 7 The evolution of a star like the Sun from protostar to white dwarf

›› Stars spend most of their lives in a stable state

QUESTIONS represented by a point on a diagonal line on the
HR diagram called the main sequence.
4. Which single property is most important in
determining the evolutionary stages of a star? ›› The lifetime of a star on the main
sequence depends on its mass. High-mass
5. Where would a red dwarf appear on the high-temperature stars (O types) have shorter
HR diagram? lifetimes. Low-mass low-temperature stars
6. Why are most of the stars that we see in the (M types) have the longest lifetimes.
sky main-sequence stars? ›› The Sun is situated about halfway along the
main sequence. It is spectral class G (surface
temperature about 6000 K) and has an absolute
magnitude just below 5.
KEY IDEAS
›› Stars like the Sun will leave the main sequence
when the hydrogen in their cores is used up and
›› Stars evolve with time and change in both will expand to become red giants.
temperature and spectral class.
›› When all the nuclear fuel is exhausted, the star
›› The Hertzsprung–Russell diagram is a graph will collapse and become a white dwarf.
of absolute magnitude versus spectral class
or temperature, and shows that stars can
be grouped together on the basis of their
physical similarities.

44
 3.2


ASSIGNMENT 1: USING THE HERTZSPRUNG–RUSSELL DIAGRAM

TO FIND THE SIZES OF STARS
(MS 0.1, MS 0.2, MS 3.1, MS 3.2, PS2.2, PS3.1, PS3.2)

In this assignment you will identify stars on the HR A2 

The Sun has a surface temperature of about
diagram and determine their radius. 5800 K.
Stars spend about 90% of their lives on the a. In what spectral class is the Sun?
main sequence. They then evolve, changing both
b. From the Sun’s luminosity of
temperature and size. The luminosity L of a star is
3.90 × 1026 W, estimate its radius.
given by
A3 a. Table A1 gives the luminosity (as a fraction
L = (4πR2)σT4 of the Sun’s luminosity) of six stars of
different types: Betelgeuse, Aldebaran,
where R is the radius of the star, T is the star’s surface Sirius A, Spica, Rigel and Sirius B. Referring
temperature and σ = 5.67 × 10−8 W m−2 K−4 is to the HR diagram shown in Figure 4, copy
Stefan’s constant. and complete the table by recording the
data for the other columns, estimating the
Questions stars’ radii as you did in question A2 for
A1 Rearrange the equation given earlier the Sun.
to give R in terms of the luminosity and
surface temperature.
Star name Spectral Type of star Colour Absolute L/LSun T/K R/RSun
class magnitude M
Betelgeuse Supergiant 1.25 × 105
Aldebaran Red giant 520
Sirius A Main sequence 25.4
Spica Main sequence 12 100
Rigel Main sequence 1.25 × 105
Sirius B White dwarf 0.026

Table A1

b. 
Use the internet to research a further six Set out your data in a table like Table A1, in
examples of stars of different categories descending order of radius.
and obtain information about their
A4 
Do all main-sequence stars have
luminosity, absolute magnitude and
approximately the same radius?
temperature. A way to start is to use the
star type as a search string, for example A5 
Plot your own version of an HR diagram for
‘supergiant’, and then look for particular the stars you have researched.
names of stars. Note that you may get a
range of values for these parameters, so
for this exercise take the average value of
those that you find.

45
3 Stellar Evolution

3.3 EVOLUTION OF MASSIVE STARS Blue supergiants also exist, which are much hotter
than red supergiants but smaller, only about 25 times
POST-MAIN SEQUENCE the size of the Sun. They form when a star of more
than 10 solar masses exhausts the nuclear fuel in its
Giant and supergiant stars core and starts burning its outer layers, increasing in
The evolution of stars with a mass higher than about luminosity. Like red supergiants, they have very short
1.4 MSun is different from that described in Astrophysics lifetimes of only a few million years.
section 3.2. This is because these stars fuse hydrogen to
helium but do so primarily via the CNO cycle (see
Astrophysics section 3.1) due to the high pressures and
high temperatures in their cores. Stars between 1.4 MSun QUESTIONS
and 3 MSun also evolve into red giants, but they end their 7. A main-sequence star with a mass of 10
life as supernovae, leaving behind a neutron star. solar masses becomes a red supergiant. The
Stars with a main-sequence mass in excess of 3 MSun rate of radiation from its surface increases
evolve into red supergiants, and when these explode as greatly but its surface cools down (it becomes
supernovae they leave behind a black hole (Figure 8). redder). Explain how this is possible.

neutron star
Supernovae
or
A supernova is a star that suddenly and very rapidly
protostar increases in absolute magnitude because of an
main
black hole
sequence red giant or explosion that ejects most of its mass. A supernova
(for about supernova
supergiant can become so bright that it can be seen in other
10 million
galaxies and is one of most energetic events in
years)
Figure 8 Evolution of a high-mass star
the Universe.
Supernovae are classified into two types:
A red supergiant is formed when the high-mass star › Type I supernova. This is a star that accretes
runs out of hydrogen in its core. The core contracts and (draws in) matter from another star in a binary
the star expands in size, burning hydrogen in its outer system until it becomes compressed and
layers, increasing its luminosity and becoming much runaway nuclear reactions are set off, blasting its
redder. The interior temperature gets much higher than matter into space. We will look at these again in
in red giants, so elements heavier than hydrogen and Astrophysics section 3.4.
helium can be fused, producing elements as heavy as
iron, in a series of layers around their core. › Type II supernova. This is a single star – a red giant
or supergiant – that runs out of nuclear fuel and
Red supergiants burn at a very fast rate, consuming all collapses rapidly under its own gravity, ejecting its
their hydrogen in just a few million years. In that time, outer layers with enormous energy.
they increase their luminosity to about 100 000 times
that of the Sun. Their size can range from 30 to 1000 In this section we are concerned with Type II
or more solar radii (Figure 9). See Assignment 1. supernovae. For a Type II supernova event to happen,
the star must be several times more massive than
the Sun. The star becomes a red giant (or supergiant)
after its main-sequence stage. But when the nuclear
fuel is exhausted, the gravitational compression is
so strong that the star collapses on itself extremely
rapidly – in a matter of a few seconds. The infalling
matter produces extremely powerful shock waves,
creating a gigantic explosion (Figure 10), and rapidly
increasing the absolute magnitude. The outer parts
of the star are blown into space in an expanding gas
shell at speeds of 5000–10 000 km s−1 (Figure 11).
Figure 9 The red supergiant Antares has a radius The energy released by a supernova explosion is
in excess of 800 times that of the Sun stupendous, of the order of 1046 J, and can produce

46
 3.3


enough radiation to temporarily outshine a whole and neutron-rich nuclei, surrounded by an iron outer
galaxy. For comparison, the energy output of the crust. The gravitational field of a neutron star is so
Sun each day is 3.3 × 1031 J. What is left is called a strong that to escape from the surface would require
supernova remnant, at the centre of which is an exotic an escape velocity approaching 0.8 of the speed
object called a neutron star. of light. The escape velocity from the surface of an
object of mass M and radius R (see Chapter 4) is
given by

2GM
v esc =
R

where G is the gravitational constant

Implosion Supernova explosion Remnant
G = 6.67 × 10−11 N m2 kg−2
Figure 10 Stages in a Type II supernova
Neutron stars contain their mass in a diameter of only
about 20 km, with a density of about 2 × 1017 kg m−3.
On the surface of a neutron star, gravity would be
2 × 109 times stronger than gravity on Earth, and if
you had a teaspoonful (5 ml) of neutron star material
on Earth it would weigh 5.5 × 1012 kg!

Worked example
What is the escape velocity from a neutron star of
mass two times that of the Sun and radius 20 km?
[Mass of Sun = 1.99 × 1030 kg]

2GM
v esc =
R
2 × 6.7 × 10−11 × 2 × 1.99 × 1030
=
2 × 104
Figure 11 The expanding gas shell of supernova 1987a. This was = 160000 km s −1

a Type II supernova that exploded in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a

galaxy about 158 000 ly from Earth, first observed in 1987.

Neutron stars appear in supernova remnants, either

Since heavier elements in the Periodic Table, including
as single objects or in binary star systems (see
iron and nickel, are fused in the interiors of massive
Astrophysics Chapter 4). They may behave as a
stars, supernova explosions eject these into the
pulsar. A pulsar is a rotating neutron star with a
interstellar medium, where they are dispersed across
very strong magnetic field (Figure 12). These objects
the Universe, making up planets, including the Earth.
were discovered by Jocelyn Bell, a graduate student
Supernova events are not very common. In a galaxy in Cambridge, in 1967. The surface of a neutron
like the Milky Way, we can expect to see two or star has numerous protons and electrons where the
three supernova events per century. But because the gravitational field is not strong enough for them to
Universe contains billions of galaxies, we can often be pushed into each other to form neutrons. They
observe supernovae in other galaxies. are accelerated towards the magnetic poles of the
neutron star, and in doing so emit electromagnetic
Neutron stars and pulsars radiation over a wide range of wavelengths in a
What is left after a supernova is an extremely dense narrow beam in opposite directions. The neutron
object called a neutron star. The gravitational star can rotate up to 600 times per second, giving a
contraction has become so great that the electrons pulsed beam rather like a lighthouse.
in the atoms are forced into protons, forming
neutrons. A neutron star is thus composed almost
entirely of neutrons. It has a rigid core of neutrons

47
3 Stellar Evolution

rotation axis electromagnetic Then we can obtain the maximum value of R as

radiation
2GM
protons and R = RS =
c2
electrons spiralling
in magnetic field
N This radius RS is called the Schwarzschild radius
after the German astrophysicist Karl Schwarzschild,
who first calculated it from Einstein’s general theory of
relativity. The Schwarzschild radius tells us, for a given
neutron
mass, how small an object must be for it to trap light
star around it and therefore appear black. To calculate
the Schwarzschild radius of any object – a planet, a
galaxy, or even an apple – all you need to know is the
S mass to be compressed.
This radius effectively forms a boundary that we call
the event horizon of the black hole. Within this, the
escape velocity is greater than or equal to the speed
Figure 12 A rotating neutron star (pulsar) of light. Hence, all information from inside the event
horizon is lost. Since black holes cannot be directly
seen, information about them can only be inferred
from the effects they have on nearby objects.
QUESTIONS
8. Compare the escape velocity from the
neutron star calculated in the Worked
example with the escape velocity from the QUESTIONS
Earth, which you will need to calculate. 9. a. What is the Schwarzschild radius of a
[Mass of Earth = 5.98 × 1024 kg, black hole with the mass of the Sun?
radius of Earth = 6370 km] [Mass of Sun = 1.99 × 1030 kg]
b. Explain the significance of this.
c. Estimate the density of the object within
Black holes
the Schwarzschild radius.
For extremely massive stars, whose core after
a supernova is more than three solar masses, 10. A massive star explodes in a supernova,
gravitational compression in the neutron star leaving behind a behind a black hole of 50
continues unabated, inevitably producing a black solar masses. Calculate its Schwarzschild
hole. A black hole is a region of space-time that has radius. [Mass of Sun = 1.99 × 1030 kg]
such a strong gravitational field that no particles or
electromagnetic radiation can escape from it. The
escape velocity is greater than the speed of light, c, Gamma ray bursts
which from Einstein’s theory of special relativity is About once a day, intense flashes of gamma rays
impossible to achieve. coming from distant galaxies in random directions,
How big is a black hole? To answer this, consider the lasting from a few milliseconds to tens of seconds,
escape velocity. If we put vesc = c as a minimum, and are observed by gamma ray telescopes. These
square the expression gamma ray bursts (GRBs) are thought to
originate in supernovae, when supergiant stars
2GM collapse to form neutron stars or black holes. Since
v esc = = c
R the bursts are known to come from distant galaxies,
they must be extremely energetic. The gamma rays
we get are thought to be emitted as a narrow beam of
intense radiation. The total energy radiated by a
c2 = 2GM GRB is estimated to be over 1048 J, making a GRB
R

48
 3.3


one of the brightest electromagnetic events known Astrophysicists now think that there is a
to occur in the Universe. A GRB may release as supermassive black hole at the centre of
much energy in one short burst as the Sun will in its every galaxy, but they are not certain how it
entire lifetime. forms. One suggestion is that one could form out
of the collapse of massive clouds of gas during
GRBs are potentially very hazardous. It has been
the early stages of galaxy formation. Another idea
speculated that a supernova generating a GRB in
is that an ‘ordinary’ stellar black hole devours
our own galaxy emitting radiation pointing towards
enormous amounts of material over millions
the Earth would kill most life, and might have been
of years, increasing its mass to supermassive
responsible for mass extinction events during past
proportions. A third possible mechanism is
geological epochs.
that clusters of stellar black holes form and
eventually merge into each other, forming a
Supermassive black holes supermassive black hole.
Observations have shown that stars and gas orbiting
near the centres of galaxies are being accelerated to
very high orbital velocities. This can be explained if a
large supermassive object with a strong gravitational
field in a small region of space is attracting them. QUESTIONS
The most likely candidate is a supermassive
11. The supermassive black hole at the centre
black hole.
of the Milky Way galaxy has an estimated
mass of 4.1 × 106 solar masses. Calculate
its Schwarzschild radius.
[Mass of the Sun = 1.99 × 1030 kg]
12. Some cosmologists think that miniature
black holes, called primordial black
holes, may have formed in the early stage
of the Big Bang when densities were very
high. Such objects are thought to have
masses in the range 1014–1023 kg and
may be a candidate for dark matter (see
Astrophysics section 4.5). Estimate the
Schwarzschild radius of a primordial black
hole of mass 1.0 × 1020 kg.

