Definition of Variable stars. Meaning of Variable stars. Synonyms of Variable stars

Here you will find one or more explanations in English for the word Variable stars. Also in the bottom left of the page several parts of wikipedia pages related to the word Variable stars and, of course, Variable stars synonyms and on the right images related to the word Variable stars.

Definition of Variable stars

Variable stars
Variable Va"ri*a*ble, a. [L. variabilis: cf. F. variable.] 1. Having the capacity of varying or changing; capable of alternation in any manner; changeable; as, variable winds or seasons; a variable quantity. 2. Liable to vary; too susceptible of change; mutable; fickle; unsteady; inconstant; as, the affections of men are variable; passions are variable. Lest that thy love prove likewise variable. --Shak. His heart, I know, how variable and vain! --Milton. Variable exhaust (Steam Eng.), a blast pipe with an adjustable opening. Variable quantity (Math.), a variable. Variable stars (Astron.), fixed stars which vary in their brightness, usually in more or less uniform periods.
Variable star
Blazing star, Double star, Multiple star, Shooting star, etc. See under Blazing, Double, etc. Nebulous star (Astron.), a small well-defined circular nebula, having a bright nucleus at its center like a star. Star anise (Bot.), any plant of the genus Illicium; -- so called from its star-shaped capsules. Star apple (Bot.), a tropical American tree (Chrysophyllum Cainito), having a milky juice and oblong leaves with a silky-golden pubescence beneath. It bears an applelike fruit, the carpels of which present a starlike figure when cut across. The name is extended to the whole genus of about sixty species, and the natural order (Sapotace[ae]) to which it belongs is called the Star-apple family. Star conner, one who cons, or studies, the stars; an astronomer or an astrologer. --Gascoigne. Star coral (Zo["o]l.), any one of numerous species of stony corals belonging to Astr[ae]a, Orbicella, and allied genera, in which the calicles are round or polygonal and contain conspicuous radiating septa. Star cucumber. (Bot.) See under Cucumber. Star flower. (Bot.) (a) A plant of the genus Ornithogalum; star-of-Bethlehem. (b) See Starwort (b) . (c) An American plant of the genus Trientalis (Trientalis Americana). --Gray. Star fort (Fort.), a fort surrounded on the exterior with projecting angles; -- whence the name. Star gauge (Ordnance), a long rod, with adjustable points projecting radially at its end, for measuring the size of different parts of the bore of a gun. Star grass. (Bot.) (a) A small grasslike plant (Hypoxis erecta) having star-shaped yellow flowers. (b) The colicroot. See Colicroot. Star hyacinth (Bot.), a bulbous plant of the genus Scilla (S. autumnalis); -- called also star-headed hyacinth. Star jelly (Bot.), any one of several gelatinous plants (Nostoc commune, N. edule, etc.). See Nostoc. Star lizard. (Zo["o]l.) Same as Stellion. Star-of-Bethlehem (Bot.), a bulbous liliaceous plant (Ornithogalum umbellatum) having a small white starlike flower. Star-of-the-earth (Bot.), a plant of the genus Plantago (P. coronopus), growing upon the seashore. Star polygon (Geom.), a polygon whose sides cut each other so as to form a star-shaped figure. Stars and Stripes, a popular name for the flag of the United States, which consists of thirteen horizontal stripes, alternately red and white, and a union having, in a blue field, white stars to represent the several States, one for each. With the old flag, the true American flag, the Eagle, and the Stars and Stripes, waving over the chamber in which we sit. --D. Webster. Star showers. See Shooting star, under Shooting. Star thistle (Bot.), an annual composite plant (Centaurea solstitialis) having the involucre armed with radiating spines. Star wheel (Mach.), a star-shaped disk, used as a kind of ratchet wheel, in repeating watches and the feed motions of some machines. Star worm (Zo["o]l.), a gephyrean. Temporary star (Astron.), a star which appears suddenly, shines for a period, and then nearly or quite disappears. These stars are supposed by some astronometers to be variable stars of long and undetermined periods. Variable star (Astron.), a star whose brilliancy varies periodically, generally with regularity, but sometimes irregularly; -- called periodical star when its changes occur at fixed periods. Water star grass (Bot.), an aquatic plant (Schollera graminea) with small yellow starlike blossoms.

Meaning of Variable stars from wikipedia

- or by something partly blocking the light, so variable stars are classified as either: Intrinsic variables, whose luminosity actually changes periodically;...
- discovered in 1908 by Henrietta Swan Leavitt after studying thousands of variable stars in the Magellanic Clouds. The discovery establishes the true luminosity...
- protostars, Wolf-Rayet stars, and flare stars, as well as giant and supergiant stars. Cataclysmic or explosive variable stars are those that undergo a...
- there are over 52,011 known variable stars, with more being discovered regularly, so a complete list of every single variable is impossible at this place...
- is a variable star that can undergo unpredictable dramatic increases in brightness for a few minutes. It is believed that the flares on flare stars are...
- of variable stars, including R and U Arietis, Mira-type variable stars, and T Arietis, a semi-regular variable star. R Arietis is a Mira variable star...
- RR Lyrae variables are periodic variable stars, commonly found in globular clusters. They are used as standard candles to measure (extra) galactic distances...
- This is a list of semiregular variable stars. Variability ranges are taken from the General Catalogue of Variable Stars (GCVS) where these are visual...
- Luminous blue variables (LBVs) are rare, m****ive, evolved stars that show unpredictable and sometimes dramatic variations in their spectra and brightness...
- General Catalogue of Variable Stars (GCVS) is a list of variable stars in the Milky Way Galaxy. Its first edition, containing 10,820 stars, was published in...