Skip to content
AsteriaStar
Stellar physics · I–VII

Luminosity Classification

A star's spectrum reveals not only its temperature but its size. The Yerkes system adds a luminosity class — from I for supergiants down through III for giants, V for main-sequence dwarfs, to VII for white dwarfs — to the Harvard spectral type. Together they place a star precisely: the Sun, for instance, is a G2V dwarf.

Knowledge connections

Sources

The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.

  • ESOEuropean Southern Observatory

    Southern-hemisphere observatory data and imagery (VLT, ALMA partner).