KEY IDEAS
Figure 13 Orbits of stars near the centre of the Milky Way
›› Stars with main-sequence masses greater than
1.4 MSun at the end of their life explode as
Figure 13 shows the orbits of seven stars within a supernovae, leaving either a neutron star or a
region of space 1.0 × 1.0 arcsecond square in the black hole.
direction of the centre of the Milky Way. This image
was processed using the Keck Observatory on Mauna ›› A neutron star is a very dense compact
Kea in Hawaii. The motions of these stars, labelled object consisting almost entirely of neutrons.
SO-1 to SO-20, have been measured over a period Rotating neutron stars are called pulsars
of 15 years. Calculations of their orbital parameters and emit electromagnetic radiation in
provide the best evidence yet that they are in orbit opposite directions.
about a supermassive black hole, which has a mass
4.1 million times the mass of the Sun.

49
3 Stellar Evolution

system, has a sub-type called Type Ia (or 1a). This

›› A black hole is the end state of a massive is thought to originate from a white dwarf star
star. Gravitational compression produces a in a close binary system with a companion star.
volume of space-time with a gravitational field As the companion nears the end of its life and
so intense that the escape velocity exceeds expands into a red giant, the gravity of the white
that of light. dwarf accumulates material from the companion,
›› The event horizon is a boundary around a compressing it to a critical mass and setting
black hole beyond which no light or other off a runaway nuclear reaction that leads to a
radiation can escape and its radius is called supernova explosion.
the Schwarzschild radius, given by Supernovae undergo a rapid increase in
brightness. Their absolute magnitude
2GM
RS = increases rapidly, in less than a day, reaching
c2
a peak absolute magnitude and then dimming
where M is the mass of the body that forms the over a period of several months. A graph of
black hole. absolute magnitude versus time is called a
light curve. The light curves for Type Ia and
›› Gamma ray bursts are highly energetic Type II supernovae are different, and shown in
flashes of gamma rays associated
Figure 14. Type Ia supernovae exhibit a sharp
with supernovae.
maximum in their absolute magnitude and then
›› A supermassive black hole may exist at die away smoothly and gradually. All Type Ia
the centre of all galaxies. One at the centre supernovae explosions occur at the same critical
of our own Galaxy has been inferred from mass, and thus produce very consistent light
the rapid motions of stars near the centre. curves, with the same peak value of absolute
magnitude, –19.3, about 20 days from the beginning
of the collapse.
3.4 TYPE IA SUPERNOVAE AS STANDARD
CANDLES
As we saw in Astrophysics section 3.3, there
are two types of supernova. Type I, produced
when matter accretes onto one star in a binary

20 1010

19
Type Ia supernova
18
Luminosity / solar units

109
Absolute magnitude

17

16
Type II supernova
15 108

14

13
107

0 100 200 300

Time / days

Figure 14 Typical light curves from supernovae. Type Ia supernovae are significantly
brighter, and the rate at which Type Ia and Type II fade away is different. Note that the peak
magnitude defines the time t = 0.

50
 3.4


Astronomers measure large astronomical distances Using the fact that all Type Ia supernovae can be
using bright objects, with a known luminosity and assumed to have a peak absolute magnitude of
absolute magnitude, which act as a standard candle −19.3, then using m − M = 5 log10(d/10) we have
(see Astrophysics section 2.3). Supernovae Type Ia can
therefore be used as standard candles. 10 − (−19.3) = 5 log10 (10d )
We can measure the distance d in parsecs of an object
by measuring its apparent magnitude m using the
29.3 = 5 log10 (10d )
relation m − M = 5 log10(d/10). So, since we know
the absolute magnitude M of a Type Ia supernova,
log10 (10d ) = 5.86
we can calculate how far away it is. At very large log10 d − log1010 = 5.86
distances, we cannot see individual stars in galaxies, log10 d − 1 = 5.86
so Cepheid variables cannot be used as standard log10 d = 6.86
candles for such distances. Supernovae, however,
d = 106.86 = 7.2 Mpc
can be seen in other galaxies (Figure 15) – they emit
so much energy and are so bright that they can be
seen at distances out to 1000 Mpc (3.26 billion light
years), which is a significant fraction of the radius of
the known Universe. Such distances are known as
cosmological distances. QUESTIONS
13. A Type Ia supernova in a distant galaxy is
observed to have a peak apparent magnitude
of 14. Estimate how far away the galaxy is.
14. Explain why Type II supernovae cannot be
used as standard candles whereas Type Ia
supernovae can.

One of the most surprising findings from using Type Ia

supernovae to measure cosmological distances was that
the data suggested, controversially, that the expanding
Universe is accelerating and not slowing down. For this
to happen implies that there is some as-yet undetected
energy permeating the Universe that acts in opposition
to gravity. This has been given the name dark energy
and its origin is currently a mystery to astrophysicists
(see Astrophysics section 4.5).

Figure 15 A Type Ia supernova in a galaxy 55 million light years

from Earth, imaged by the Hubble telescope. Since all Type Ia KEY IDEAS
supernovae have the same peak absolute magnitude, measuring its
apparent magnitude means that we can calculate its distance and ›› Supernovae increase rapidly in absolute magnitude
therefore the distance of its parent galaxy. and then dim over a period of days and months as
described by their light curves.
›› Type Ia supernovae may be used as standard
Worked example candles to estimate cosmological distances.
A Type Ia supernova is observed in another galaxy
with a peak apparent magnitude of+10. Estimate the
›› Such distance measurements have provided
evidence that the expansion of the Universe is
distance of the galaxy from Earth in parsecs.
accelerating. Dark energy, an unknown property
of space permeating the entire Universe, is
thought to be responsible.

51
3 Stellar Evolution

PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. a. The Chandra X-ray Observatory was ii. Sketch the light curve of a typical Type
launched into orbit in 1999. It is used to Ia supernova, on axes of absolute
observe hot and turbulent regions. Explain magnitude against time in days.
why X-ray telescopes need to be in orbit.
d. It is thought that the star ‘IK Pegasi’
b. In 2000, the Chandra telescope was used may explode as a Type Ia supernova at
to observe a black hole in Ursa Major. some stage in the future. IK Pegasi is
i. Explain what is meant by a black hole. 46 pc from Earth. Given its peak value of
absolute magnitude, −19.3, calculate its
ii. The black hole is believed to have a peak apparent magnitude if it explodes.
mass 7 times that of the Sun. Calculate Would we be able to see it in daylight?
the radius of its event horizon. [Take [The apparent magnitude of the full
mass of the Sun = 2.0 × 1030 kg] Moon = −13]
AQA Unit 5A June 2010 Q3 parts a and b 4. Table Q1 shows the spectral class, absolute
and apparent magnitudes of five stars.
2. a. Define the term absolute magnitude.
Star Absolute Apparent Spectral
b. Sketch the axes of a Hertzsprung– magnitude magnitude class
Russell diagram. Mark suitable scales Wolf 359 +16.7 13.5 M
on the absolute magnitude and
Formalhault +2.0 1.2 A
temperature axes.
Achernar −1.0 0.5 B
c. Label a possible position of each of the
Procyon +2.7 0.3 F
following stars on your HR diagram:
Pollux +0.8 1.2 K
i. the Sun
Table Q1
ii. star W, which has the same intrinsic
brightness as the Sun, but has a a. i. Which star appears the brightest?
significantly higher temperature
ii. Which star appears the most dim?
iii. star X, which has a similar spectrum to
the Sun, but is significantly larger iii. Which star is the coolest?

iv. star Y, which is significantly larger than iv. Which star is the hottest?
the Sun and has prominent absorption b. i. Sketch the Hertzsprung–Russell
lines of neutral atoms and titanium (HR) diagram on axes of absolute
oxide (TiO) in its spectrum. magnitude against spectral class, with
d. How does the diameter of star W, in the magnitude scale ranging from +17
part c ii, compare with the diameter of to −10. Label the main sequence,
the Sun? Explain your answer. giant stars, white dwarf stars, and the
position of the Sun.
AQA Unit 5A June 2014 Q3
ii.  Plot the stars in Table Q1 on your HR
3. a. State what is meant by a supernova. diagram.

b. Type II supernovae play a part in the iii.  State the type of the stars you have
evolution of some stars. Describe briefly plotted. Explain what this means about
what causes this to occur and what the stage of evolution the stars are at.
remains of the star following the event. c. 
Estimate the distance from the Earth to Wolf
c. i. Explain why Type Ia supernovae 359 using the data in Table Q1.
can be used as standard candles to
determine distances.

52
 4.2

4 COSMOLOGY
the Universe formed and what might happen to it in
the future.
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
When we use telescopes to look at distant regions
You may need to refresh your understanding of wave of the Universe, we are looking back in time. This is
motion from Chapter 5 of Book 1, including frequency because, although it is high, the speed of light
and wavelength. You will need to use what you learnt (3.00 × 108 m s−1) is finite. It takes light from the
in Astrophysics Chapter 2 about thermal radiation, nearest star about four years to reach us across space.
stellar spectral lines, luminosity and Pogson’s law. Some very distant galaxies are millions or even billions
You may also want to look back to circular motion in
of light years away, and so we see the farthest galaxies
Chapter 1. You will need to be familiar with the use of
as they were in the early Universe – the light that left
astronomical units, such as light year and parsec.
them then is finally reaching us just now (Figure 1).

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
In this chapter you will learn about the observational
evidence and physical principles that underpin
cosmology. You will learn how the Doppler effect
is used to determine whether an object in space is
moving towards or away from us. You will see how
measurement of the velocities of galaxies gave rise to
Hubble’s law and show that the Universe is expanding.
You will examine different types of evidence that
suggest that the Universe began in a hot dense state
that rapidly expanded and formed the stars and
galaxies that we see today. You will find out about
quasars, which are the most distant measurable
objects, and the important recent and ongoing
detection of exoplanets, which are planets orbiting
other stars.
(Specification 3.9.3.1 to 3.9.3.4) Figure 1 The Hubble Ultra Deep Field. This image, taken by the
Hubble space telescope in the direction of the constellation Fornax,
shows an estimated 10 000 distant galaxies. The most distant
objects in the image are over 13 billion light years away, so we see
them when the Universe was just a few million years old.
4.1 WHAT IS COSMOLOGY?
The study of the structure and development of the 4.2 THE DOPPLER EFFECT
Universe as a whole is called cosmology. The task
of the cosmologist is to construct theories of how A vast amount of astrophysical information is available
different phenomena of nature, from small elementary to us because of a seemingly everyday effect of
particles and fundamental forces, right up to very physics. When a high-speed train is coming towards
large-scale structures in the Universe such as clusters you while you are standing on a railway station
of galaxies, all fit together. Observational data and platform, you may have noticed that the note of its
mathematical theory are both needed – often together sound is higher and then drops in frequency as it
with creative inspiration – to try to understand how passes by and starts to recede. This is an example of

53
4 COSMOLOGY

the Doppler effect, named after the 19th century wavelength becomes shortened as a result. Figure 2
Austrian physicist Christian Doppler. shows, for an instant in time, wave fronts (1 to 4) that
have emerged from the train as the train moves from
The reason why this happens is that, when the train
right to left. If the train is receding from you, there are
is approaching, more sound waves per second are
fewer sound waves per second reaching your ears, so
reaching your ears than if the train is stationary, and the
the wavelength is lengthened.

The frequency of the 1 2 3 4 The frequency of the sound

sound of a train is of a train is lower to those it
higher to those waiting has passed.
for it to arrive.

Figure 2 The Doppler effect for sound waves

Since, for a given wave speed, the frequency is on the motion of the object with respect to the
inversely proportional to the wavelength, the observer, the frequency – and hence colour in the case
frequency of the note of an approaching train is of light – is affected. The colour of an approaching
higher, and for a receding train the frequency is lower. light source is a shifted to the blue (shorter
wavelength) than it would otherwise be, and the colour
The same phenomenon occurs with all other types of
of one that is moving away is shifted to the red (longer
waves, including electromagnetic radiation. Depending
wavelength), as shown in Figure 3.

observer observer

• Source moving towards observer • Source moving away from observer

• Wavelength decreased; frequency increased • Wavelength increased; frequency decreased
• Observer sees light blue-shifted • Observer sees light red-shifted
Figure 3 The Doppler effect for light waves

54
 4.2
Doppler shift and the motion of binary stars

The effect depends on the relative motion of the ∆λ λapp − λ v

source and the observer. So, if a light source is = = −
λ λ c
stationary and the observer is moving towards or away
from it, the same shift to the blue or red occurs. Unlike
Here l is the true wavelength of the absorption line,
with sound, we do not generally notice this effect
lapp is the apparent wavelength of the observed
with light, because the relative speed of source and
absorption line on Earth, v is the relative velocity of
observer needs to be very high.
the star and the Earth, and c is the velocity of light.
A consequence of the Doppler effect is that the lines The relative velocity v is taken to be the relative
in a star’s absorption spectrum (see Astrophysics velocity of approach, so that v is positive when the
section 2.5) are shifted when compared to the same two objects are approaching one another and negative
lines as measured in a laboratory (Figure 4). This is if they are receding.
due to the motion of the star relative to the Earth.
The Doppler equation can also be expressed in terms
If the star and the Earth are moving towards each
of the change in frequency:
other, then the wavelengths of the absorption lines
are shortened, that is, shifted towards the blue end of
∆f v
the spectrum (or ‘blue-shifted’), and the effect is called =
f c
blue-shift. Conversely, if the star and the Earth are
moving away from each other, then the wavelengths
These expressions are only valid when v is much less
of the absorption lines are lengthened, that is, moved
than c, since the derivation (see following subsection)
towards the red end of the spectrum (or ‘red-shifted’),
ignores the effects of special relativity. Also note that v
and this is called red-shift.
is the relative velocity along the line of sight.
hydrogen absorption spectrum
The Doppler equation works for shifts in all parts of
the electromagnetic spectrum.

