What can spectra tell us about temperature?

Stars are too far away (and too hot!) for a human to touch, yet we can measure their temperatures. Spectra make this possible! Let’s investigate how.

Stars Part 2: Temperatures

Spectrum Tool. Estimate a surface temperature for each star by comparing its spectrum with model thermal spectra for "blackbody" objects of different temperatures in Kelvin.

Under source 1, use the Select star dropdown menu to view the spectrum of each star.
Under source 2, use the Select thermal model dropdown menu to find the temperature with a spectrum that provides the best match to the star's spectrum.
Adjust the wavelength stretch as needed, so you can see all the available data.

Note: The y-values of these model spectra are not plotted on the same scale—they have been modified so they can all be plotted in the range of the tool. The key is to compare the overall shape of the curves, and most importantly, where the peaks are.

Spectrum Notebook. For each star, enter its surface temperature into Column 4 in the Table in your Notebook.

Source 1: