An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
English-French-Persian

To penetrate or divide something, as with a sharp-edged instrument.

M.E. cutten, kytten, kitten; O.E. *cyttan, cognate with O.Swed. kotta "to cut;" O.N. kuti "little knife," or from O.Fr. couteau "knife."

Boridan "to cut off;" Mid.Pers. brin-, britan, brinitan "to cut off," brin "cut, delimitation, determined;" Av. (pairi-) brī- "to shave, shear;" cf. Skt. bhrī- "to hurt, injure," bhrinanti "they hurt."

1) A designated limit beyond which the passage of something must be stopped.
2) A device that cuts off a transmission of photons.

→ cut; → off.

Boré, from bor- present stem of boridan "to → cut" + noun suffix -é.

Filter rejecting all light with wavelengths on one side of the cutoff wavelength.

→ cutoff; → filter.

The electrode voltage which reduces the value of a dependent variable, e.g. anode current, to a specified low value.

→ cutoff; → voltage.

Wavelength at which the transmittance of a filter, or the detectivity of a detector, has fallen to one-half its peak value.

→ cutoff; → wavelength.

A member of a class of → pulsating stars with periods less than 0.3 days, → spectral types A or F, and visual light amplitudes in the range from a few thousands of a magnitude to about 0.8 mag. On the → H-R diagram, δ Scuti stars form a group which lies in an → instability strip which includes the classical → Cepheids at its brightest end and the pulsating → white dwarfs at its faintest limit. These stars can show very complex light variations since, while some of them are pulsating in one radial mode only, others may be pulsating simultaneously in several radial and non-radial modes.

Named after the prototype star δ of constellation → Scutum; → variable.

1) Computers: Describing a computer program that is able to be run. → executable program.
2) Computer: A file containing a program that will run when it is opened. → executable file.

→ execute; → -able.

A type of binary file designed to be directly executed by a computer system. → executable program.

→ executable; → file.

A program that can run on a → computer. It uses an → executable file.

→ executable; → program.

1) To carry out; accomplish.
2) To create (a work of art, for example) or carry out in accordance with a prescribed design.
3) Computers: To run a program or an instruction.

M.E. executen, from O.Fr. executer, from M.L. executare, from L. execut-/exsecut-, p.p. stem of exequi/exsequi "to follow out, carry out," from → ex- "out" + sequi "to follow, come after," from PIE root *sekw- "to follow," → sequence; cf. Av. hac- "to follow," Gk. hepesthai "to follow," Skt. sacate "accompanies, follows"

Zokârdan, from prefix zo-, variants os-, so-, âz-, → ex-, + kâr variant of kar-, kardan "to do, to make," → -ize.

The act of executing something; the state of being executed.

Verbal noun of → execute; → -tion.

1a) Of, pertaining to, or suited for carrying out plans, duties, etc.
1b) Pertaining to or charged with the execution of laws and policies or the administration of public affairs.
2a) A person or group of persons having administrative or supervisory authority in an organization.
2b) The person or persons in whom the supreme executive power of a government is vested (Dictionary.com).

→ execute; → -ive.

A person who executes, carries out, or performs some duty, job, assignment, artistic work, etc. (Dictionary.com).

→ execute; → -or.

Same as → Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin cutoff.

→ Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin cutoff.

A person who institutes or conducts legal proceedings, especially in a criminal court.

M.L. prosecutor, agent noun from prosequi "follow after, accompany; chase, pursue;" from → pro- "forward" + sequi "to follow," → sequence.

Dâsetân, literally "justice obtainer," from dâd, → justice, + setân agent noun of setândan "to obtain, to take," from Mid.Pers. statan "to take, seize;" Av. (+ *fra-) frastan- "to take, convey forward;" Proto-Ir. *staHn- "to take;" cf. L. prae-stināre "to buy, fix a price" (Cheung 2007).

Same as the → Schmidt law.

Named after the American astrophysicists Maarten Schmidt (1929-), the pioneer of research in this field, and Robert C. Kennicutt, Jr. (1951-), who developed the study; → relation.

The Shield. A small constellation in the southern Milky Way, at 18h 40m right ascension, 10° south declination. Its brightest star has a visual magnitude of 3.85. Scutum contains several open clusters, as well as a globular cluster and a planetary nebula. The two best known deep sky objects in Scutum are M11 (NGC 6705), a dense open cluster, and M26, another open cluster also known as NGC 6694. The globular cluster NGC 6712 and the planetary nebula IC 1295 can be found in the eastern part of the constellation. Abbreviation: Sct; Genitive: Scuti.

Scutum was created by Johannes Hevelius in 1683, who originally named it L. Scutum Sobiescianum "the shield of Sobieski" to commemorate the victory of the Polish forces led by King John III Sobieski in the Battle of Vienna, and thus refers to Sobieski's Janina Coat of Arms. Later, the name was shortened to Scutum "shield."

Separ "shield," from Mid.Pers. spar "shield;" cf. Skt. phalaka- "board, lath, leaf, shield," phálati "(he) splits;" Gk. aspalon "skin, hide," spolas "flayed skin," sphalassein "to cleave, to disrupt;" O.H.G. spaltan "to split;" Goth. spilda "board;" PIE base *(s)p(h)el- "to split, to break off."

A spiral arm of our Galaxy located between the Sagittarius Arm and the Norma Arm, though it is rather less prominent than either of these two better defined spiral arms. It originates relatively close to the Sun's present position in the Galaxy, and follows a sweeping arc of about 80,000 light years to the opposite side of the Galactic disk.

→ Scutum; → Crux; → arm.

Same as → upper mass limit.

→ upper; → mass; → cut-off.