Stretch and challenge

656.2 nm 486.1 nm 434.0 nm 410.1 nm
Derivation of the non-relativistic Doppler
equation
red-shifted hydrogen absorption spectrum
Δλ Δλ Δλ Δλ Suppose an object S emits electromagnetic radiation
of wavelength l, frequency f and speed c, and is
moving at a velocity v towards a stationary observer
where v << c. In a time equal to the wave period T,
the radiation has travelled a distance equal to l, and S
has travelled a distance vT.
blue-shifted hydrogen absorption spectrum
Δλ Δλ Δλ Δλ The wavelength lapp seen by the observer is thus
lapp = l − vT and the change in wavelength Δl is

Δl = lapp − l = −vT

Figure 4 Doppler shift of absorption lines in the hydrogen spectrum But from T = 1/f and c = f × l, we get
from a star. The top diagram shows the hydrogen spectrum from a
λ
source at rest with respect to the observer (that is, the spectrum as T =
observed in a laboratory). The centre diagram shows the observed c
hydrogen lines from the same star red-shifted by an amount Δl
(the star is receding from the observer). The bottom diagram shows so the change in wavelength can be written as
the observed hydrogen lines from a similar star blue-shifted by an
amount Δl (the star is approaching the observer). λ
∆λ = λapp − λ = −v ×
c

The size of the wavelength shift, Δl, depends on the giving finally
relative velocity of the star and the observer. The
∆λ v
relationship is given by the Doppler equation: = −
λ c

55
4 COSMOLOGY

or The quantity ∆λ is termed the Doppler shift and is

λ
λapp = λ 1 − v
c ( ) given the symbol z, so that

∆λ v
z = = −
We can express this in terms of the frequency, so that λ c

For a receding object, v is negative by convention, so z

1
fapp
=
1
f(1 –
v
c ) is positive. Again, these expressions are based on the
non-relativistic approach to the Doppler shift, that is,
f = fapp 1 – ( v
c ) for v << c.

f In terms of frequency,
fapp =
(1 – vc ) z = −
∆f
f
This leads to

∆f = fapp − f Worked example

The hydrogen absorption line from the star Vega
is observed to have a wavelength of 656.255 nm
f
∆f = −f (lapp) compared to the same line in the laboratory
( )
1+ v
c of 656.285 nm. Determine the velocity of the star
Vega relative to the Earth, and state whether it is
approaching us or receding from us.
Since v <<c the denominator is approximately 1 so
we can write this as From the information given we obtain

∆f = f − f 1 + ( vc ) ∆λ = λapp − λ = 656.255 − 656.285 = − 0.030nm

So rearranging the equation for the Doppler shift

so that ∆f = f ()
v
c ∆λ
= −
v
λ c
and ∆f v c∆λ
= v = −
f c λ

Measuring the velocities of stars and substituting numerical values gives

The Doppler effect for light can be used to estimate
the speed at which a distant star is moving relative (3.00 × 108 ) × ( − 0.030 × 10−9 )
v = −
to the Earth (along the line of sight), by looking at 656.258 × 10−9
the change in the wavelengths in the absorption lines = 1.37 × 104 m s −1
of its visible spectrum (Figure 4) compared to their
= 1.4 × 104 m s −1 to 2 s.f.
values measured in a laboratory on Earth.
The Doppler equation states that Since v is positive, Vega is approaching the Earth with
a speed of 14 km s−1.
∆λ λapp − λ v
= = −
λ λ c

where Δλ is the change in wavelength, λ is the true

wavelength of the absorption line, λapp is the apparent
wavelength of the observed absorption line on Earth,
v is the relative velocity of approach of the star and
the Earth, and c is the velocity of light.

56
 4.3
Doppler shift and the motion of binary stars

›› If the star is approaching the Earth, the relative

QUESTIONS velocity v is positive: Δl is then negative and
there is observed blue-shift.
1. A particular spectral line in the spectrum
of a star is found to have a wavelength of ›› If the star is receding from the Earth, the relative
600.80 nm compared to 600.00 nm as velocity v is negative: Δl is then positive and
measured in the laboratory. What is the there is observed red-shift.
velocity of the star? Is it moving towards us
or away from us?
2. The H-alpha spectral line in the hydrogen
spectrum is at 656.00 nm when measured 4.3 DOPPLER SHIFT AND THE MOTION OF
in the laboratory. Star A is observed to have
that line at 656.60 nm, star B at 655.90 nm
BINARY STARS
and star C at 656.40 nm.
The Doppler effect can be used to determine the
a. Which star is moving the fastest relative rotational velocity and the distance between two stars in
to Earth (along the line of sight)? a binary star system (Figure 5). Roughly half the stars
b. What is the direction of motion of each of found are in a binary system, in which two companion
the stars? stars orbit their common centre of mass, with periods
ranging from hours to many thousands of years.
3. Neutral, atomic hydrogen gas in the spiral
arms of the Milky Way emits a spectral
line of wavelength 21cm, which is in the
microwave part of the electromagnetic
spectrum. The spectral line when detected
by a radio telescope in a certain orientation
is observed to be shifted by 0.1mm less
than 21cm. How fast is this part of the
Galaxy moving relative to us along the line
of sight? Is it moving towards us or away
from us?

KEY IDEAS
›› The Doppler effect is a change in observed
frequency when a source of waves is moving
towards or away from an observer.
›› The Doppler shift in a star’s spectral lines,
compared with the same spectral lines observed
in a laboratory on Earth, can be used to measure
its velocity v relative to the Earth, along the line Figure 5 Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, is in a binary system.
Its faint white dwarf companion, Sirius B, is just visible here at the
of sight.
7 to 8 o’clock position. The two stars revolve around a common centre
›› In terms of wavelength, the Doppler shift is of mass, and the distance between them varies from 8.2 to 31.5 AU.

∆λ v The classification of binary stars is dependent upon

z = = −
λ c the nature of the observation (most binaries are not
›› In terms of frequency, the Doppler shift is resolved even with powerful telescopes). Here we
will consider spectroscopic binaries, revealed by the
∆f v Doppler shift of lines in their spectrum. To avoid further
z = − = complications, only eclipsing binaries will be looked
f c
at, which means those whose orbit lies in the same plane

57
4 COSMOLOGY

as the line of sight from Earth. These binary systems can the combined binary image decreases. Eclipsing binaries
be identified by their combined light curve, because, as may be partial (Figure 6a) or total (Figure 6b).
one star eclipses the other, the apparent brightness of
Light intensity

orbital period

Time / days
(a) Partial eclipse
Light intensity

time to
cross disc
of larger star

orbital period

Time / days
(b) Total eclipse
Figure 6 Light curves of eclipsing binaries

Consider a binary system with one bright star and one There will be a blue-shift in the star’s spectral lines when
faint star (as shown by Figure 6b). The absorption lines the star is moving towards the Earth, a red-shift in the
seen from Earth will be Doppler-shifted as the stars spectral lines when the star is moving away from the
rotate about their centre of mass, moving between Earth, and no spectral shift in the lines when the star is
longer and shorter wavelengths in a periodic motion. moving perpendicularly to the line of sight (Figure 7).

B
Two absorption lines shown for whole
system

F B F B
F B

Faint star absorption lines blue shifted

and bright star absorption lines
red shifted
B
F
Two absorption lines shown for whole
system

B F B F
B F
Faint star absorption lines red-shifted
and bright star absorption lines
blue-shifted
line of sight
Figure 7 The sequence of changing positions of spectral lines as two stars rotate about
each other in an eclipsing binary system. B is a bright star and F is a faint star. The amount
of spectral shift depends on the rotational velocity.
58
 4.3
Doppler shift and the motion of binary stars

Analysis of the spectral motion reveals a cyclic Radius of orbit of S2 = R2

movement of a particular absorption line, shifted circumference speed of S2 × T
one way and then the next with a constant period, = =
2π 2π
superimposed on the velocity of the binary system
relative to the Earth. It is possible to calculate the 7.6 × 103 × 5.9 × 106
R2 =
linear velocity along the line of sight and the period, 2π
hence the distance between the two stars using the 9 7.1 × 109 m
= 7.1 × 10 m = = 0.05 AU
mechanics of circular motion (see Chapter 1). 1.5 × 1011m

Therefore, the distance between the stars is the sum of

Worked example the radii of their orbits = 0.24 + 0.05 = 0.29 AU.
Spectroscopic data on a binary star system of two
stars S1 and S2 show that it has a period T = 68 days. Stretch and challenge
The absorption line of calcium is observed to be
double, with a periodic variation. When one line is at
The masses of binary stars
It is possible to calculate the ratio of the masses of
a maximum of 393.45 nm, the other is at a minimum
two binary stars that are in circular orbits. We will
of 393.39 nm. In a laboratory, the absorption line of
assume that:
calcium appears at 393.40 nm. Assuming that the two
stars are in circular orbits around their centre of mass,
1. The stars are perfect spheres.
and are viewed directly along the plane of the orbit,
calculate the distance (in AU) between the two stars. 2. The centre of mass of the binary system lies
on a line joining the centres of the two stars
(Figure 8).
The two components of the spectral line are due to the
motions of the individual stars and they will have the
same rotational periods.

Rotational period T = (68 × 24 × 3600)

centre of mass
= 5.9 × 106 s M2 M1
a2 a1

∆λ 393.40 − 393.45
Speed of S1 = c = 3.00 × 108 ×
λ 393.40
= 3.8 × 104 m s−1
Figure 8 Two binary stars of mass M1 and M2, and their
centre of mass
Speed of S2 = c ∆λ = 3.00 × 108 × 393.40 − 393.39
λ 393.40 The centre of mass of the binary system is the point
= 7.6 × 103 m s−1 where all of the mass (M1 + M2) of the system can be
considered to be located. From the definition of the
(Note that we are not concerned about the signs, as centre of mass,
we are calculating speeds.)
M1 × a1 = M2 × a2
Radius of orbit of S1 = R1
speed of S1 × T So
circumference
= =
2π 2π a1 M
= 2
a2 M1
3.8 × 104 × 5.9 × 106
R1 =
2π If we know the distance between the two stars,
10 3.6 × 1010 m a = a1 + a2, then
= 3.6 × 10 m = = 0.24 AU
1.5 × 1011m
 M1 
a2 =  a
 M1 + M2 

59
4 COSMOLOGY

QUESTIONS KEY IDEAS

4. An eclipsing binary system consists of star X ›› Binary stars are two stars that orbit each other.
and star Y, orbiting one another. ›› Eclipsing binaries are those that we view in the
a. Figure 9 is a graph showing how the plane of their orbit.
spectral line at wavelength l = 477 nm
from the system changes due to the
›› The linear velocity, angular velocity and distance
apart of eclipsing binaries can be calculated using
Doppler effect during one full period of
the periodic Doppler shift in their spectral lines.
revolution of the stars.

0.150
0.120 4.4 THE RECESSION OF GALAXIES AND
QUASARS
Δ λ / nm
0 9 t / days 18 Observations of distant galaxies cannot be resolved
into individual stars. The light from the whole galaxy is
analysed. In the vast majority of cases, the absorption
–0.120
star X (or emission) spectra from distant galaxies are found
–0.150
star Y to be red-shifted (Figure 11). This indicates that all
of these galaxies are moving away from us and so is
Figure 9
evidence of an expanding Universe. The red-shift is
i. Why are the curves not identical? given by
ii. Explain why the two curves are exactly v
z = −
out of phase. c
iii. Calculate the maximum linear speed of
where v is the galaxy’s recession velocity relative to
star X.
our own Galaxy, the Milky Way. Note that z is positive
b. Figure 10 shows a plot of how the for a red-shift, since recession velocity is taken to be
brightness of the binary pair, seen as an negative (see Astrophysics section 4.2). This equation,
unresolved single star, varies with time. however, is only valid if v < 0.1c.
Use this graph to explain why the shape
of the curve of star X in Figure 9 is not the
same as that of star Y.
560
Brightness

39 300 Bootes

0 9 18 27
870
Time / days
Figure 10
61 200 Hydra
Figure 11 The optical spectra for two elliptical galaxies. Both have
Stretch and challenge been taken with the same magnification. The yellow arrow indicates
a pair of dark absorption lines that are shifted to longer wavelengths
5. What is the ratio of the masses of the two
(red-shifted). The figures on the right give the distance of the galaxy in
stars S1 and S2 in the previous worked Mpc and those below each spectrum give the recession velocity
example? in km s−1.

60
 4.4
The recession of galaxies and quasars

Worked example 1
The K absorption line in singly ionised calcium QUESTIONS
normally has a wavelength of 393.4 nm. In a
6. Measurements of the red-shift of the 21cm
spectrum from galaxy NGC 4889, the line occurs at
H1 line in the spectrum of galaxy M84
401.8 nm. Determine the red-shift of this galaxy and
suggest that the galaxy is receding from
the recession velocity.
us at a velocity of 900 km s−1.Calculate the
value of the red-shift z for galaxy M84.
Here we have l = 393.4 nm and lapp = 401.8 nm,
and therefore 7. An absorption line of calcium usually has a
wavelength of 393.4 nm, but it is observed
∆λ = λapp − λ = 401.8 − 393.4 = 8.4 nm
in a distant galaxy to have a wavelength of
820.9 nm. What is the red-shift? Comment
The red-shift z and recession velocity v are
on your answer.
∆λ 8 .4
z == = 0.0214
λ 393.4
v = −cz = −3.00 × 10 × 0.0214 = −6.42 × 106 m s −1
8

Stretch and challenge

Relativistic red-shift
The galaxy Hydra (see Figure 11) shows a recession To account for observed z values greater than 1, a
velocity of 61 000 km s−1, which is 0.2c and above the relativistic red-shift equation needs to be used that
threshold for an accurate determination of v (which takes into account the effects of special relativity. The
is 0.1c). In this case, an error in excess of 12% is relativistic red-shift equation is
introduced. To derive a more accurate value of v and
hence z, a relativistic Doppler equation has to be v
1+
used – that is, one that takes account of the effects of z = c −1
special relativity. Very distant galaxies are observed to v
1−
c
have red-shifts significantly greater than 1, so clearly
v
z = − will not be valid because it would give a speed where v is the recession velocity.
c
greater than c.
Quasars are very luminous objects (see Figure 17 Worked example 2
in Astrophysics section 4.7) whose spectra show very A spectral line observed in the hydrogen spectrum of
broad absorption lines and high red-shifts (Figure 12). a very distant galaxy has a wavelength of 1032.0 nm.
Values of z have been observed in excess of 7, which The value of the line in the laboratory is 91.2 nm.
means that the recession velocity is a significant fraction Calculate the red-shift and show that the recession
of the speed of light. Quasars are thought to be the velocity is less than c.
most distant objects in the Universe. We will consider
them in further detail in Astrophysics section 4.7. The red-shift is

∆λ 1032.0 − 91.2
z = = = 10.3
Hδ Hγ Hβ λ 91.2
3C 273 red-shift

Rearranging the relativistic red-shift equation and

blue red then squaring both sides gives

v
1+
2
( z + 1) = c
v
laboratory 1−
spectrum Hδ Hγ Hβ c
388.9nm 501.6nm 603.0nm
Figure 12 Spectrum of quasar 3C 273 showing hydrogen lines.
Notice the large size of the red-shift and the broad widths of the three
hydrogen spectral lines marked as Hδ, Hγ and Hβ.

