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

The process whereby a → disk star changes its → galactocentric distance. Radial migration involves → angular momentum transfer, resulting from → resonances created by transient → density waves such as → bars or → spiral arms in → galactic disks. According to → galactic dynamics models, → churning is the main cause of radial migration. Radial migration of stars plays an important role in shaping the properties of galactic disks.

→ radial; → migration.

A motion away from or toward a central point or axis.

→ radial; → motion.

Any of short-lived (generally lasting less than 24 hours) radial features that periodically appear over the outer half of → Saturn's → B ring, when the ring tilt angle is small. These features revolve at the same rate as the planet's → magnetic field and maintain their shape over much of the course of their existence even though they extend tens of thousands of kilometers across the rings. It is believed that the tiny particles that make up these spokes are electrically charged and temporarily "frozen" into the planet's magnetic field (Ellis et al., 2007, Planetary Ring Systems, Springer).

→ radial; → spoke.

The component of a three-dimensional velocity vector of an object directed along the line of sight. It is measured by examining the Doppler shift of lines in the spectrum of astronomical objects.

→ radial; → velocity.

A curve describing the variation of the radial velocity of a star, due to the Doppler effect, under the gravitational effect of a secondary body (companion or exoplanet). The amplitude of these variations depends upon the mass of the secondary and its distance from the star.

→ radial velocity; → curve.

The technique based on the analysis of the → radial velocity curve, used to detect the presence of an invisible secondary around a host star. This method holds the majority of exoplanet discoveries.

→ radial velocity; → method.

A unit of angular measure; one radian is that angle with an intercepted arc on a circle equal in length to the radius of the circle.

From radi(us) + -an an originally adj. suffix.

1) Generally, the → radiant energy per unit → solid angle per unit of → projected area of the → source. It is usually expressed in → watt per → steradian per → square  → meter (W m^-2 sr^-1). Same as steradiancy.
2) Of any particular → wavelength within the interval covered by a → spectral line, the → energy per unit → surface per steradian, per wavelength; denoted I_λ. The term radiance is often loosely replaced by "→ intensity." The radiance of the whole line is given by I = ∫ I_λ dλ. The radiance of an → emission line depends, among other things, upon the → number of → atoms per unit area in the → line of sight (the → column density) in the → upper level of the line.

From radia(nt), → radiant, + → -ance.

Tâbešmandi, noun from tâbešmand "possessing radiation," from tâbeš, → radiation, + -mand a suffix denoting possession; Mid.Pers. -ômand suffix forming adjectives of quality.

1) Sending out rays of light; bright; shining.
See also: → radiant energy, → radiant flux, → radiant intensity.
2) The point in the sky from which → meteors in a → meteor shower appear to radiate or come. See also: → radiant drift.

M.E., from M.Fr. radiant, from L. radiantem (nominative radians) "shining," pr.p. of radiare "to shine, radiate," → radiation.

1) Tâbandé, tâbeši adj. from tâbidan, → radiate.
2) Tâbsar, from tâb "light, radiation," → radiation, + sar "head, top, summit, point," → head.

The apparent slow motion of the → radiant of a → meteor shower from night to night against the background stars due to the Earth moving in its orbit around the Sun.

→ radiant; → drift.

The energy that is transmitted in the form of → radiation, in particular as → electromagnetic radiation.

→ radiant; → energy.

Rate of flow of energy as → radiation.

→ radiant; → flux.

A measure of the amount of radiation emitted from a point expressed as the radiant flux per unit solid angle leaving this source.

→ radiant; → intensity.

To send out → energy, such as → heat or → light, in the form of → rays or → waves.

From L. radiat(us), p.p. of radiare "to shine, to beam" + -ate verbal suffix.

Tâbidan, variants tâftan "to shine," tafsidan "to become hot;" Mid.Pers. tâftan "to heat, burn, shine;" taftan "to become hot;" Parthian t'b "to shine;" Av. tāp-, taf- "to warm up, heat," tafsat "became hot," tāpaiieiti "to create warmth;" cf. Skt. tap- "to heat, be/become hot; to spoil, injure, damage; to suffer," tapati "burns;" L. tepere "to be warm," tepidus "warm;" PIE base *tep- "to be warm."

The emission of any → rays, → waves, or → particles from a source; usually applied to the → emission of → electromagnetic energy.

Verbal noun of → radiate.

A ring-shaped region in the → magnetosphere of a planet in which charged particles are trapped by the planet's magnetic field. The radiation belts surrounding Earth are known as the → Van Allen belts.

→ radiation; → belt.

Same as → radiation density constant.

→ radiation; → constant.

Damping of a system which loses energy by → electromagnetic radiation.

→ radiation; → damping.

The constant related to the total energy radiated by a → blackbody and defined as: a = 4σ/c, where σ is the → Stefan-Boltzmann constant and c the → speed of light. Its value is a = 7.5657 x 10^-15 erg cm^-3 K^-4. Same as → radiation constant.

→ radiation; → density; → constant.

The epoch in the history of the Universe, lasting from the → Big Bang until about 400,000 years later, when the temperature had dropped to 10⁹ K and the rate of electron-positron → pair annihilation exceeded the rate of their production, leaving radiation the dominant constituent of the Universe. The radiation era was followed by the → matter era.

→ radiation; → era.