2007-11-18 22:03:52 · 16 answers · asked by ? 4 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Biggest by what measure?
Of known stars, one of the most massive is Eta Carinae in the southern constellation Carina. It's estimated to be about 120 times the mass of the sun. That's about as heavy as a star can be while still being a star.
One of the most luminous in the galaxy is Deneb, in the constellation Cygnus. Its about 60,000 times as luminous as the sun.
One of the largest in size is Antares, with about 700 times the diameter of the sun.
Take your pick. We're still looking at them from a long way away, in any case.
2007-11-18 22:19:04 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
Astrophysicists measure the "size" of a star by it's mass. Pistol is indeed a very high mass star. However it is likely that it has a, as yet, undetected companion resulting in an apparent mass much higher than the actual stellar mass.
Alternatively Pistol could have very recently undergone a stellar merger. If this is so then the prospects for this star could be bleak.
I general it is though the upper mass limit for stars is approx 150 solar mass. I expect we will find that the pistol star is around the 100 mark as are some other stars.
On the subject of size, most stars will go through a type red giant phase in which case those with the highest mass will have the largest radii.
2007-11-20 04:07:51 · answer #2 · answered by Mark G 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The Pistol Star is apparently the biggest star we know of. But then considering the universe is infinite, can any star ever be named the biggest ever?
2007-11-19 05:19:11 · answer #3 · answered by M-GX 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
See, you are asking about the biggest star...
Not the most luminous or brightest.....
The biggest star ever is Antares or alpha scorpion which is brightest in scorpion.
It is a red supergiant..
Betelguse or beta ori is next to it but betelguse is pulsating variable...
So, antares is the most big star..
See this site:
http://www.avakashvedh.com/adhikmahiti/planet_sizes.htm
You will not be able to know the language..but just see the last photo.
A video at youtube is available regarding sizes of stars and planets.
See the upper left in this pic..
It is antares..
http://jumk.de/astronomie/img/antares.jpg
2007-11-18 23:42:08 · answer #4 · answered by Vipul C 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Either Betelguese, or Eta Carine.
Eta Carine is a hyper-giant star, meaning it's huge, and incredibly bright. Our sun looks like an ant compared to Betelguese, and Earth would be microscopic.
2007-11-19 12:31:48 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
The largest known star (in terms of mass and brightness) is called the Pistol Star. It is believed to be 100 times as massive as our Sun, and 10,000,000 times as bright!.
Check out some websites regrading it:)
2007-11-18 22:25:23 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
Betelguese-800 times the Sun's diameter.
2007-11-19 00:41:59 · answer #7 · answered by kunj 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
the largest known star is called the Pistol star. It's believed to be 100 times as massive as our Sun... =]
2007-11-18 22:16:19 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Betelgeuse
2007-11-19 01:08:38 · answer #9 · answered by Dave aka Spider Monkey 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Ky Cygni, 2 Billion Km across.
2007-11-19 21:57:29 · answer #10 · answered by Spanner 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