61
4 COSMOLOGY

and then rearranging this to give v in terms of z and c

results in
4.5 HUBBLE’S LAW
( z + 1)2 − 1 The spectra of all galaxies, apart from a few very near
−1
v =   × c ms to our own Milky Way, show red-shift. A plot of the
 ( z + 1)2 + 1
recession velocity against distance for galaxies is close
to a straight line (Figure 13) and is called a Hubble
Using the calculated value of z in this last diagram, named after Edwin Hubble, who published
expression gives the relationship in 1929. Hubble had measured the
distances of Cepheid variables (see Astrophysics
(10.3 + 1)2 − 1 8 −1 section 2.3) out to distances of about 20 Mpc (Figure
v =   × 3.00 × 10 m s
 (10.3 + 1)2 + 1 13a). Recent observational data has extended this to
= 2.95 × 108 m s −1 include galaxies as far distant as 5000 Mpc (Figure
13b), where recession velocities are extremely high,
so the relativistic expression is used to determine the
In fact, cosmologists do not think of distant galaxies recession velocity from the red-shift.
or quasars as moving through space away from us (a)
at such high speeds, but regard space itself to be
2000
expanding, and the light waves being stretched along
with it. The wavelength of light will increase as it
crosses the expanding Universe, between its point
Red-shift / km s–1

of emission and where it is detected, by the same

amount that space has expanded during the crossing 1000
time. This gives rise to a ‘cosmological red-shift’, which
is governed by general relativity. The Doppler red-shift
and the cosmological red-shift cannot be distinguished
from one another by observing the spectrum of the
light source. 0
0 10 20
Distance / Mpc
(b)
3×105
KEY IDEAS
›› The light from all observable distant galaxies is
red-shifted, and this is evidence that the Universe
Red-shift / km s–1

2×105
is expanding.
›› The size of the red-shift z = Δl/l gives a galaxy’s
recession velocity, which is its outward velocity
relative to the Milky Way. For v < 0.1c 1×105

v
z = −
c

›› For v > 0.1c, a relativistic red-shift equation is 0

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000
needed to calculate the recession velocity. Distance / Mpc

›› Quasars are highly luminous objects that Figure 13 (a) Hubble’s original data (replotted) showing the
exhibit high values of red-shift, indicating high recession velocity of 28 nearby galaxies against their distance. The
line of best fit indicates a Hubble constant of 68  kms−1 Mpc−1.
recession velocities.
Notice that some galaxies exhibited a small blue-shift. (b) Recent
galactic data. Hubble’s original data were confined to distances in the
region between 0 and 20Mpc.

The data show that the rate at which a galaxy recedes

is directly proportional to its distance from us, that is,

62
 4.5
Hubble's law

v = Hd ∆f v
=
km s−1
where v is the recession velocity in and d is the f c
distance of the galaxy in Mpc. This is called Hubble’s
Rearranging gives
law and the constant of proportionality H (sometimes
denoted by H0) is the Hubble constant, which is v 1.65 × 107
determined from the gradient of a Hubble diagram. ∆f = f × = 120 × = 6.6 GHz
c 3.0 × 108
Current best estimates give H = 67.3 km s−1 Mpc−1.
However, this value is constantly under review as more Measured frequency = f − Δf = 120 − 6.6
data are collected. = 113.4 GHz
Note that the SI unit for H is s−1. To get H in
SI units, v has to be in m s−1 and d in m Hubble’s law is a simple statement but with huge
(1 Mpc = 3.09 × 1022 m). consequences. It states that the Universe is expanding,
Once a value of a distant galaxy’s recession velocity and is observational evidence in support of Einstein’s
is known, Hubble’s law can be used to estimate mathematical predictions. An expanding Universe means
its distance. that it is cooling down – so the further back in time, the
smaller and hotter the Universe was. This implied to
Worked example 1 theoretical physicists that at a time t = 0 the Universe
came into being from an infinitely hot, infinitely dense
a. The size of the recession velocity for the galaxy point (called a singularity, a mathematical concept
NGC 4889 has been determined to be that appeared in Einstein’s equations) and has been
v = 6420 km s−1. Calculate its distance in Mpc. expanding ever since. This is the Big Bang theory,
Take H = 67.3 km s−1 Mpc−1. sometimes now called the Hot Big Bang (HBB) model.

b. How does this compare with a galaxy with a

recession velocity of 2.83 × 108 m s−1?
QUESTIONS

a. d = v = 6420 = 95.4 Mpc 8. Show that the reciprocal of the Hubble

H 67.3 constant has the unit of second.
5
b. d = v = 2.83 × 10 = 4205 Mpc 9. The radial velocity of the Coma cluster
H 67.3 of galaxies has been measured at
7200 km s−1. What is the distance to the
Worked example 2 cluster? [Take H = 67.3 km s−1 Mpc−1]

A source of radio waves is carbon monoxide molecules 10. a. 

The graph in Figure 14 shows the
in the gas clouds of a galaxy. When measured from a recession velocity against distance for a
laboratory-based source, these waves have a frequency number of galaxies. Estimate from it the
of 120 GHz. What is the frequency of the waves detected value of the Hubble constant.
from the galaxy if it is 800 million light years away?
[Take the Hubble constant H to be 67.3 km s−1 Mpc−1] 200
–1
Vrecessional / km s

Distance of galaxy from Earth d = 800 million light

years = 800 × 106 × 9.46 × 1015 m = 7.57 × 100
1024 m = (7.57 × 1024)/(3.09 × 1022) = 245 Mpc.
Using Hubble’s law, we find that the galaxy has a
0
recession velocity of 0 1 2 3
Distance / Mpc
v = Hd = 67.3 × 245 = 16 500 km s−1
Figure 14
= 1.65 × 107 m s−1
We can use the non-relativistic Doppler equation, as b. What is the distance, in Mpc, of a galaxy
the speed is about 0.06c, so with z = 0.002? Use your value of H
obtained from part a.

63
4 COSMOLOGY

The age of the Universe › Objects would appear brighter than predicted
An accurate value of the Hubble constant, and the (since they would be closer than predicted because
assumption that this has remained constant through of the decreasing expansion rate).
all time, allows an estimate of the age of the Universe.
Recent systematic observations of Type Ia supernovae
If in time t a galaxy has moved outwards a distance d
(which act as standard candles – see Astrophysics
at velocity v, then
section 3.4) in distant galaxies have shown clearly that
d they are less bright than expected. This shows that
t =
v they are further from us than predicted by Hubble’s
law – the light from them has taken longer to reach us
But from Hubble’s law we have than predicted by a constant rate of expansion. These
data indicate that the rate of expansion is not steady
v = Hd and is certainly not slowing, but is accelerating.
Studies of the cosmological microwave background
So, if we assume H has been constant, then (see Astrophysics section 4.6) have also shown clear
evidence for an accelerating Universe.
d 1
time (age of Universe) = =
v H The consequence of this acceleration is that the
Universe is actually older than predicted by the
Here H needs to have unit s−1. Taking Hubble law. (Strictly speaking, the Hubble constant
H = 67.3 km s−1 Mpc−1, using 1 Mpc = 3.09 × 1022 m, is known as the ‘Hubble parameter’, because
we obtain its value decreases with time as the Universe’s
expansion accelerates.)
H = 2.18 × 10−18 s −1
Cosmologists were puzzled as to what could be
This gives the estimated age of the Universe as driving this acceleration. The cause did not appear
to be either matter or radiation, and is still at
present unknown. Several possibilities have been put
1
= 4.59 × 1017 s = 14.5 billion years forward, including the notion of dark energy. This is
H
a postulated energy that exerts an overall repulsive
effect throughout the Universe, causing ‘empty’
In the limit that v = c, it is possible to determine the
space to expand, and its effect increases as the
distance to the edge of the observable Universe. Using
Universe expands.
H = 67.3 km s−1 Mpc−1 and the relativistic equation
for red-shift gives a distance of approximately Astrophysicists are not sure what dark energy is,
14 600 Mpc. but it is likely that it is a quantum field phenomenon
and is related to the ‘cosmological constant’. This
Rate of expansion of the Universe was a mathematical term introduced by Einstein
The Hubble constant is one of the most fundamental that denotes the value of the energy density of the
quantities of nature, as it specifies the rate of vacuum of space and was originally postulated to
expansion of the entire Universe. Only if the Universe make his equations of general relativity work. While
has been expanding uniformly with time is H dark energy opposes the force of gravity, it adds to the
constant. There has been considerable controversy total mass–energy density within the Universe. Dark
in the past over whether the expansion of the matter emits no radiation, so is difficult to measure –
Universe is steady or is slowing down. If the rate of its presence is inferred by the movement of galaxies.
expansion of the Universe were decreasing, as might Current experimental data estimate that the Universe
be expected because of the effects of gravity, then is composed of 27% matter (mostly unobserved dark
there would be some deviations from the predictions matter – see the introduction to Chapter 1 of Year 1
of Hubble’s law: Student Book) and 73% dark energy, resulting in an
ever-expanding Universe.
› More distant objects would be seen to be receding
faster (since the expansion was faster in the past).

64
 4.6
Evidence for the Big Bang

very early Universe through the so-called cosmological

microwave background (or cosmic microwave
QUESTIONS background). The HBB model (see Astrophysics section
4.5) predicts that high-energy (gamma) electromagnetic
11. a. There is some uncertainty in the value of
radiation produced around t ≈ 300 000 years should
H: (71 ± 10%) km s−1 Mpc−1. If a galaxy
still be observed today, but owing to the expansion
is moving away from us with a recession
of the Universe should be red-shifted down to the
velocity of 5500 km s−1, calculate its
millimetre wavelength (microwave) region. This isotropic
maximum and minimum distance
(coming from all directions equally) ‘background’
from us.
radiation was accidentally picked up by Arno Penzias
b. 
How is the estimated age of the Universe and Robert Wilson in the 1960s. Penzias and Wilson
affected by this range of values for H? were working at Bell Telephone Laboratories in New
[Take 1 Mpc=3.1 × 1019 km] Jersey, USA, using a microwave antenna designed for
12. Suppose that the Universe stopped satellite communications. As they pointed the antenna
expanding and started contracting. What towards the sky, their receiver detected a faint ‘hiss’
feature in the spectra of galaxies would coming from all directions that was highly isotropic,
enable us to tell that this had happened? constant in time and could be detected at any time of
day and year. What they had found was a relic of the Big
Bang – the thermal radiation from the Big Bang itself!
The thermal intensity of the spectrum fitted perfectly to
a black-body curve corresponding to a temperature of
KEY IDEAS
2.73 K (see Astrophysics section 2.4).
›› Hubble’s law results from observational data In 1989 a satellite called the Cosmic Background
and states that the recession velocity of a distant
Explorer (COBE) was launched, which carried out highly
galaxy is proportional to its distance:
accurate measurements of the cosmological microwave
v = Hd background (CMB) and determined the precise
distribution of microwave radiation in the Universe.
and implies that the Universe is expanding.
This confirmed a peak wavelength lmax corresponding
The constant of proportionality H is the Hubble
to a black-body temperature of 2.725 K and is exactly
constant, usually expressed in km s−1 Mpc−1.
what is expected if this radiation was emitted in
›› The Hubble constant, if assumed constant the gamma region of the electromagnetic spectrum
through time, gives an estimate of the age of the soon after the Big Bang when the Universe was very
Universe as t = 1/H, where H is in s−1. small and very hot. It also showed fluctuations in the
temperature of the microwave background. These tiny
›› There is evidence to suggest that the Universe is fluctuations reflect tiny energy-density variations in the
actually accelerating and is older than Hubble’s
early Universe sufficient for gravitational forces to act
law predicts.
and to ‘seed’ the formation of the galaxies we observe
›› As the expansion of the Universe accelerates, today. The successor to COBE is the Microwave
the value of the Hubble constant will decrease Anisotropy Project, now called the Wilkinson
with time. Microwave Anisotropy Project (WMAP), which permits
much more accurate measurements of the temperature
differences in the microwave background (Figure 15).

4.6 EVIDENCE FOR THE BIG BANG Although the temperature of the CMB is almost
completely uniform at 2.7 K, there are very tiny
We have seen that the Big Bang theory was developed variations in the temperature of the order of 10−5 K,
as a result of Einstein’s mathematics and Hubble’s which appear on the maps in Figure 15 as cooler blue
observational data. More recently, there has been and warmer red patches. The key findings of WMAP
further evidence to support the theory. were that a more accurate age of the Universe could be
established as 13.7 billion years ± 0.2 billion years, a
Cosmological microwave background more accurate date for when the first stars formed –
Crucial evidence for the Hot Big Bang (HBB) model only a few million years after the Big Bang, and solid
includes precise measurements of the remnants of the evidence that the Universe will expand for ever.

65
4 COSMOLOGY

(a)

(b)

Figure 15 The variations in the cosmological microwave background as seen by the COBE (a) and WMAP (b) missions. COBE was the first
mission to see the small variations in temperature from one region to another in the CMB. WMAP, whose instruments have temperature
sensitivity a thousand times greater, made more detailed observations of these temperature variations.

