ASTRONOMY Name:_____________________________

Life Cycle of Stars Project

(40 points –PowerPoint/ Google Slides)
Each student will be picking a star and you can NOT pick on another student has already chosen. All information
about that star must be researched. The goal is to describe the life-cycle of the assigned star. Your slide/mini poster
will be plotted on a large H-R Diagram. In addition, you will complete some research about how stars evolve over
time and the process that creates energy and new elements in the core of a star (on additional slides). After
creating a class H-R diagram, it will become obvious from the projects about how stars differ and evolve.

Remember!
 All sources of information must be properly cited at the end of the PowerPoint. Use MLA
format for the works cited page, and any in-text citations as necessary. Each topic should
have information gathered from at least two sources. Just because you copied it doesn’t make
it yours. Cut and paste is unacceptable for anything other than a picture (which still must be
cited). Interpret your findings, and present them in your own words. Create a works cited
page and cite pictures and tables on the slide you show them.
o References: Include a list of references, such as books, Internet sites, newspapers, etc., that you
used to do your research and from which you got your images on the final slides of the
presentation.

 Images: Along with your research information, you need to include at least one picture of your object. Try
to find pictures taken in different wavelength regions, for example, in visible light and X-rays or infrared
light, or pictures of telescopes used by astronomers to observe it.

Template for each slide:

Title slide: Star Properties (Will contain the following information and you will print this slide out)
• Title - Name of the Star
• Spectral Class/Luminosity Class and a description of the star (stage of evolution the star is presently in:
Main Sequence, Giant, Supergiant, or White Dwarf)
• Mass of the star compared to the Sun (solar masses)

Slide #2: H-R Diagram

• Luminosity (compared to the Sun)
• Temperature (˚K)
• Size of the star compared to the Sun - diagram/image to show size vs. Sun (top right of slide)
• Distance away from Earth in light years
• Plotted location of the star on an HR Diagram
• Age of the star - if known
• How long it takes the star to go through all of its life stages - estimate
• Stages of evolution the star goes through based on mass

Slide #3: Element Synthesis

• What elements are present in your star (if known)?

Slide #4: Learning from Light

• What does the color of your star tell us?
• Which region of the EM spectrum does your star emit the most light? (Hint: determined by its temperature)

Slide #5: Star Life Cycle:

• Include a diagram of the life cycle of a star similar to your chosen star (Hint: based on mass)
• What is the likely future of your star.

Slide #6: Other information (Bonus Points!)

• Any other important or unique information you think would help to understand your assigned star.
• Does your star have any planets orbiting it? Etc.

Slide #7: Works cited

• You must have at least 4 sources cited
• All pictures/diagrams must also be cited but include these citations on the slide the image or chart is located

Helpful Websites:
1. Solstation.com
o http://www.solstation.com/stars.htm
2. The Bright Star Catalogue
o http://www.alcyone.de/SIT/bsc/bsc.html
o http://www.alcyone.de/brightest_stars.html
3. Atlas of the Universe
o http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/12lys.html
o http://www.atlasoftheuniverse.com/nearstar.html
3. Additional websites:
o http://aspire.cosmic-ray.org/labs/star_life/starlife_main.html
o http://library.thinkquest.org/26220/stars/formation.html
o http://library.thinkquest.org/17940/texts/star/star.html
o http://map.gsfc.nasa.gov/universe/rel_stars.html
o http://www.jb.man.ac.uk/distance/life/sample/stars/index.html#SpecPlot
o http://hubblesite.org/
o http://www.nasa.gov/

On the back of this page, choose a star for your project. Some have more information than others, but the
most important information to find on your star is the spectral class/luminosity class, mass, luminosity,
temperature, and radius.
• Plotting your star on the HR Diagram will help you understand the nature of your star.
• Use the table provided to estimate the age of your star IF your research comes up empty
Stars to Consider:

AD Leonis Barnard’s Star Gliese 581 Regulus

Aldeberan Betelguese Gliese 710 Rigel
Algol A Canopus LHS 292 Sirius
Alnitak Capella Mintaka Sirius B
Alpha Centauri A Deneb Mira Spica
Alpha Centauri B Denebola Polaris Tau Ceti
Alsafi Epsilon Eridani Pollux Van Maanen’s Star
Altair Eta Canis Majoris Procyon Vega
Antares Eta Carina Procyon B VY Canis Majoris
Arcturus Fomalaut Proxima Centauri Wolf 359

Remember: MASS determines how long a star will “burn” hydrogen on the Main
Sequence and the eventual fate of the star. Low mass stars have about 8 solar masses or
less; high mass stars have about 8 solar masses or more when they leave the Main
Sequence

Estimated Lifespan for Stars:

Spectral Type Mass (Sun=1) Luminosity Years on the Main
(Sun=1) Sequence
(~lifespan)
O5 40 400,000 1 million years
B0 15 13,000 11 million years
B5 5.0 1,000 50 million years
A0 3.5 80 440 million years
A5 2.0 10 1 billion years
F0 1.7 6.4 3 billion years
F5 1.4 4.0 5 billion years
G0 1.1 1.4 8 billion years
G5 0.9 0.8 13 billion years
K0 0.8 0.46 17 billion years
K5 0.7 0.2 25 billion years
M0 0.5 0.08 56 billion years
M5 0.1 0.001 > 100 billion years
Name: _____________________________________________________ Date: ___________________ Period: ________

Life Cycle of a Star Grading Sheet

All slides other than Star Properties will be scored on the following scale based on required elements and quality of
information on each slide.
Main-sequence performance
Dwarf of a job (poor) Stellar work (good) Supernova job (excellent)
(fair)
0-1 pts 4-5 pts 6 pts
2-3 pts

Requirements Points Comment

Slide #1: Star properties
• Title - Name of the Star
• Spectral Class/Luminosity Class and a description of the star (stage of
evolution the star is presently in: Main Sequence, Giant, Supergiant, or ___ / 4
White Dwarf)
• Mass of the star compared to the Sun (solar masses)
• Your name
Slide #2: Nuclear Fusion
• Luminosity (compared to the Sun)
• Temperature (˚K)
• Size of the star compared to the Sun - diagram/image to show size vs.
Sun (top right of slide)
___ / 8
• Distance away from Earth in light years
• Plotted location of the star on an HR Diagram
• Age of the star - if known
• How long it takes the star to go through all of its life stages - estimate
• Stages of evolution the star goes through based on mass
Slide #3: Element Synthesis
• What elements are present in your star (if known)? ___ / 4
• Include a spectrograph from you star if possible
Slide #4: Learning from Light
• What does the color of your star tell us? ___ / 6
• Which region of the EM spectrum does your star emit the most light?
Slide #5: Star Life Cycle
• Include a diagram of the life cycle of a star similar to your chosen star. ___ / 6
• What is the likely future of your star?
Slide #6: Other Information (Bonus) ___ / +4
Slide #7: Works Cited
• You must have at least 4 sources cited in proper ___ / 6
• All pictures/diagrams must also be cited in proper
Slide Design
• Slide are designed well
___ / 6
• Words and pictures can be seen clearly
• Easy to read and organized

TOTAL ____ / 40 Points

Grade yourself before turning your project in. If you are missing something, correct it before it is turned in.

Are all of the requirements included in your project? _______________________________________________________

What grade do you think you deserve based on the quality of work you are turning in? _____ points