standard candle

noun

1. a unit of luminous intensity; the candela: not in scientific usage because of possible confusion with a former unit (international candle) See also candela international candle

Example Sentences

The peak brightness of a Type Ia supernova is so strong and steady that astronomers use them as ‘standard candles’ to calculate distances in the universe and the rate at which our Universe expands!

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Pegging the distance to a Cepheid via parallax allows astronomers to calibrate the relationship between its brightness and variability, making it a workhorse “standard candle” for estimating greater cosmic distances.

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They are standard candles, objects of known brightness, and became a key tool for Hubble.

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Wendy Freedman, an astronomer at the University of Chicago, uses a certain class of red giant stars as her preferred standard candle.

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The aftermath of these explosions, known as supernovae, are so readily classifiable that they are called "standard candles," meaning observations of their brightness can be used to calculate distance.

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