Hydrogen and helium abundances approximately 100 s after the Big Bang. Owing to the
Hydrogen and helium account for nearly all the matter immense temperatures and pressures, nuclear fusion
in the Universe that we observe today. The relative reactions converted hydrogen into helium, resulting in a
abundance, by mass, of these elements in the ratio of hydrogen to helium of 3 : 1. Then, owing to the
Universe is 25% helium and 73% hydrogen, with all rapid expansion of the Universe, temperatures dropped
the other elements amounting to 2%. These observed below those required to sustain fusion. As a result,
values, determined from the spectral characteristics of nucleosynthesis lasted only for about three minutes.
stars, are consistent with the HBB model of hydrogen A quarter of the atomic hydrogen had been converted
formation and the fusion of hydrogen into helium into helium-4. No elements heavier than lithium
in the very early Universe, and provides very strong could synthesise (Figure 16). All the heavier elements,
evidence to support the Big Bang theory. including those of which the planets and you and I are
made, were created later by long-lived fusion processes
The HBB model predicts that primordial
inside stars and were dispersed across the interstellar
nucleosynthesis, the process by which the
medium by supernovae (see Astrophysics section 3.3).
lightest elements such as H and He formed, began

66
 4.7
Quasars

Time / s
2
10 10 103 104
1
protons
4
neutrons 2 He
10–2
2
1H

Fraction of total mass

10–4
3
2 He 3
10–6 1H

neutrons
10–8
7
2 4 Be
1H
10–10
7
3 Li 6
3 Li
10–12
3 × 109 1 × 109 3 × 108 1 × 108
Temperature / K
Figure 16 The abundance of elements up to three hours after the Big Bang. At extremely high temperatures (greater than 1×109 K), only free
4
protons and neutrons exist. As the Universe expands and cools, deuterium 21H , an isotope of hydrogen, and helium 2 He are formed, resulting
in a decrease in the number of free protons and neutrons. Very small amounts of beryllium and lithium are also synthesised. By about 300s,
25% by mass of the matter in the Universe is in the form of helium nuclei, and the synthesis of these light elements is complete, leading to the
abundances we observe in the Universe today.

QUESTIONS KEY IDEAS

13. The cosmological microwave background ›› The Big Bang theory or Hot Big Bang (HBB)
has a thermal black-body spectrum at a model states that the Universe came into being
temperature of 2.725 K. What is its peak from an infinitely hot, infinitely dense point called
emission wavelength? How does this explain a singularity and has been expanding ever since.
the name of the background radiation? ›› The cosmological microwave background and the
14. a. Explain how the observed abundances relative abundances of hydrogen and helium are
of hydrogen and helium are seen as strong evidence for the Big Bang theory.
evidence for the Big Bang.
b. The early Universe contained only light
elements (Figure 16). However, at the
present time, there are large amounts of 4.7 QUASARS
heavier elements. Explain this.
Stretch and challenge The name ‘quasar’ originated from the term
‘quasi-stellar radio source’. These were star-like
15. The Big Bang theory postulates that, as objects, but with unusually strong radio emission.
the Universe cooled after the Big Bang, Only about a quarter of all quasars known today are
there were seven protons created for every predominantly radio emitters, so quasars are now
neutron. Show that this predicts that the also known as ‘quasi-stellar objects’ (or QSOs). Many
helium abundance by mass in the early emit most of their energy in the infrared. Quasars
Universe was 25%. are distinguished by extremely large red-shifts (see
Figure 11) and are therefore believed to be some of
the most distant objects in the known Universe. More
than 30 000 quasars have been detected, many with
red-shifts well in excess of 0.1c, giving recession

67
4 COSMOLOGY

velocities in excess of 4 × 107 m s−1 and hence, from

Hubble’s law, distances of more than 700 Mpc. The
farthest quasar detected is some 9000 Mpc away. QUESTIONS
Optically, quasars are very faint and star-like, but You may need to refer back to Astrophysics sections
application of the inverse square law (see Astrophysics 2.1 and 2.2 to answer these questions.
section 2.1) reveals them to be amongst the brightest
objects in the Universe. Quasar 3C 273 (Figure 17) 16. A quasar is found to lie at a distance of
has a luminosity of about 1040 W, comparable to 5 × 109 pc from the Earth. To have the same
20 trillion Suns, and this is typical of many quasars. apparent magnitude as the quasar, the Sun
Overall, quasar luminosities range from 1038 to would need to be placed a distance of
1042 W. One quasar may emit hundreds or even 3 × 103 pc from the Earth. Using the inverse
thousands of times the entire power output of square law, calculate the ratio of luminosity
our Galaxy. of the quasar to that of the Sun.

Quasar 3C 273 (Figure 17) was the first quasar to be 17. The absolute magnitude of the Milky Way
identified. The hydrogen Balmer line from the quasar has been estimated at−20.5. The apparent
is measured at a wavelength of 760 nm, compared magnitude of quasar 3C 273 is 13. A
to its value in a laboratory on Earth of 656 nm. This distance measurement of 3C 273 puts it at
gives a z value of 0.158. The relativistic equation for a distance of 749 Mpc.
red-shift needs to be used to calculate its recession a. What is the absolute magnitude of
velocity. This works out to be 43 600 km s−1. From 3C 273?
Hubble’s law, its distance from the Earth is then
b. How much brighter is 3C 273 than the
calculated as
Milky Way?
d = 43 600/67.3 = 646 Mpc

KEY IDEAS
›› Quasars are extremely luminous objects with
high red-shifts and lie at very great distances.
›› They are believed to be the powerful cores of
distant galaxies, powered by matter falling into
a supermassive black hole.

4.8 EXOPLANETS
Figure 17 The quasar 3C 273 imaged by the Hubble space
telescope. It lies in an elliptically shaped galaxy in the constellation An exoplanet (or extrasolar planet) is a planet that
Virgo, and has a red-shift z of 0.158.
orbits a star other than the Sun. Exoplanets were first
discovered in 1992, when two planets were observed
Quasars are now regarded by astrophysicists to be
orbiting a pulsar. The discovery of the first planet
part of a class of objects known as ‘active galactic
orbiting a main-sequence star was made in 1995, when
nuclei’ (AGN). These are intensely bright, powerful
a giant planet was found in a four-day orbit around the
cores of distant galaxies, powered by a huge disc of
star 51 Pegasi in the constellation Pegasus. Since then,
particles surrounding and falling into a supermassive
nearly 2000 exoplanets have been discovered, some of
black hole. As material from this disc falls inwards,
them Earth-like, and many more await confirmation.
some quasars – including 3C 273 – have been
observed to fire off super-fast jets into the surrounding As planets only reflect the light of the star around
space. In Figure 17 you can see one of these jets which they orbit, they are much fainter than the star
streaming away (bottom right) as a cloudy streak, and so are lost in its glare and very difficult to detect
which measures some 200 000 light years in length. directly. A few have been imaged directly – see the

68
 4.8
Exoplanets

introduction to the Astrophysics option unit. Most Note that a radial velocity curve shows the velocity
have been found using indirect methods that involve of the star. The period of the exoplanet causing the
tiny but measurable effects of the exoplanet on its wobble is equal to the period of the radial velocity
parent star. curve. Velocity measurements allow determination of
the size and shape of the orbits of an extrasolar planet
Discovering exoplanets – the radial as well as a lower limit of the planet’s mass. (They
velocity method provide only a lower limit on planetary mass, because
We think of a planet in orbit around a star, but, in fact, they measure just the component of the star’s motion
because each exerts a gravitational force on the other, towards and away from the Earth.)
they both orbit around the centre of mass of the star–
planet system (Figure 18). Since the mass of the star
is by far the larger, the centre of mass of the system
will be very close to the centre of mass of the star QUESTIONS
(perhaps even within the star itself) and the star will
be observed to ‘wobble’ as it moves around this point. 18. Figure 19 shows the radial velocity variation
This wobbling effect will also show up as a Doppler measured using Doppler spectroscopy of
shift in the star’s spectral lines. a star being orbited by a single imaginary
exoplanet moving in a circular orbit.
a. What is the maximum variation in
radial velocity?
star planet b. Where is the centre of mass of the
to Earth X
planet–star system likely to be?
c. What is the orbital period of the planet?
d. Estimate the radius of the orbit of the
Figure 18 A star–planet system orbits around its centre of mass
stars wobble. With reference to the
indicated by X orbital period of the plant suggest
whether it is close to, or distant from the
parent star
The radial velocity method in the search for planets
looks for periodic variation in Doppler shift in the star’s
spectral lines superimposed on its radial velocity either Discovering exoplanets – the transit method
away from or towards the Earth (similar to that observed The transit method for discovering exoplanets
for binary stars; see Astrophysics section 4.3). The works by detecting a dimming in the star’s brightness
Doppler shift is used to calculate the radial (line-of-sight) as an exoplanet moves across its disc, perpendicular
velocity of the star as it moves about the centre of mass, to our line of sight – called a transit. From Earth,
and a radial velocity curve can be constructed, as shown both Mercury and Venus occasionally transit the Sun.
in Figure 19. When they do, they look like tiny black dots passing
across the bright surface. The same effect for other
100 stars and an exoplanet gives a very small decrease in
brightness – if a distant star was transited by a planet
75
the size of Jupiter, the brightness would be reduced
Radial velocity V / ms–1

50
by about 1%, and this can be detected using sensitive
25 instruments. A light curve is produced, as shown in
0 Figure 20.
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0
–25 The decrease in observed brightness allows the radius
–50 of the exoplanet to be calculated if the radius of the
–75 parent star is known. If the star has a radius rstar and
the planet has radius rplanet, the fractional drop in
–100
Time t / years brightness will be
Figure 19 The radial velocity of a star as it moves around the centre 2
of mass due to the presence of an exoplanet. The period of the curve
2
πrplanet 2
rplanet r 
is equal to the orbital period of the exoplanet. 2
= 2
=  planet 
πrstar rstar r
 star 

69
4 COSMOLOGY

1 2 3 using the radial velocity method have also been

confirmed by observing transits.
planet

star

1 light curve
Brightness

Time
Figure 20 Decrease in observed brightness of a star as an exoplanet
moves across its disc

The Kepler space observatory (Figure 21) uses the

transit method as it scans many thousands of stars in Figure 21 Within a few years of operating, the Kepler space
observatory had discovered three Earth-like planets. Kepler-438b and
the Milky Way. Observable transits, when the orbital
Kepler-44b are about the size of the Earth and are likely to be rocky.
configuration is suitable, occur infrequently, but many Kepler-440b is termed a ‘super-Earth’ – it has a mass substantially
exoplanets called ‘hot Jupiters’ have been found in this higher than the Earth but less than that of our solar system’s gas
way, and a few Earth-like ones. Exoplanets discovered giants, and may also be rocky.

Worked example a. About one-fifth of a day, so about 5 hours

Figure 22 shows the light curve of an exoplanet in b. About 2.25 days
transit across a distant star.
c. Decrease in brightness is
a. Approximately how long does it take the
exoplanet to cross the star’s disc? 1 − 0.9930
× 100% = 0.7%
1
b. What is the orbital period of the exoplanet?
This suggests quite a large exoplanet, but somewhat
c. By what percentage is the light of the parent
smaller in size than Jupiter, assuming the star is a
star reduced? What size of exoplanet does
similar size to the Sun.
this suggest?

1.0000
Normalised brightness of star

0.9980

0.9960

0.9940

–0.5 0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0

Time / days
Figure 22

70
 4.8
Exoplanets

QUESTIONS
19. What factors make the detection of transit a. Estimate the radius of the exoplanet Kepler-
exoplanets difficult? 7b. How big is it relative to Jupiter? [Take
the radius of Jupiter as 70 000 km]
20. Figure 23 shows the reduction in brightness of
the exoplanet Kepler-7b as it passes in front of b. Estimate the transit time of Kepler-7b across
its parent star Kepler 7. The radius of Kepler 7 the surface of Kepler 7.
is 1.8 times the radius of the Sun. [Take the c. What additional information would be
radius of the Sun as 7.0 × 105 km] needed to work out the orbital period of
Kepler-7b?

