Do Stars Have Colors? by Ryann Denny

 Please enjoy this article by a student in DMHS's "Introduction to Journalism" class!

Stars seem white to the naked eye when we are on Earth and looking at them, but when looking at a picture taken from space it shows that the stars actually have colors. Stars can actually come in almost every shade of the rainbow.

Stars produce light, which causes light waves to happen. Light can be seen in different colors depending on the wavelength of light, and that same wavelength can change the temperature of the star.

This type of science is called the “blackbody radiation,” where stars with cooler temperatures shine in red and warm tones, and hotter stars shine in whites and blues and cooler tones. What is in space around the star can alter the wavelengths which will change what color we perceive the star to be.

Scientists take photos of light lengths and record their wavelengths. After they deduce the wavelengths, they color the image and remove filters that had helped find information. They take photos through the Hubble telescope, which only takes photos in black and white. They use wavelengths to determine what color the actual star is. They use filters that help decipher what colors and wavelengths are in the star.