Stars

What is a star?

We can see thousands of stars in the night sky - small points of light in the vastness of space. But what are stars? How do they make light? Why are they different colours? Watch this video to find out some more information about stars!



A photo of the Sun with the text What is a star? on a black background


What is a nebula?



Images of nebulae in space with a question mark in the centre


What is the Sun?





Annie Jump Cannon

Annie Jump Cannon
Credit: Smithsonian Institution (US)

Occupation: Astronomer and Curator

Year born: 1863

Research Areas: Stars, Stellar Classification, Spectroscopy

 

"In our troubled days it is good to have something outside our planet, something fine and distant for comfort"

Ricardo Schiavon

Headshot of Ricardo Schiavon
Ricardo Schiavon
Credit: ARI/LJMU

Occupation: Astrophysicist

Research Areas: Galaxy formation, Observational astronomy

 

"I consider myself extremely lucky to be where I am, do what I do, and to be surrounded by so many amazing people here in Liverpool."

 

Our Sun Quiz

Short Intro Text: 

The Sun is our closest star and the centre of our Solar System. However, it is only one of several billion stars in our galaxy.

Astronomers study and learn about the Sun using observations from telescopes along with data collected by space probes. But how much do you know about our star? Test your knowledge using this quiz!





JWST Wordsearch





What are Constellations?



Constellations shown in the night sky


Count the Stars!

Have you ever wondered how many stars you can see in the night sky? Did you know that the number you can see depends on where you are?



The silhouette of 3 children looking up at a starry sky


Guess the Constellation

Short Intro Text: 

Have you ever looked at the stars at night and imagined pictures in them? Long, long ago, other people did the same! They named groups of stars after animals and characters from their stories.





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