1.000
Brightness

0.995

0.990

–4 0 4
Time / hours
Figure 23

KEY IDEAS
›› An exoplanet is a planet orbiting a star other than of the star, due to the gravitational force the planet
the Sun. While some can be directly imaged, most exerts on it causing it to move round the centre of
methods of detecting them rely on the effect they mass and hence wobble as seen from Earth.
have on their parent star.
›› The transit method relies on the passage of the
›› The radial velocity method allows the detection of planet across the star dimming its brightness.
an exoplanet by Doppler shifts in the spectral lines

ASSIGNMENT 1: SEARCHING FOR EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL LIFE

(MS 0.1, MS 0.2, MS 2.3) conditions for life to exist on an exoplanet and how
we might look for Earth-type worlds.
The discovery of exoplanets raises the intriguing
possibility as to whether any of them may support Life on Earth needs energy and water. Most
life. Currently, the only place in the Universe where living things on Earth contain carbon, and carbon
life is known to exist is on Earth. So, as a logical compounds form complex molecules that are
starting point in the search for life, we can see if essential for the assembly of living organisms. Liquid
there are exoplanets that may be Earth-like. In this water is essential, as it acts as a solvent for the
assignment, you will consider some of the necessary mixing of carbon compounds. Water is also involved

71
4 COSMOLOGY

in delivering essential vitamins and nutrients from Equating the two gives
food to cells so they can metabolise and reproduce.
Our bodies are made up of nearly 60% water, and Lstar
d =
we would not be able to survive for more than a few 4 πσTp4
days without it.
In looking for life on other planets, a fundamental Questions
assumption is made that life elsewhere in the
Universe is similar to that on Earth inasmuch as it is A3 a. Calculate the maximum and minimum
carbon-based and needs liquid water. distances in AU from the Sun for
the range of temperatures for which
Questions liquid water can exist on Earth.
[Luminosity of Sun = 3.90 × 1026 W;
A1 Carbon has four valence electrons. From
1 AU = 1.50 × 1011 m]
your knowledge of GCSE Chemistry, suggest
why carbon is very common in living things b. Published values are about
on Earth. dmax = 1.5 AU and dmin = 0.7 AU. Suggest
why your answers are likely to be
A2 Where has all the carbon on Earth an overestimate.
come from?
c. Using the published values in part b
On Earth, water exists in liquid form at a for the habitable zone, how close is the
temperature T between 0 and 100 °C (between Earth to the edges of the zone?
about 273 and 373 K). In the search for life-bearing
A4 The Kepler space observatory was designed
exoplanets, astronomers define a region around a
to look for exoplanets. In 2014, using
star called the ‘habitable zone’, which is the range
the transit method, Kepler discovered an
of distances from a star in which liquid water could
exoplanet Kepler-186f orbiting a red dwarf
exist. To determine this, consider the simplest case
star called Kepler 186. The distance of
of a single planet at a distance d in a circular orbit
Kepler-186f from the red dwarf is estimated
around a star with luminosity Lstar.
at 0.37 AU. The luminosity of the red dwarf
The intensity radiated or absorbed by a black body is about 0.04 times that of the Sun. Explain
is related to its effective temperature by Stefan’s whether you think liquid water could exist
law, I = σT4 (see Astrophysics Chapter 2). We can on Kepler-186f.
model a planet as being like a black body that is in
A5 Why is it important, if planets are
equilibrium. To maintain its surface temperature,
to support life, for their orbits to be
the rate of energy radiated from it must be equal to
nearly circular?
the rate of energy absorbed. So a planet of surface
temperature Tp must receive an intensity from its A6 Astrobiologists are scientists who study the
parent star equal to origin, evolution, distribution and future of
life in the Universe. Many astrobiologists
I = σTp4 think that K-type stars, which have
main-sequence lifetimes greater than that of
The intensity at distance d from a star with the Sun, may be good candidates for finding
luminosity Lstar is life on planets existing within their habitable
zones. Suggest a reason why they think this.
Lstar
l =
4 πd 2

72
 4.8
Practice questions

PRACTICE QUESTIONS
You will need to refer to the Data section at the end 5. TRAPPIST is a robotic telescope designed to
of this book. detect exoplanets, which are planets outside
our solar system.
1. The Antennae galaxies are a pair of colliding a. The charge coupled device (CCD) attached
galaxies in the constellation Corvus. to TRAPPIST has a quantum efficiency
Measurements of the red-shift of radio of 96% for light of wavelength 750 nm.
signals from the galaxies suggest they are Explain what is meant by the quantum
approximately 25 Mpc from the Earth. efficiency of a CCD.
a. Explain what is meant by red-shift. b. i. The optical arrangement of the
b. Calculate the recession velocity of the telescope includes an objective mirror
Antennae galaxies. of diameter 0.60 m.
Calculate the minimum angular
AQA Unit 5A June 2011 Q3 part a
separation of two objects which can be
2. Ursa Minor contains the galaxy NGC 6251. resolved by the telescope for light of
Measurements indicate that the light from the wavelength 750 nm.
galaxy has a red-shift, z, of 0.025 and that the ii. One of the nearest exoplanets orbits
galaxy is 340 million light years from Earth. the star Epsilon Eridani, which is
a. Use these data to calculate a value for the 10.5 light years from Earth. The
Hubble constant. exoplanet has an elliptical orbit,
whose orbital radius varies from 1 AU
b. Use your answer to part a to estimate a
to 5 AU. Calculate the maximum
value for the age of the Universe. State an
angular separation of the star and the
appropriate unit for your answer.
planet when viewed from a distance of
AQA Unit 5A June 2013 Q4 part b 10.5 light years.
iii. TRAPPIST detects the presence of
3. M
 easurements of the shift in the 21 cm H1 exoplanets by measuring the reduction
line in the spectrum of galaxy M84 suggests in light intensity that occurs as the
that it is receding at a velocity of 900 km s−1. planet passes in front of the star.
a. Calculate the value of the red-shift, z, for Explain why it is unlikely that the
this galaxy. telescope could be used to observe
such planets
b. Calculate the distance to this galaxy.
AQA Unit 5A June 2012 Q2 parts a, b
AQA Unit 5A June 2010 Q4 part b

6. The Big Bang theory describes the formation

4. Explain how observations of Type 1a
of the Universe.
supernovae led to the conclusion that the
Universe is expanding at an accelerating rate. a. State the main proposals of the theory.
Discuss why this conclusion was controversial. b. State the observational evidence for the
The quality of your written communication will theory and explain how each observation
be assessed in your answer. supports the theory.

73
ANSWERS TO
IN-TEXT QUESTIONS
1 TELESCOPE 7. a. Angular resolution ≈
0.04
305
= 1.3 × 10−4 rad.

Hale telescope resolution is 10−7 rad, which is

1. a. M = 1200/25 = 48 1000 times better. Despite the much larger size
b. M = 1200/10 = 120 of their dishes, the angular resolutions of radio
telescopes are poorer because radio wavelengths
2. M = a�
�
/b = fo/fe, a = (100/2) × 0.5 = 25°
are longer than optical ones.
3. One factor is that refractors with high b. The ratios of their collecting powers are in the ratios
magnifications have large objective lenses, which of the squares of their objective diameters. So ratios
makes them long, and so they require giant domes of collecting powers are Hale : Lovell : Arecibo
to house them. Another limiting factor is that large = 26 : 5800 : 93000 = 1 : 223 : 3500.
glass lenses are so heavy that gravity causes them
to sag under their own weight, distorting their 8. Advantage: Radio telescopes can operate day
shape and therefore the image that is formed. and night, whereas optical telescopes can only
operate at night with clear skies. Disadvantage:
4. a. 560 Since they operate at longer wavelengths, radio
b. 187 telescopes have poorer angular resolution than
c. 112 optical telescopes.

5. a. Minimum angular resolution ≈ 9. a. Because most IR wavelengths are absorbed by

−9 the Earth’s atmosphere.
510 × 10
= 1 × 10−7 rad.
5 .1 b. Infrared windows are parts of the infrared spectrum
b. Smallest detail d = 1 × 10−7 × 3.8 × 108 that are transparent to the Earth’s atmosphere
= 38 m and IR radiation can reach the ground without
being absorbed.
6. At a distance of 4 × 1016 m the angular
size of the Jupiter-sized planet is 10. Minimum angular resolution of SOFIA
8 24 × 10−6
θ = 1.5 × 1016
= 3.8 × 10−9 rad. =
2 .4
= 1 × 10−5 m
4 × 10
Using the Rayleigh criterion, minimum angular Minimum angular resolution of optical telescope
resolution = l/D, so diameter D of lens needs to be 510 × 10−9
−9 = = 2 × 10−7 m
at least 550 × 10−9 = 145 m . 2 .4
3.8 × 10
The optical telescope has an angular resolution
about 100 times better than the SOFIA IR
telescope of the same diameter.

74
 ANSWERS TO IN-TEXT QUESTIONS

11. a. Minimum angular resolution of IUE

2 CLASSIFICATION OF STARS
120 × 10−9
= = 2.7 × 10−7 m
45 × 10−2   1. A magnitude difference of 1 corresponds to a
Minimum angular resolution of optical telescope brightness ratio of (100)1/5 or 2.51. So a magnitude
difference of (3 − 1) = 2 corresponds to a
510 × 10−9
= = 1.1 × 10−6 m brightness ratio of (2.51)2 = 6.3.
45 × 10−2 m
  2. a. Mizar, Deneb, Aldebaran, Altair, Rigel, Arcturus,
The resolving power of the optical telescope
Canopus, Sirius
is about 10 times better than that of IUE.
Collecting powers are the same, as they have the b. −0.9 − (0.9) = −2.5 log10(bCanopus/bAltair)
same objective mirror diameter. −1.8 = −2.5 log10(bCanopus/bAltair)
b. Energy of UV photon 0.72 = log10(bCanopus/bAltair)
−34
(6.63 × 10 ) × (3.00 × 10 ) 8
so
= hc / λ =
120 × 10−9 (bCanopus/bAltair) =100.72 = 5.2
= 1.66 × 10−18 J (10.3 eV )
Canopus is about 5 times brighter than Altair.
12. IR, UV and X-rays are heavily absorbed by the
  3. Brightness b = L/4πR2
atmosphere of the Earth, so such telescopes need
a. b = (3.90 × 1026)/(4π × (1.50 × 1011)2)
to be positioned in space above the atmosphere
= 1380 W m−2
where these wavelengths are not blocked.
−6 b. b = (3.90 × 1026)/(4π × (5.93 × 1012)2)
13. θ = λ / D = 2.2 × 10 = 2.6 × 10−8 rad
85 = 0.88 W m−2
14. Detected photons = 0.04 × 10 000 = 400
  4. a. The parallax angle is half the angle between the
15. CCDs have high quantum efficiencies, so can record direction of a nearby star from the Earth at one
faint objects during short exposures. time of year, and its direction from the Earth six
months later.
CCD images can be stored electronically and sent
over communication links for distribution. b. i. 1/0.316 = 3.16 pc
ii. 1 pc = 206 265 AU
They can be image-processed.
3.16 × 206 265 AU
They can operate over a wider spectral range than = 650 000 AU
film and the eye. iii. 1 pc = 3.26 ly
They have a linear response. 3.16 × 3.26 ly = 10.3 ly

16. Power = (energy of photon)/time   5. a. 1 ly = (1/3.26) pc.

= intensity × area = (5.3 × 10−3) × (4.2 × 10−12) Proxima Centauri is 4.2/3.26 = 1.3 pc
= 2.2 × 10−14 W b. Parallax angle = 1/1.3 pc = 0.77 arcsecond

Energy of photon = hf   6. a. The apparent brightness of a star observed from

= (6.6 × 10−34) × (3.9 × 1014) = 2.6 × 10−19 J, the Earth is called the apparent magnitude.
which in 1 s is 2.6 × 10−19 W. Absolute magnitude is defined to be the
−14 apparent magnitude an object would have
So number of photons = 2.2 × 10−19 = 8.5 × 104
2.6 × 10 if it were located at a distance of 10 pc. If a
photon s−1.
star was at 10 pc distance from us, then its
The QE is 85%, so 0.85 × 8.5 × 104 apparent magnitude would be equal to its
= 7.2 × 104 s−1 are actually detected. absolute magnitude.
b. M = m − 5 log10(d/10) = 0.34 − 5 log10(3.5/10)
= 0.34 − (−2.3) = 2.64
c. Distance modulus is 1.35 − (−0.30) = 1.65
d. Distance d = 10(1.65+5)/5 = 13.5 pc

75
ANSWERS TO IN-TEXT QUESTIONS

  7. As the distance to an object increases, the parallax   3. Star A would reach the main sequence first,
angle becomes smaller to the point where it can be because it has a greater mass. The greater the mass
no longer measured. of the star, the stronger is the inward gravitational
4 2 4 contraction. This in turn increases the core
  8. L = σAT = 4 πR σT
temperatures to where nuclear fusion reactions can
= 4 × π × (25 × 6.96 × 108)2 × (5.67 × 10−8) start to be reached sooner. Once hydrogen burning
× (4300)4 = 7.4 × 1028 W is established, a star is on the main sequence.

  9. a. R = L =   4. The main-sequence mass.

4 πσ T 4
  5. Red dwarfs are cool dim stars, which means that
6.6 × 104 × 3.9 × 1026 they would appear in the bottom right-hand corner
= 5.0 × 107 km
4 π × 5.67 × 10−8 × (11000)4 of the HR diagram.

2.90 × 10−3 2.90 × 10−3   6. Most stars we observe are main-sequence stars
b. λmax = = = 2.6 × 10−7 m
T 11000 because all stars spend about 90% of their lives on
= 260 nm
the main sequence.
10. Barnard’s star has a temperature less than 3500 K
  7. The star has expanded massively in size to a red
and therefore is an M type star.
supergiant, which means that the energy is radiated
11. By looking at their colour. With good eyesight and from a much larger surface area.
on a clear night Vega, for example, can be seen to
  8. For the Earth, escape velocity is
be bluish white and a therefore a hotter star than
Antares, which appears red and is much cooler. A 2GM 2 × 6.67 × 10−11 × 5.98 × 1024
v esc = =
long exposure photographic image will show the R 6.37 × 106
different colours of stars clearly. = 11.2 km s−1

12. A photon of wavelength 587.56 nm emitted in the The ratio 160 000/11 means that the escape
Sun’s interior has passed through its outer layers velocity from a neutron star is nearly 15 000 times
and been absorbed in the solar atmosphere, giving greater than that from the Earth.
a dark line in the solar continuous spectrum. There
  9. a.
must be an element in the outer layers whose atom 2GM 2 × 6.67 × 10−11 × 1.99 × 1030
RS = =
has an electron transition matching this photon’s c2 (3.00 × 108 )2
energy. This was a previously unknown element. = 2.95 × 103 m
(It was named after the Greek word for the Sun, b. The Schwarzschild radius forms an event horizon.
helios, and was subsequently discovered on Earth Nothing can escape from inside it. If the Sun could
40 years later.) be compressed so that its radius was less than 3 km,
no light would escape from it.

3 STELLAR EVOLUTION c. Density = mass/volume, so

1.99 × 1030
density =
  1. a. A protostar is formed from molecular clouds by 4
× π × (2.95 × 103 )3
3
gravitational attraction, as shown in Figure 2.
b. Gravitational potential energy.  ≈ 3 × 2 × 1030/[4 × 3 × 33 × 109] ≈ 2 × 1019 kg m–3

c. The temperatures need to be high enough so that 10.

