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Star Systems and Galaxies
Multiple Star Systems
Binary stars – star systems with two stars
Eclipsing binary – system where one star periodically blocks
light from another
Star Clusters
Open cluster – loose disorganized appearance and contains
less than a few thousand stars
Globular cluster – large grouping of older stars that is round
and densely packed with stars, sometimes millions
Galaxies – huge group of single stars, star
systems, star clusters, dust, and gas bound by
gravity
Three types
• Spiral – bulge in the middle and arms that spiral out like
a pinwheel an example is the Milky Way
• Elliptical – round or flattened balls
• Irregular – no shape, usually contain bright, young stars
Additional Information
Quasars – enormously bright object that looks like star
many billion light years away
Universe – all of space and everything in it
Cosmic Background Radiation – mysterious glow that is
thermal energy left over from the big bang
– Dark Matter – matter that does not give off
electromagnetic radiation
– Dark Energy – mysterious new force causing
the expansion of the universe to accelerate
***Most of the universe is made of dark
matter and dark energy***