All about G-Type Stars¶

On Feb 26, I wrote a blog on star classification followed by blogs on "M-type" and "K-type" stars. Today, I will continue this series with the next star type in line, "G-Type" stars. Read on below.

What are G-Type Stars?¶

G-Type Stars are stars that are between 0.85 to 1.1 solar masses. They glow yellowish-white and can live 9 billion to 15 billion years. G-type stars are known to have many planets because they are also considered as calm and ideal stars.

G-Type stars are very calm usually and are almost as good for life as K-Type Stars. However, apart from this, there is one very interesting thing about all G-Type stars.

They should logically be green. But, are not. Why is that?

Green Stars¶

One of the least understood mysteries about the cosmos is the apparent absence of green stars. Why is this? Well, the explanation is actually quite interesting.

Stars emit all the colors of the rainbow. The only reason why most stars aren't white (when you add all colours together in equal amounts you get white) is because they peak in a certain colour.

G-types like our sun, though, peak at green. So why aren't they green, you might ask?

Well, apart from peaking at green, G-Type Stars have a very shallow peak. In that, whilst the do peak at green, they also emit a lot of light from the other colors. Thus, the amount of light emitted in all colors is nearly equal, which makes the sun yellowish-white.

Did you know that our sun looks yellow because of the atmosphere?

8 Fun facts about G-Type Stars¶

Contrary to popular belief, Yellow Dwarfs (Main sequence G-Type stars) outshine most other stars.
Since stars like the sun look much more yellowish-white than yellow, the term “Yellow Dwarf” is actually a misnomer.
G-Type Stars tend to have the most planets.
G-Type Stars, like K-Type Stars, are usually more likely to be solitary.
G-type stars have extremely active cores, even though they themselves are very calm.
The Sun is actually a near-perfect sphere. Most stars and planets are visibly oblate, but G-Type Stars tend to be much more spherical.
Light can take up to 1 million years to escape from a G-type star's core.
Yellow dwarfs generate less energy per square meter than reptiles or compost piles, but since they are much larger, they generate much more energy altogether.

Ending Comments¶

In conclusion, G-Type Stars are some of the most interesting stars there are. There always seems to be something new to them, despite our own sun being one.

Stay tuned for my next blog! This is Abinav Atreya, signing out.