2GM 2 × 6.67 × 10−11 × 50 × 1.99 × 1030
RS = =
hydrogen nuclei have enough kinetic energy to c2 (3.00 × 108 )2
overcome their mutual electrostatic repulsion and = 1.48 × 105 m
fuse together. (or simply 50 times the value calculated in
  2. Supergiants, red giants, main-sequence stars, question 9a)
white dwarfs. 11. 2GM 2 × 6.67 × 10−11 × 4.1 × 106 × 1.99 × 1030
RS = 2
=
c 3.00 × 108 )2
(3
= 1.2 × 1010 m

12. 2GM 2 × 6.67 × 10−11 × 1.0 × 1020

RS = =
c2 (3.00 × 108 )2
= 1.5 × 10−7 m
76
 ANSWERS TO IN-TEXT QUESTIONS

d b. The brightness graph shows that the stars are

13. Use m − M = 5log10   so
10  partially eclipsing binaries of significantly different
luminosity and are likely to be of significantly different
d
14 − ( −19.3) = 5log10   mass and size. Hence their centre of mass about
10 
which they orbit is not half-way between them.
d
log10   = 6.66 The wavelength shift of star X is less than that of Y
10 
because its linear velocity (v = w r) is less than that of
d = 107.66 = 46 Mpc
star Y, although their angular velocity w is the same as
14. Astrophysicists believe that all Type Ia supernovae they both have the same period. Star X has a greater
have approximately the same peak absolute mass than star Y as its wavelength shift is smaller. It
magnitude (about −19.3), but Type II supernovae must therefore have a smaller linear velocity, and so is
are not consistent in this way. a smaller distance from the centre of mass.

  5. In the worked example, the ratio of the two masses

4 COSMOLOGY M1/M2 = radius of S2/radius of S1 = 0.05/0.24

= 0.21. So S1 is approximately one-fifth of the mass
of S2.
  1. Δl = lapp − l = 600.80 − 600.00 = 0.80 nm
recession velocity 9 × 106
  6. z = = = 0.03
∆λ 8
(3.00 × 10 ) × (0.80 × 10 ) −9
speed of light 3 × 108
v = –c
=–
λ 600.00 × 10−9
=−4 × 105 m s−1
  7. Δl = 820.9 − 393.4 = 427.5 nm, giving

Since l shows a red-shift, and v is negative, the ∆λ 427.5

z = = = 1.09
λ 393.4
star is receding from the Earth, at a speed of
400 km s−1. So v = c × z = 3.00 × 108 × 1.09 = 3.27 × 108 m s−1
which is 9% faster than the speed of light, and that
  2. The shifts for the three stars are as follows.
is not possible. The formula z = −v/c is not valid at
Star A: Δl = 656.60 − 656.00 = 0.60 nm relativistic speeds.
Star B: Δl = 655.90 − 656.00 = −0.10 nm
  8. v = H × d so 1/H = d/v, which in SI units is
Star C: Δl = 656.40 − 656.00 = 0.40 nm km/(km s−1). The km cancel out, leaving the unit
a. Star A shows the greatest shift, so is moving the of second.
fastest relative to Earth. v 7200
  9. v = H × d, so d = = = 107 Mpc
b. v/c = −Δl/l, so star A is receding from Earth H 67.3
(red-shift, negative velocity), star B is approaching 10. a. The Hubble constant is found from the
Earth (blue-shift, positive velocity), and star C slope of the graph, which is about
is receding. 203/3 = 68 km s−1 Mpc−1
b. v = z × c = 0.002 × 3.00 × 108 = 600 km s−1
  3. Δl = 20.99 − 21 = −0.01 cm = −1.0 × 10−4 m
v/c = −Δl/l, so So distance = v/H = 600/68 = 8.8 Mpc
8 −4
(3.00 × 10 ) × (−1.0 × 10 ) 11. a. Maximum and minimum values of H for ±10% of
v =–
21 × 10−2
71 km s−1 Mpc−1 are 78 and 64 km s−1 Mpc−1,
= 1.4 × 105 m s−1 respectively. Using Hubble’s law,
This is positive, so it is moving towards us. maximum distance of galaxy = 5500/64
= 86 Mpc
  4. a. i. The curves are not identical because the
different motions of the two stars relative to us in minimum distance of galaxy = 5500/78 = 71 Mpc
their orbital paths gives rise to different changes b. For H = 64 km s−1 Mpc−1,
in wavelength due to the Doppler effect. 19
maximum age = 1 × 3.1 × 10 = 5 × 1017 s
ii. The graphs are in anti-phase, with one star 64
= 15.9 billion years
moving towards the observer while the other is
moving away. For H = 71 km s−1 Mpc−1,
19
iii. v = c × ∆λ = 3 × 108 × 0.120 × 10−9 minimum age = 1 × 3.1 × 10 = 4 × 1017 s
X
λ 477 × 10−9 71
= 7.55 × 10 m s−1 = 75.5 km s−1
4 = 12.7 billion years

77
ANSWERS TO IN-TEXT QUESTIONS

12. We would observe blue-shifts in their 18. a. From the amplitude of the graph, the maximal
spectral characteristics. variation in radial velocity of the star is
±1.0 m s−1.
13. Using Wien’s displacement law (see Chapter 12),
−3 b. The centre of mass of the system will be very close
λmax = 2.9 × 10 = 1.1 mm. This is in the microwave
2.725 to the centre of mass of the star, as the star is very
region of the electromagnetic spectrum. much more massive than the planet.

14. a. The Big Bang theory proposes primordial c. The orbital period of the planet around the star is
nucleosynthesis – the formation of hydrogen the same as the periodic time of the radial velocity of
nuclei from free protons (and neutrons), the star, which from the graph is 2 years.
and the formation of helium nuclei from d. v = r × w, so radius is
fusion of hydrogen. The theory predicts a
vT 1.0 × 2 × 365 × 24 × 3600
hydrogen : helium ratio of 3 : 1, which is very r = = = 1.0 × 107 ms−1
2π 2π
near what we see today.
The orbital radius of the star’s wobble is
b. The heavier elements are made by fusion in stars, therefore similar the radius of the Sun
which, when the star ends its life in a supernova, are (7 × 108 m). The planet therefore probably orbits
dispersed into the interstellar medium. very close to its star, so will be very hot.
15. The nucleus of helium has four nucleons made up 19. The difficulty in measuring the reduction in
of two protons and two neutrons. So, if the ratio brightness accurately. The infrequency of transits
of protons : neutrons was 7 : 1, to assemble one with the correct orientation viewed from Earth.
He nucleus means there must be 14 protons and
two neutrons, of which the two neutrons combine 20. a. From the graph, the reduction in brightness is
with two protons, leaving 12 extra protons. So four (1.000 − 0.9925) = 0.0075. So
of the original nucleons are used up in a helium 2
rKepler -7b
2 = 0.0075
nucleus and the other 12 nucleons are still protons rKepler
– hydrogen nuclei. Thus out of 16 nucleons, four 2
rKepler 2
-7b = 0.0075 × rKepler
nucleons are used to make a helium nucleus, and
= 0.0075 × (1.8 × 7.0 × 105 )2
consequently 4 = 25% of the total nucleon mass
16 rKepler -7b = 0.0075 × (1.8 × 7.0 × 105 )
turned into helium.
= 0.0866 × 1.8 × 7.0 × 105
16. If they have the same apparent magnitude, then = 109000 km
they appear equally bright, so that
Relative to Jupiter
LSun L
2
= quasar
2 radius of Kepler-7b 109000
dSun dquasar = = 1 .6
radius of Jupiter 70000

and so
2 So Kepler-7b is about 1.6 times larger
Lquasar d2 d   5 × 109 
2

= quasar =  quasar  =  3
= 2.8 × 1012 than Jupiter.
LSun 2
dSun  dSun   3 × 10 
b. About 5 hours.
The quasar is about three trillion times more c. We would need to know the time between
luminous than the Sun! successive transits.
17. a. Using m − M = 5 log10(d/10) gives
 749 × 106 
m − M = 5log10   = 39
 10 

So the absolute magnitude M of the quasar is

13 − 39 = −26.
b. The difference in magnitudes between 3C 273
and the Milky Way is about 5.5, so the brightness
difference is (2.51)5.5 = 158. The quasar is about
160 times brighter than the Milky Way.

78
GLOSSARY
Absolute magnitude (M) The around their common centre colours to be focused at different
apparent magnitude a star would of mass. focal points.
have if it were placed at a standard Black body A body that absorbs Circumstellar disc A rotating flat
distance of 10 parsec from all the radiation incident upon it disc of material surrounding a
the Earth. and reflects none, i.e. it is a perfect protostar and from which planets
Absorption spectrum In the context absorber and also a perfect emitter; may form.
of stars, a pattern of dark spectral the surface temperature determines Collecting power A measure
lines in a continuous spectrum how much energy it emits at of a telescope’s ability to collect
produced by the absorption of each wavelength. incident electromagnetic radiation,
photons of precise energy which Black dwarf The end stage of a and which is directly proportional
cause changes within an atom. low-mass star such as the Sun. to the square of the diameter of
Achromatic doublet Two individual These are extremely dense and emit its objective.
lens elements cemented together little or no heat or light radiation. Concave lens A lens that spreads
and corrected to bring light of two a parallel beam into a divergent
Black hole Highly dense matter
wavelengths, such as red and blue, emergent beam.
around which gravity is so strong
into focus in the same plane.
that the escape velocity exceeds the Cones In the context of the eye,
Airy disc The bright central speed of light. light-sensitive cells up the retina,
region in an optical diffraction responsible for colour vision.
Black-body curves The intensity
pattern caused by light entering a
of radiation emitted by a black Continuous spectrum A spectrum
circular aperture.
body as a function of wavelength showing all frequencies (c.f.
Angular magnification The (or frequency) and characteristic of line spectrum).
magnifying power of a refracting its temperature.
telescope, given by the ratio of Convex lens A lens that causes a
Blue-shift A decrease in parallel beam to converge to a point
the objective focal length to the
wavelength of radiation emitted by called the focus or focal point.
eyepiece focal length.
an object approaching an observer.
Angular size The angle between Cosmological distances Distances
Brightness The amount of energy which are a significant fraction of
the lines of sight to the two
radiated per second per square the radius of the known universe.
opposite sides of an object.
metre (also called intensity or
Aperture The opening to a camera radiation flux); unit W m−2. Cosmological microwave
or telescope which admits light. background (or cosmic microwave
Carbon–nitrogen–oxygen cycle background) Isotropic radiation
Apparent magnitude (m) The (CNO cycle) A nuclear fusion cycle in the microwave region with a
apparent brightness of a star occurring in the core of stars of black-body temperature of 2.7K;
expressed on the magnitude scale. greater mass than the Sun. believed to be a remnant of the Big
Arcminute An angle of one sixtieth Cassegrain arrangement A Bang: 2.7°C.
of a degree. reflecting telescope where the Cosmology The study of the
Arcsecond An angle of one sixtieth image is reflected by a secondary structure and development of the
of an arcsecond, or 1/3600 of mirror through the centre of the Universe as a whole.
a degree. primary mirror.
Dark energy A hypothetical form
Astronomical unit (AU) The Cepheid variable A variable of energy that permeates all space
average distance between the Earth star that has a brightness with and tends to increase the rate of
and the Sun: 1.496 × 108 km. a well-defined period whose expansion of the Universe.
frequency is related to its
Atmospheric opacity The measure luminosity which allows its distance Dark matter Unobserved matter
of the absorption of electromagnetic from the Earth to be estimated. that is believed to be abundant within
radiation by the atmosphere, as a They are used as distance galaxies throughout the Universe.
function of wavelength. indicators and are an example of a Dispersion The separation of
Big Bang theory The explosion Standard Candle. polychromatic light into a spectrum
event ~14 billion years ago that Charge-coupled device (CCD) A by refraction or diffraction grating.
cosmologists consider the beginning semiconductor device in which light Distance modulus The difference
of the Universe. is converted directly into digital between a star’s apparent
Binary star A star which on closer information, commonly used in magnitude, m, and its absolute
examination with a telescope can be cameras and in conjunction with magnitude, M, and which is related
seen to be a binary star system. telescopes for digital imaging. to the star’s distance from the Earth.
Binary system A star system Chromatic aberration An optical Doppler effect The change in
consisting of two stars orbiting defect that causes light of different frequency and wavelength of
79
Glossary

