variable star

noun

: a star whose brightness changes usually in more or less regular periods

Examples of variable star in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Among the supernovas in the data will be other transient events such as variable stars and kilonovas, the violent collision between extreme dense stellar remnants called neutron stars. Robert Lea, Space.com, 27 Jan. 2025 In particular, Leavitt would scrutinize images of the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds, and had identified 1,800 variable stars within them. Keith Cooper, Space.com, 17 Jan. 2025 As one of the largest, most luminous stars in our Milky Way Galaxy, the variable star VY Canis Majoris is a likely candidates for the next naked-eye core-collapse supernova, said Guinan. Bruce Dorminey, Forbes, 13 Jan. 2025 This region, about 8,000 light-years from Earth, is located adjacent to the famous explosive variable star Eta Carinae, which lies just outside the field of view toward the upper right. Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 8 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for variable star 

Word History

First Known Use

1788, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of variable star was in 1788

Dictionary Entries Near variable star

Cite this Entry

“Variable star.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/variable%20star. Accessed 7 Feb. 2025.

Kids Definition

variable star

noun
: a star whose brightness changes usually in more or less regular periods

More from Merriam-Webster on variable star

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