subdwarf

plural subdwarfs

1. astronomyA star that is dimmer than a main-sequence star of same temperature; located below the main sequence on the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram.

   1 more example

   Data from the Keck Observatory’s Near-Infrared Echellette Spectrograph suggested the star was an L subdwarf, or a star with a much lower mass and cooler temperature than the sun. Cool subdwarfs are the oldest stars in the galaxy. […] Kremer carried out simulations and discovered that three-body interactions can knock a low-mass subdwarf star from a cluster and put it on a trajectory that is similar to that of J1249+36.

   2024 August 21, Ashley Strickland, “An unusual object is moving so fast it could escape the Milky Way. Scientists aren’t certain what it is”, in CNN, archived from the original on 24 Sep 2024

   Synonyms: subdwarf star