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Hertzsprung-Russell diagram
A graph of the absolute magnitude of stars plotted against their surface temperature or color, used in the study of stellar evolution.
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Main sequence
A major grouping of stars that forms a relatively narrow band from the upper left to the lower right when plotted according to luminosity and surface temperature on the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram.
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White dwarf
The remnant of a star that has collapsed, having an extremely dense state with no empty space between its atoms, but not reaching the extremely dense state of a neutron star or black hole.
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Supernova
A rare celestial phenomenon involving the explosion of most of the material in a star, resulting in an extremely bright, short-lived object that emits vast amounts of energy.
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Neutron star
A celestial body consisting of the superdense remains of a massive star that has collapsed with sufficient force to push all of its electrons into the nuclei that they orbit, thus leaving only neutrons, and having a powerful gravitational attraction from which only neutrinos and high-energy photons can escape, rendering the body detectable only by x-ray.
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How low-mass stars evolve
Protostar, red dwarf, white dwarf, black dwarf
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How intermediate-mass stars evolve
- Protostar, intermediate-mass star, red giant, white dwarf
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How high-mass stars evolve
Protostar, high-mass star, supergiant, supernova
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Black hole
a region of space having a gravitational field so intense that no matter or radiation can escape.
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