Science questions not worth a thread I: I'm a moron!

[uppi]

When you say "spectrum", you're referring to the spectral type of the stars, correct? In that case, the second star I'm thinking of is a K dwarf.

I am referring to the spectrum, i.e. the distribution of intensity over frequency. Stars are classified into spectral types according to their spectrum, so the spectral type should give you an approximation of the spectrum.

I am not much into astrophysics, so I have no idea what kind of spectrum a K dwarf has.

 

[Blue Emu]

I am not much into astrophysics, so I have no idea what kind of spectrum a K dwarf has.

The sequence, from hottest to coolest, runs: "Oh, be a fine girl, kiss me"

O B A F G K M

... so the brightest and hottest stars are class O blue-whites, and the dimmest and coolest are class M Red Dwarfs (not "Dwarves").

Of course, that only covers the "Main Sequence" stars... there are several other categories, for stars that are off the Main Sequence... class D (White Dwarfs), class L (Brown Dwarfs), class T (Methane Dwarfs), class W (Wolf-Rayet Helium stars) and so on.

 

[emzie]

The sequence, from hottest to coolest, runs: "Oh, be a fine girl, kiss me"

O B A F G K M

Sexist.

 

[Meteor Man]

Fine then. "Oh, be a fat gorilla, kill me."

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Speciesist.

 

[PlutonianEmpire]

One can't win in this culture of politcal correctness.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Since most serial threads end at 50 pages and start a new thread of the same topic, should we get a "Science questions not worth a thread II" out there?

Moderator Action: There is no need to start a new thread at 50 pages or even 100.

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Why is it warmer when it's snowing? Is it the clouds that trap heat? Or do I have it backwards and it's because low pressure areas are warmer?

 

[Meteor Man]

Clouds trap heat. It's the same thing when it rains.

Plus, all the friction between the snow and the air is sure to heat it up a little bit. (That was a joke by the way.)

 

[madviking]

Why is it warmer when it's snowing? Is it the clouds that trap heat? Or do I have it backwards and it's because low pressure areas are warmer?

Warmer than what? I'm confused as to what you're comparing snow weather to.

 

[Meteor Man]

Warmer than what? I'm confused as to what you're comparing snow weather to.

I believe he means warmer than a clear winter day. It is usually warmer when it snows than when it's clear.

 

[madviking]

Seems kinda cognitively biased.

 

[PlutonianEmpire]

Why is it warmer when it's snowing? Is it the clouds that trap heat? Or do I have it backwards and it's because low pressure areas are warmer?

Water freezes at 32 F, below that, the molecules get more tightly packed as it gets colder, increasing density while reducing volume. Thus, snow is fluffiest at around freezing. So for it to give a good snow, it sort of has to be warmer.

Hope that helps, if not, I think another person could make a better description.

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

Seems kinda cognitively biased.

If you have data that conclusively shows otherwise then you are quite welcome to post it.

 

[madviking]

I'd figure the null hypothesis would be that snow doesn't affect the temperature.

 

[SS-18 ICBM]

And cloud cover doesn't?

 

[madviking]

Cloudy snowy day vs. cloudy day.

 

[Mise]

It can't snow when it's tooooooooo cold because the air can't hold enough moisture at such low temps. That's why the driest place on Earth is the Antarctic (IIRC). However, when warmer air meets the colder air, the moisture carried by the warmer air cools and precipitates, hence the snow. So it gets warmer when it snows because of the warm air that causes the snow.

 

[dutchfire]

Well, to snow it doesn't have to be 'not too cold' at that moment, it just has to have been warm earlier to put water in the air. (Which is the point on Antartica). However, where people live (Western Europe ), it is a bit usual for the moist to have come from hotter seas.

 

[Meteor Man]

Cloudy snowy day vs. cloudy day.

IIRC Because snow reflects light, it'd be colder on a snowy day compared to just a cloudy day.

Mise, you do recall, but not correctly. The driest place on earth is in Chile, but Antarctica is a very close second.