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

1) The state or quality of being → accurate.
2) The degree of nearness of a measured value to the standard or known value of the quantity, not to be confounded with → precision. For example, a refrigerator holds a constant temperature of 5.0 °C. A thermometer is used seven times to read the temperature, with the following results: 6.4, 5.1, 6.3, 4.5, 5.3, 6.1, and 4.1. This distribution does not well match the actual temperature, therefore it lacks accuracy, and shows no tendency toward a particular value; it lacks precision, as well.
If the measured temperatures are 4.8, 5.3, 5.1, 5.0, 4.6, 5.2, and 5.0, the mean value is accurate, because it comes close to the actual temperature, but the distribution shows no clear tendency toward a particular value (lack of precision).
Now suppose that the measured temperatures are 6.2, 6.3, 6.1, 6.0, 6.1, 6.3, and 6.2. In this case every measurement is well off from the actual temperature (low accuracy), but the distribution does show a tendency toward a particular value (high precision).
Finally, if the measured temperatures are 5.0, 5.0, 4.8, 5.1, 5.0, 4.9, and 5.0, the distribution is very near the actual temperature each time (high accuracy), and does show a tendency toward a particular value (high precision).
Accuracy is often given to n → significant digits or n → decimal places. For example e = 2.71828 ... = 2.718 is rounded to two four significant figures or three decimal places. → accurate to n significant figures, → accurate to n decimal places.

From L. accuratus "prepared with care, exact," p.p. of accurare "take care of," from ad- "to" + curare "take care of."

Rašmandi, from rašmand, from raš + adjective forming suffix -mand. Raš, from Av. root raz- "to right, correct, arrange;" compare with Skt. raj "to reign, rule, direct," Gk. oregein "to strech out," L. rego "to direct, lead;" PIE *reg- "to move in a straight line." Similarly, Av. râšta-, rašta- "straight," Skt. rju "straight, right, upright," Gk. orektos "elongated," L. rectus "straight," Ger. recht, E. right. In Mod.Pers. there are several derivatives: râst, râšt (as in afrâšt(an)) "right; true," rasté, rešté, raj, raž, râh, ris, râdé, radé, Lori rezg "row," etc.

The accuracy with which a telescope is moved by alpha or delta drives.

→ drive; → accuracy.

The accuracy (expressed in arcseconds) with which a → telescope follows the → rotational motion of the → Earth.

→ guiding; → accuracy.

A high-precision echelle spectrograph built for exoplanet findings and installed on the ESO's 3.6m telescope at La Silla Observatory in Chile. The first light was achieved in February 2003. HARPS has discovered dozens of exoplanets, making it the most successful planet finder behind the Kepler space observatory. HARPS can detect movements as small as 0.97 m s^-1 (3.5 km h^-1), with an effective precision of the order of 30 cm s^-1, and a → resolving power of 120,000 (Mayor et al., 2003, ESO Messengar 114, 20).

→ high; → accuracy; → radial; → velocity; → planet; → search; → -er.

The quality or condition of being inaccurate.
The difference between the input quantity applied to a measuring instrument and the output quantity indicated by that instrument. The inaccuracy of an instrument is equal to the sum of its instrument error and its uncertainty.

From negation prefix → in- + → accuracy

The accuracy with which a telescope can be pointed to a particular coordinate in the sky.

→ telescope; → pointing; accuracy.

The accuracy with which a → telescope tracks a target.

→ tracking; → accuracy