giant star
Expanded aging sun
A giant star is a star that has exhausted the hydrogen fuel in its core and expanded to many times its original size, becoming far more luminous than it was during its main sequence phase.
Giants are classified by color—red giants being cooler and more common, blue giants being hotter and rarer.
Our sun will eventually become a red giant, expanding to engulf the inner planets.
Betelgeuse is one of the most famous giant stars visible in the night sky.
Huge luminous evolved star
- BetelgeuseRed supergiant star
- AldebaranOrange giant in Taurus
- ArcturusBright star in Boötes
- RigelBlue supergiant star
Antares · Pollux · main sequence · photosphere · chromosphere · corona · solar mass · stellar wind
Intensely bright or gifted
- radiantEmitting light or joy
- blazingBurning very brightly
- incandescentGlowing from heat
- dazzlingOverwhelmingly bright or impressive
glowing · resplendent · effulgent · beaming · shining · gleaming · scintillating · flaring
Reduction in matter
- planetary nebulaIonized gas from dying star
- white dwarfExhausted star's compact corpse
- core collapseStar's center caves inward
- supernovaExploding massive star
black hole · expansion · cooling · instability · progenitor
Extremely large in scale
- colossalExtremely large in scale
- immenseExtremely large in scope
- gargantuanExtremely immense in scope
- titanicEnormously strong or large
vast · heavyweight · hulking · monstrous · towering · bloated · distended · inflated
Atomic core formation process
- fusion reactionNuclei combining into heavier elements
- heavy elementsHigh atomic number substances
- iron coreCentral metallic magnetic component
- core temperatureCentral body heat level
supergiant
Huge luminous evolved star
- BetelgeuseRed supergiant star
- AldebaranOrange giant in Taurus
- ArcturusBright star in Boötes
Rigel · Antares · Pollux · main sequence · photosphere · chromosphere · corona · solar mass · stellar wind
brilliant
Intensely bright or gifted
- radiantEmitting light or joy
- blazingBurning very brightly
- incandescentGlowing from heat
dazzling · glowing · resplendent · effulgent · beaming · shining · gleaming · scintillating · flaring · luminosity
mass loss
Reduction in matter
- planetary nebulaIonized gas from dying star
- white dwarfExhausted star's compact corpse
- core collapseStar's center caves inward
supernova · black hole · expansion · cooling · instability · progenitor
enormous
Extremely large in scale
- colossalExtremely large in scale
- immenseExtremely large in scope
- gargantuanExtremely immense in scope
titanic · vast · heavyweight · hulking · monstrous · towering · bloated · distended · inflated · voluminous
nucleosynthesis
Atomic core formation process
- fusion reactionNuclei combining into heavier elements
- heavy elementsHigh atomic number substances
- iron coreCentral metallic magnetic component
core temperature · energy production · plasma · thermonuclear
giant stardwarf star
Small, dense stellar body
white dwarf · red dwarf · dwarf · brown dwarf · yellow dwarf