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

Of → Saturn, the angle between the line of sight and the ring plane. Also known as elevation angle, tilt angle.

→ ring; → open; → angle.

Zâviyé, → angle; gošâyeš "opening," verbal noun from gošudan, gošâdan "to open up, loose, let free;" gošâd "opened; ample, broad;" Mid.Pers. wišâdan "to let free;" Khotanese hīyā "bound;" O.Pers. višta "untied, loosened," vištāspa- "with loosened horses" (personal name); Av. višta "untied," ā-hišāiiā "holds fettered," hita- "fastened, tied on, put to;" cf. Skt. sā- "to bind, fasten, fetter," sitá- "bound," ví-sita- "untied;" halqé, → ring.

→ planetary ring system.

→ ring; → system.

The last stage of → merger between two → black holes undergoing → inspiral. At the end of the evolution of a → binary black hole system, the black holes get close enough to → merge together into a single, larger black hole (→ black hole merger). The resulting black hole is at first distorted and asymmetric, but in the ringdown process the black hole's vibrations decay due to → gravitational radiation leaving finally a quiescent, spinning black hole.

M.E. ring, from O.E. hringan; akin to O.Norse hringja "to ring;" → down.

1) A small ring.
2) Any of the thin or narrow rings that compose the major → Saturn's rings.

→ ring; → -let.

A system of rings around Saturn made up of countless small particles, ranging in size from micrometers to meters, that orbit the planet. The ring particles are made almost entirely of → water ice, with some contamination from → dust and other chemicals. The ring system is divided into six major components: D, C, B, A, F, and G rings, listed from inside to outside. But in reality, these major divisions are subdivided into thousands of individual → ringlets. The large gap between the A and B rings is called the Cassini division. Saturn's rings are extraordinarily thin: though they are 250,000 km or more in diameter, they are less than one kilometer thick. → A ring, → B ring, → C ring, → D ring, → F ring, → G ring.

→ Saturn; → ring.

The process in which the direction of motion of → particles or → waves is changed randomly because of their → interactions (→ collisions) with other particles of the → medium transversed.
Two parameters govern scattering: 1) the wavelength (λ) of the incident radiation, and 2) the size of the scattering particle (r), usually expressed as the nondimensional size parameter, x = 2πr / λ. The size parameter defines three types of scattering:
1) x much less than 1 (or r much smaller than λ), → Rayleigh scattering;
2) x ~ 1 (or rλ), → Mie scattering; and
3) x much larger than 1 (or r much larger than λ), → geometric scattering.
See also: → atmospheric scattering, → backscattering, → Brillouin scattering, → coherent scattering, → Compton scattering, → elastic scattering, → forward scattering, → last scattering, → last scattering surface, → multiple scattering, → noncoherent scattering, → quasi-single-scattering approximation, → Raman scattering, → scattering angle, → scattering coefficient, → scattering of stars, → selective scattering, → single scattering, → spin-flip scattering, → surface of last scattering, → Thomson scattering.
Related terms: → diffraction; → diffusion; → dispersion; → distribution.

Verbal noun of → scatter.

The angle between the → incident radiation on a → particle (such as a water droplet in a rainbow) and the scattered radiation (such as the light ray leaving the droplet). Scattering angle is a function of → impact parameter. In other words, The angle along which the change of direction has taken place, irrespective whether radiation is scattered by particles or reflected (refracted) by a surface.

→ scattering; → angle.

The fraction of light scattered per unit distance in a medium.

→ scattering; → coefficient.

The progressive increase of random motions of → disk stars with increasing stellar → ages. While some initial random motion seems likely in the disturbed conditions of disks when the oldest stars formed, the observation is generally attributed to scattering processes. Both massive gas → clumps and → spiral waves are considered as scattering agents (J. A. Sellwood & J. J. Binney, 2002, astro-ph/0203510 and references therein).

→ scattering; → star.

A type of scattering that occurs when certain → particles are more effective at scattering a particular → wavelength of light, as in → Rayleigh scattering.

→ selective; → scattering.

A type of scattering where photons are scattered only once. Single scattering dominates in → optically thin media, since photons have a high probability of exiting the medium (e.g., a thin cloud) before being scattered again.

→ single; → scattering.

The slight erosion of Solar System bodies (planets, moons, asteroids) caused by the → solar wind, → cosmic rays, and → micrometeorite bombardments. Space weathering affects the physical and optical properties of the surfaces of these bodies. Understanding this process is therefore important for the interpretation of remotely obtained spectral data, such as space probe photographs of outer Solar System moons.

→ space; → weathering.

Quantum mechanics: The scattering of a particle that reverses the spin direction.

→ spin; flip, from flip-flap; → scattering.

Parâkaneš, → scattering; bâ "with;" vâruni, noun from vârun, → inverse; espin, → spin.

1) The season that starts when the Sun, during its apparent yearly motion, attains the celestial longitude 0 degree in the Northern Hemisphere and 180 degrees in the Southern Hemisphere. The current length of the spring season, around the year 2000, is about: spring 92.76 days.
2) A surface flow of groundwater which occurs any time the water table intersects the surface. Related concept → source = xan (خن).
3) An elastic device, usually a twisted piece of metal, that returns to its original shape when it is pressed or stretched, used chiefly to exert constant tension or absorb movement.

1) From the verb M.E. springen; O.E. springan "to leap, burst forth, fly up;" the notion is of the "spring of the year," when plants "spring up" cf. Du., Ger. springen.
2) Similarly from the verb, as above, M.E. spring(e); O.E. spring, spryng; cf. O.H.G., Dan., Sw. spring.
3) From the verb spring, as above.

1) Bahâr, from Mid.Pers. wahâr "spring;" O.Pers. vāhara- "spring time," θūra-vāhara- "name of a spring month;" Av. vaηhar "spring;" cf. Skt. vasara- "relating or appearing in the morning;" Gk. ear "spring;" L. uēr "spring," vernus "of spring;" O.N. vār "spring;" Lith. vasara "summer;" O.C.S. vesna "spring."
2) Cešmé "spring, source," from Mid.Pers. cašmag "spring, source," supposed to be related to cašm, cešm→ eye.
3) Fanar, from Turk fanâr.

A characteristic of a spring which is defined as the ratio of the force affecting the spring to the displacement caused by the force. In other words, the spring constant is the force applied if the displacement in the spring is unity. It is expressed by the equation k = -F/x (from → Hooke's law), where F = force applied, x = displacement by the spring. The spring constant is usually expressed in Newton per meter (N/m).

→ spring; → force.

→ vernal equinox.

→ spring; → equinox.

Tide that occurs when the → Earth, the → Sun, and the → Moon are in a line. This happens approximately twice a month, around → new moon and → full moon. In such a condition, known as → syzygy, the tidal force due to the Sun reinforces that due to the Moon. Spring tides have nothing to do with the season spring. The name derives from the meaning "a leap, jump, bound, rise."

Spring "a leap, jump, or bound;" M.E. springen, from spring O.E. springan "to leap, fly up; spread, grow;" cognates: O.N., O.Fris. springa, M.Du. springhen, O.H.G. springan, Ger. springen, from PIE *sprengh-, form *spergh- "to move, hasten, spring" (Skt. sprhayati "desires eagerly," Gk. sperkhesthai "to hurry."

Mehkešandak "high tide," from meh-, → high, + kešand, → tide.

The ejection of charged particles or atoms by a solid or liquid surface which undergoes collision with high-energy ions.

Verbal noun of → sputter.

Same as → quadrature of the circle

→ square; → wave.

The mathematical problem of subdividing a square into a number of smaller squares, all of different sizes.

→ square; → square.