Stellar atmospheres : $b A contribution to the observational study of high temperature in the reversing layers of starsPayne-Gaposchkin, Cecilia
Science
Stellar atmospheres : $b A contribution to the observational study of high temperature in the reversing layers of stars
Payne-Gaposchkin, Cecilia
Astrophysics; Stars -- Spectra; Stars -- Temperature; Thesis (Ph. D.)
The Draper system takes no direct account of temperature. It classifies
purely by degree of ionization, and therefore, as it relates to
atmospheres in which the surface gravities differ widely, it will
produce classes that are not homogeneous in temperature; dwarfs will be
hotter than giants of the same spectral class. Fowler and Milne[510]
anticipated a difference of from 10 to 20 per cent, and differences
in this sense and of this order actually occur.[511] Physically it
seems to be more important to class together stars having the same
atmospheric properties than stars at exactly the same effective
temperature, although the latter might conceivably be better suited to
some purposes.
Although giant and dwarf stars may be found with very similar spectra,
it is well known that they display important differences for individual
lines, and these differences have formed the basis for the estimation
of spectroscopic parallaxes.[512] If the spectrum of a giant star is
compared with the spectrum of a dwarf of the same temperature,
the two will be found to differ. The line-intensities in the spectrum
of the dwarf will place it in a spectral class nearer to the red end
of the sequence—if the giant is of Class , the dwarf may be a
star. There are two ways in which the stars might be brought
into the same spectral class; by an alteration of temperature or by
an alteration of pressure. If the temperature of the dwarf star were
[Pg 196]
raised, the resulting changes in ionization in its atmosphere would
produce changes in the intensities of the lines in the spectrum.
At some temperature, about 15 per cent higher than the original
temperature of the dwarf star, it would give a spectrum resembling that
of the giant.
Figure 10
Schematic representation of the ionization temperature scale for the
sequence of stellar classes. Ordinates are absolute temperatures
in thousands of degrees; abscissae are Draper classes. The points
representing the different classes have been made to lie on a straight
line, so that the temperature range of the corresponding classes shall
appear along the axis of abscissae. Vertical lines are drawn through
, , , , , , and the upper
limit of the class, in order to show the increase in temperature
range for the hotter classes.
If the pressure in the atmosphere of the dwarf star were reduced, the
resulting increase in the degree of ionization would also produce
changes in the spectral lines, until it gave a spectrum similar to
that of the giant. There is, however, no reason to suppose that the
[Pg 197]
changes produced in the intensities of individual lines by these
temperature and pressure changes would be in all cases exactly equal,
although they would in general operate in the same direction.
TABLE XXXI
Class
Effective
Temperature
Absolute Magnitude
Galactic
Concentration
Percent
in
H. D. C.
Space Number
d
g
7.0-8.25
17.0
20,000°
to
-0.50
3.52
}4.4
15,000
16
0.96
50.
9.2
4.70
11,200
12.8
3.5
10.41
}250
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