An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

A type of → variable star that changes its brightness by changing its volume through expansion and contraction. Classical pulsating stars, including → Cepheids, → RR Lyrae, and
→ Delta Scuti variables, are located in a quite narrow almost vertical region in the → H-R diagram, known as → instability strip. See also → kappa mechanism.

See also: Pulsating, verbal adj. of → pulsate; → star.