radiation due to relative motion of temperature) which shows the a star and appearing as distinct
the source and observer. evolutionary stages of different stars. lines characteristic of the various
Doppler equation The formula Hipparchus scale A scale elements constituting the gas.
used to calculate the change in describing the apparent magnitude Luminosity The total energy
wavelength due to relative motion (relative brightness) first devised by radiated by a star each second (also
of the source and observer: Hipparchus of Nicaea (190–20BC). called power); units J s−1 or W.
λapp − λ ν Hubble constant The constant Magnification Ratio of image size
=− .
λ c of proportionality in the relation to object size; for a lens it is equal
between recession velocity of a to the ratio of image distance v to
Doppler shift The change in
distant astronomical object and its object distance u.
frequency of waves emitted by an
distance, often denoted by H or H0.
object as it moves towards or away Main sequence The well-defined
from an observer, often denoted by Hubble diagram A plot of recession band on the Herztsprung–Russell
−∆f . velocities of distant astronomical diagram in which stable stars are
the symbol, z: z =
f objects against their distance, which found; their exact location and
Eclipsing binaries A binary star approximates to a straight line. time spent on the main sequence is
system whose orbit lies in the same Hubble’s Law Data shows that the governed by their initial mass.
plane as the line of sight from Earth. rate at which a galaxy recedes is Main-sequence star A star
Emission spectrum The continuous directly proportional to its distance whose energy comes only from
spectrum or pattern of bright lines from us, i.e. nuclear fusion rather from
or bands seen when electromagnetic υ = H0d gravitational contraction.
radiation is emitted by a Minimum angular resolution The
self-luminous source such as a star. where υ is the recession velocity
minimum angle, θ, that an
in kms−1and d is the distance of
Escape velocity The speed instrument can distinguish
the galaxy in Mpc.This is called
necessary for an object to escape between two small objects for a
Hubble’s Law
the gravitational pull of another particular wavelength of light or
object, such as a planet or star. Hydrogen burning The fusion of other electromagnetic radiation,
hydrogen nuclei with a release of as determined by the Rayleigh
Event horizon The imaginary nuclear binding energy, which is the
spherical boundary around a black primary source of energy generation criterion: θ ≈ λ .
D
hole within which all information in main sequence stars. Molecular clouds Low density
is lost. matter cloud in interstellar space
Interstellar medium The ‘space’
Exoplanet Planets which orbit stars between stars which contains comprising mainly of old hydrogen
other than the Sun. molecular clouds where new stars gas in the form of atoms, molecules
are formed. and ions at temperatures of 10
Exponential decay When a
to 50K. These clouds are the
quantity reduces in magnitude Kirchhoff’s law of thermal birthplace of new stars.
by a certain factor, e.g. half, in a radiation For any given
constant time period it is said to temperature, the ratio of the Neutron star The highly dense
decay exponentially. capacity of a body to emit remnant of a star after a supernova
radiation to its capacity to absorb explosion, composed mainly of
Eyepiece lens A converging lens at
it (at a particular wavelength) is neutrons.
the observer’s end of a telescope
or microscope which acts as a constant and is independent of the Normal adjustment The setting
magnifying glass for the real image composition of the body. Therefore, for a refracting telescope in which
produced by the objective lens. objects that are good heat emitters the light emerges parallel from
are also good heat absorbers. the eyepiece lens and the image is
Focal length (f ) The distance
between the principal focus of a Light curve A graph of star viewed at infinity.
lens and its optical centre. brightness against time, used to Nuclear fusion The process of
identify phenomena such as eclipsing joining two or more light nuclei
Gamma ray astronomy The
binary star systems, exoplanets and together to form new nuclei of
study of astronomical objects
Cepheid variable stars. heavier elements.
in the gamma-ray part of the
electromagnetic spectrum. Light year (ly) The distance light Objective lens The lens of a
travels in a vacuum in one year: telescope or microscope nearest the
Gamma ray bursts (GRBs) Flashes
9.46 × 1015 m. object that produces a real image
of gamma rays lasting from a few
milliseconds to tens of seconds Light-gathering power (LGP) A which the eyepiece lens magnifies.
coming from distant galaxies and relative measure for comparing the Optical telescopes A telescope
thought to originate in supernovae. ability of different telescopes to designed to receive light, i.e.
Hertzsprung–Russell diagram collect light. radiation in the visible region.
(HR diagram) A plot of absolute Line spectrum A spectrum Parallax The effect whereby the
magnitude (luminosity) of stars produced by a hot luminous position or direction of an object
against their spectral class (surface gas such as the outer layers of appears to differ when viewed from

80
 Glossary

different positions e.g. the position Proton–proton chain (p–p chain) A Reflecting telescope A telescope
of a nearby star against more nuclear fusion cycle occurring in the that uses mirrors to capture and
distant stars appears to change as core of stars of mass equal to or less focus the light.
the Earth orbits the Sun. than that of the Sun.
Refracting telescopes A telescope
Parallax angle The angle between Protostar A star in its earliest that uses lenses to capture and
the Earth at one time of year, and stage of formation from a dense focus the light; at its most simple, a
the Earth six months later, as cloud of gas, prior to fusion two-lens arrangement of objective
measured from a nearby star. reactions within the core. lens and eyepiece lens.
Parsec (pc) The astronomical Pulsar A rotating neutron star with Relative abundance The ratio of
distance at which the angle a very strong magnetic field and amount of one element to another,
subtended by the mean distance strong radio emissions. for example hydrogen to helium in
of the Earth–Sun system, i.e. 1 AU, Quantum efficiency (QE) In the the Universe.
is one arcsecond; in other words, context of a CCD detector, the ratio of Resolving power A measure of the
the distance at which an object lies photons detected to photons incident. ability of a telescope to distinguish
if its measured parallax angle is between adjacent astronomical
1 arcsecond; 1 pc = 3.262 ly or Quasar An astronomical object
with a very large red-shift and high features or objects (also called the
2.06 × 105 AU. angular resolution).
luminosity, sometimes associated
Photoelectric effect The liberation with radio emission; thought to Rods In the context of the eye,
of electrons from a metal surface be the bright nucleus of a distant light-sensitive cells in the retina, with
exposed to electromagnetic active galaxy. greater sensitivity than cone cells,
radiation of frequency above a but which cannot distinguish colour.
minimum frequency called the Radial velocity method Quasars
threshold frequency. are very luminous objects whose Schwarzschild radius The radius of
spectra show high red shifts an imaginary sphere from the centre
Photosphere The hot visible showing their recession velocity is of a black hole at which the escape
surface of a star (especially the Sun) a significant fraction of the speed velocity is equal to the speed of
from which light is radiated. of light. Quasars are thought to light. It defines the event horizon.
Pixels A picture element that be the most distant objects in the
Spectral class A category for
makes up a digital image. universe.
classifying a star according to
Planetary nebula An expanding Radio interferometer An array of features of its spectrum that
glowing shell of ionised gas ejected two or more radio telescopes used indicates its surface temperature
from old red giant stars late in their to produce higher resolution images and chemical composition. Spectral
lives prior to them collapsing to a than a single radio telescope. classes are assigned a letter, the
white dwarf. Rayleigh criterion This states that principal types being O, B, A, F, G,
two point objects can be resolved K, and M. The Sun is classified as
Pogson’s law A law describing the being G spectral type.
by an optical instrument if their
Hipparchus scale as a mathematical
angular separation is at least λ/D, Spherical aberration The
relationship. It is used to calculate
where λ is the wavelength of the distortion of an image due to
the apparent brightness of a
radiation and D is the diameter of imperfections in the mirror or lens
star by using a star of known
the objective mirror or lens. causing differing focal lengths.
brightness using the equation:
b  Real image An image formed Standard candle An astronomical
m2 − m1 = −2.5 log  2  by the convergence of rays of
 b1  object of known intrinsic brightness,
light, which can be formed on a for example a supernova,
Pre-main-sequence star A star screen or viewed virtually using an that is used to determine
which has begun nuclear fusion eyepiece lens. astronomical distances.
reactions within its core but has not Recession velocity The rate at which Stefan–Boltzmann constant A
reached an equilibrium state. an object such as a star or galaxy is constant that appears in the Stefan–
Primordial nucleosynthesis The moving away from the Earth. Boltzmann law equal to 5.67 × 10-8
production of nuclei other than Red dwarfs The oldest stars in the W m-2 K-4.
hydrogen-1 during the early universe, which have a low mass, Stefan–Boltzmann law (Stefan’s
phases of the universe after the temperature and luminosity. law) The relation that gives the total
Big Bang.
Red giants A large, relatively cool energy emitted per square metre
Principal axis An imaginary line star of high luminosity, similar in per second from an object at a given
drawn at right angles to a lens mass to our Sun but with a greatly temperature T to be proportional to
passing through the optical centre, expanded outer shell and hence T4. The constant of proportionality is
used in constructing ray diagrams. large size and surface area. σ, the Stefan–Boltzmann constant.
Principal focus (F) A particular Red-shift The increase in Stellar evolution The process by
point on the optical axis of a lens wavelength of radiation emitted by which a star changes during its
where ray of light parallel to the an object that is moving away from lifetime, which depends on the mass
principal axis is focused. the observer. of the star

81
Glossary

Stellar spectroscopy The analysis shock wave; one of the most White dwarf A low-mass small star
of spectra from stars in order to energetic events in the Universe. (~ Earth size) that has exhausted all
obtain precise information about its nuclear fuel. They are extremely
Thermal radiation Heat
surface temperature, composition dense and have a high surface
radiation in the form of
and physical conditions with a star. temperature.
electromagnetic waves.
Supergiants Highly luminous Wien’s displacement law
Transit In the context of astronomy,
stars with masses 10−100 (Wien’s law) For a hot object, the
the passage of a planet in front of
times that of the Sun and high wavelength of the peak emission
the star it orbits.
core temperatures. intensity is inversely proportional
Transit method The method of to the absolute temperature of the
Supermassive black hole A black detecting an exoplanet by detecting object: λmaxT = 0.0029 mK .
hole having a mass of 106 to 109 the dimming of a star as the planet
that of the Sun, usually found at the X-ray astronomy The study of
passes in front of it.
centres of galaxies. astronomical objects that emit in the
Virtual image An image caused X-ray part of the electromagnetic
Supernova The explosive death of by rays that do not converge; the spectrum such as interacting binary
a star, caused by the sudden onset image can be seen by the eye but stars, active galaxies, galaxy clusters
of nuclear burning or energetic cannot be formed on a screen. and supernova remnants.

82
INDEX
A E P
absolute magnitude 27–9 eclipsing binaries 57–60 parallax angle 25–6
absorption spectra 33, 34–6, emission spectra 33–4 parsec 25–7
55, 58–9 exoplanets 1, 68–72 planetary nebulae 43, 44
achromatic doublet 5–6 expanding Universe 51, 63, 64 Pogson’s law 24
age of the Universe 64 extra-terrestrial life 71–2 pre-main-sequence stars 40,
Airy discs 9–10 42, 43
angular magnification 4–5, 6
angular size 4, 10
G proton–proton (p–p) chain 40,
41
galaxies, recession of 60–64
apparent magnitude 24–5, protostars 39–40, 43, 44
gamma ray bursts (GRBs) 48–9
27–8 pulsars 47–8
gamma ray telescopes 16
astronomical unit 25
atmospheric opacity 8
H Q
quantum efficiency (QE) 20
helium abundance 66–7
B Hertzsprung–Russell (HR)
quasars 60–62, 67–8
Big Bang theory 63, 65–7
diagram 41–4, 45
binary stars 57–60
black bodies 31–2
Hipparchus scale of apparent R
magnitude 24 radial velocity method 69
black dwarfs 42, 43
Hubble constant 63, 64 radiative diffusion 40–41
black holes 46, 48, 49
Hubble’s law 62–5 radio interferometers 17–18,
blue-shift 54–5, 58
hydrogen abundance 66–7 19
brightness 23–5
radio telescopes 12–14, 17
I Rayleigh criterion 10, 12, 17
C infrared telescopes 14–15
recession velocity 60–63
carbon–nitrogen–oxygen (CNO) red dwarfs 44
cycle 40, 41 red giants 42, 43, 44, 46
Cassegrain arrangement 7 L red-shift 54–5, 58, 61–2
Cepheid variables 28, 29–30 large-diameter telescopes reflecting telescopes 6–7, 17
charge-coupled devices (CCDs) 17–19 refracting telescopes 3–6, 7,
20–21 lifetimes of stars 43–4 11–12
chromatic aberration 5–6, 7 light year 27 resolving power 9–10, 20
collecting power 10 line series 34–5
luminosity 23, 31, 45
converging lenses 2–6
cosmological microwave
S
segmented mirror telescopes 17
background (CMB) 65–6 M spectral classes 33–6
cosmology 53–73 magnification, angular 4–5, 6 spherical aberration 5–6
main-sequence stars 40–41, standard candles 28, 29–30,
D 42, 43–4 50–51
dark energy 51, 64 stars
distance modulus 28 N classification of 23–38
Doppler effect 53–7 neutron stars 46, 47–8 evolution 39–52
Doppler shift 54–5, 56, 57–62, nuclear fusion 40–41, 66 measuring velocities of 56
69 nuclear reaction pathways 40, Stefan’s law 31
41 supergiants 42, 46

83
INDEX

supermassive black holes 49

supernovae 46–7, 50–51
U X
ultraviolet telescopes 15 X-ray telescopes 15–16

T W
telescopes 2–22
white dwarfs 42, 43, 44
transit method 69–70
Wien’s displacement law 31–2

84
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The publishers wish to thank NASA SkyView; p15, Fig 20: (Harvard-Smithsonian center for
the following for permission to NASA; p16, Fig 22: ESA; p17, Fig Astrophysics)/NASA/ESA/STScI/
reproduce photographs. Every 23: Babek Tafreshi/Science Photo Science Photo Library; p49, Fig 13:
effort has been made to trace Library; p20, Fig 25: HSC Project/ KECK/UCLA GALACTIC CENTER
copyright holders and to obtain NAOJ GROUP; p51, Fig 15: NASA/ESA/
their permission for the use of Chapter 2 STSCI/High-Z Supernova Search
copyright materials. The publishers Team/Science Photo Library
will gladly receive any information p23, Fig 1: Traveller Martin/
Shutterstock; p27, Fig 4: NASA/ Chapter 4
enabling them to rectify any error
or omission at the first opportunity. Science Photo Library; p32, p53, Fig 1: NASA/ESA, H.Teplitz
Fig 6a: John Chumack/Science and M.Rafelski (IPAC/Caltech);
Chapter 1 Photo Library; p32, Fig 6b: John p57, Fig 5: H. E. Bond/E. Nelan/M.
p1: Richard Bizley/Science Photo Chumack/Science Photo Library Barstow/M. Burleigh/J. B. Holberg/
Library; p2, Fig 1: Leemage/Getty Chapter 3 NASA/ESA/STScI/Science Photo
Images; p3, Fig 5: Mondadori/Getty Library; p66, Fig 15a: WMAP
Images; p5, Fig 9: Andrew Lambert p39, Fig 1: Yury Dmitrienko/ Science Team/NASA; p66, Fig
Photography/Science Photo Library; Shutterstock; p43, Fig 6: NASA/ 15b: WMAP Science Team/NASA;
p13, Fig 18a: Dr Seth Shostak/ ESA/STSCI/A.Fruchter, ERO team/ p68, Fig 68: NOAO/Science Photo
Science Photo Library; p13, Fig Science Photo Library; p46, Fig Library; p70, Fig 21: Detlev van
18b: ILYA GENKIN/Shutterstock; 9: Royal Observatory, Edinburgh/ Ravenswaay/Science Photo Library
p13, Fig 19a: Axel Mellinger/NASA Science Photo Library; p47, Fig
SkyView; p13, Fig 19b: J.Dickey/ 11: P. Challis and R. Kirshner

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