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stellar astronomy > stellar type > blue straggler

Preferred term

blue straggler  

Definition

  • A blue straggler is a hot, bright star in a globular cluster or, occasionally, an open cluster, that lies close to the cluster's extrapolated main sequence but a few magnitudes above its turnoff point. Blue stragglers first came to the attention of astronomers in 1953. Various theories have been put forward to explain why such stars have not already evolved to become red giants. The most favored of these involve mass transfer from, or coalescence with, a binary companion. Blue stragglers may also arise from the collision of stars in the crowded interiors of globular clusters. (Encyclopedia of Science, by David Darling, https://www.daviddarling.info/encyclopedia/B/blue_straggler.html)

Broader concept

Entry terms

  • blue-straggler star

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URI

http://data.loterre.fr/ark:/67375/MDL-NLDGT1DF-K

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