variable star
2
6.1
- noun
- /ˈvɛrɪəbl stɑr/
- Specialized
:
estrella variable
- And with that telescope, Hubble was able to detect a special kind of variable star in Andromeda.
- Cepheid variable stars
- variable stars to measure distances
- study of variable stars
And she her job was to look for variable stars.
- And she her job was to look for variable stars.
- It's the third discovered variable star in the constellation Corona Borealis.
- And with that telescope, Hubble was able to detect a special kind of variable star in Andromeda.
- And he realized, oh, this is a variable star.
Examples
-
In 1916, he attempted to explain Cepheid variable stars as stellar engines.
Academic text (1993) -
Starting with Edwin Hubble in the early 1920s, astronomers used Cepheid variable stars to measure distances to galaxies.
Academic text (2002) -
I tried to understand why her calculations on variable stars are so important.
Academic text (2005) -
A light curve charts the brightness of a variable star over time. -- Ed.
Academic text (1992) -
Hubble quickly took over this program and found many more variable stars in M33 and in M31.
Academic text (1990) -
Among the most important local distance indicators are variable stars such as Cepheids and RR Lyraes.
Academic text (1997) -
The most reliable indicator for distances to galaxies far from our own Milky Way involves Cepheid variable stars.
Academic text (1994) -
Her breakthrough work on the period-luminosity relationship for Cepheid variable stars was published under the name of Edward Pickering, Director of the Observatory.
Academic text (2005) -
As his photograph collection mushroomed, however, Shapley began to identify Cepheids—variable stars much brighter than the Sun.
Academic text (2010) -
Astronomers often study how the brightness of a variable star changes to understand its physical properties.
Synonyms
2
8.3
A star whose brightness changes over time
How Bright
- Specialized
40
7.5
- Specialized
7
8.6
- Specialized
- Specialized
2
6.1
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a star whose brightness fluctuates' is directly derivable from combining 'variable' (changing/varying) with 'star' (a celestial object). This adjective+noun compositional pattern is common in English and across languages, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily understand the phrase.
Etymology
Variable star comes from the simple idea of a variable (something that 'changes') and a star. Imagine a bright lamp in the sky that slowly gets dimmer and then brighter, so a variable star means 'a star that changes in brightness'.