OtterKnow Kids EncyclopediaStars are not all the same color! They come in many beautiful colors, including blue, white, yellow, orange, and red. If you look carefully at the night sky, you might notice that some stars look slightly different colors from each other.
A star’s color tells us how hot it is. Blue and white stars are the hottest. Yellow stars, like our Sun, are medium hot. Orange and red stars are the coolest. It is like how a flame can be blue at the hottest part and red or orange where it is cooler. The hottest stars burn through their fuel faster, while cooler red stars can shine for a very long time.
- Our Sun is a yellow-white star, which means it has a medium temperature.
- The star Betelgeuse in the Orion constellation glows red because it is a cool supergiant.
- The hottest blue stars can be over 50,000 degrees on their surface!
