An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
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A formula that determines the distribution of intensity of radiation that prevails under conditions of thermal equilibrium at a temperature T: B_v = (2hν³ / c²)[exp(hν / kT) - 1]^-1 where h is Planck's constant and ν is the frequency.

→ Planck; → blackbody; → formula.

Permanent → deformation of a → solid subjected to a → stress.

→ plastic; → deformation.

An approximate version of → general relativity that applies when the → gravitational field is → weak, and the matter → velocity is → small. Post-Newtonian formalism successfully describes the gravitational field of the solar system. It can also be applied to situations involving compact bodies with strong internal gravity, provided that the mutual gravity between bodies is weak. It also provides a foundation to calculate the → gravitational waves emitted by → compact binary star systems, as well as their orbital evolution under radiative losses. The formalism proceeds from the Newtonian description and then, step by step, adds correction terms that take into account the effects of general relativity. The correction terms are ordered in a systematic way (from the largest effects to the smallest ones), and the progression of ever smaller corrections is called the → post-Newtonian expansion.

→ post-; → Newtonian; → formalism.

A mathematical analysis, based on → self-similarity, used to predict the → mass function of spherically collapsing → dark matter halos. The formalism assumes that the fraction of mass in halos more massive than M is related to the fraction of the volume in which the smoothed initial density field is above some threshold δ_cρ, where ρ is the average density of the Universe, with the volume encompassing a mass larger than M. A variety of smoothing → window functions and thresholds have been argued, but the most common is a top-hat window in real space and δ_c≅ 1.69. The Press-Schechter formalism provides a relatively good fit to the results of numerical simulations in cold dark matter theories.

First described by William H. Press and Paul Schechter's paper (1974, ApJ 187, 425); → formalism.

A force resulting from → pressure gradient that is directed from high to low pressure.

→ pressure; → gradient; → force.

A formula relating the unknown part of a → quadratic equation (the roots of the equation, x) to the known parts (a, b, and c): x = (-b± (b² - 4ac)^½) / 2a.

→ quadratic; → formula.

The science concerned with the transmission, storage, and processing of information using quantum mechanical systems. It exploits the notion of → quantum entanglement between systems and joins several fields of knowledge, mainly quantum physics, information, computation, and probability.

→ quantum; → information.

1) (n.) The improvement, amendment, or reorganization of something that is considered to be wrong, ineffective, or unsatisfactory; e.g. calendar reform.
2) (v.tr.) To change and improve by correction of faults, alteration, substitution, abolition, etc.

From M.E. reformen, from M.Fr. reformer, from O.Fr., from L. reformare "to form again, change, alter," from → re- "again" + formare "to form," from forma "form, mold, shape, case," origin unknown.

1) Bâzdisi, from bâz- "again," → re-, + dis, disé "form, appearance," (variants -diz, -diš (tandis "body form, like a body; effigy; statute;" mâhdis "moon-like;" šabdiz "night color; a horse of dark rusty color;" andiš- "to think, contemplate"); Mid.Pers. dêsag "form, appearance," dêsidan "to form, build;" Av. daēs- "to show," daēsa- "sign, omen;" cf. Skt. deś- "to show, point out;" PIE *deik- "to show" (cf. Gk. deiknumi "to show," dike "manner, custom;" L. dicere "to utter, say;" O.H.G. zeigon, Ger. zeigen "to show;" O.E. teon "to accuse," tæcan "to teach") + -i noun suffix.
2) Bâzdisidan infinitive from bâzdisi, as above.

The force by which bodies repel one another. → repulsion.

Repulsive, adj. of → repulse; → force.

Finding the → components of a → force which act in specified → directions.

→ resolution; → force.

A force that comes into play after a system is perturbed away from the equilibrium, tending to bring the system back the equilibrium position. For example, when a pendulum is displaced from its equilibrium position, it is subject to a restoring force due to gravity that will accelerate it back toward the equilibrium position. The restoring force combined with the pendulum's mass causes it to oscillate about the equilibrium position.

→ restore; → force.

A single force which has the same effect as all other applied forces collectively.

→ resultant; → force.

A simple model assuming that the positive charge of the atom is not distributed uniformly throughout the atom (unlike the → Thomson atom), but is concentrated in a minute center or nucleus, and the negative charge is distributed over a sphere of radius comparable with the atomic radius.

After the British physicist and chesmist Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937), who put forward this model in 1911; Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1908; → atom.

An artificially produced radioactive chemical element; symbol Rf. Atomic number 104; mass number of most stable isotope 261; melting point, boiling point, and specific gravity unknown. Rutherfordium was discovered in 1964 by a team of scientists at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research at Dubna in Russia who named the element kurchatovium. The Russian scientists were unable to duplicate their results and therefore lost credit to a team of scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, who identified the element. The scientists in California were successful in isolating the element after irradiating ²⁴⁹Cf with ¹²C.

Named after the British physicist and chemist Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937), → Rutherford atom.

A formula, used in atomic physics, which describes the wavelengths or frequencies of light in various series of related spectral lines, such as those emitted by hydrogen atoms.

→ rydberg; → formula.

The scientific attempt to detect → intelligent extraterrestrial → life by surveying the sky to find the existence of → transmissions, especially → radio waves or → light, from a → civilization on a distant → planet. The SETI Institute, that carries out the project, is a private non-profit center founded in 1984. There are many methods that SETI scientific teams use to search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Many of these search billions of radio frequencies that reach Earth from all over the → Universe, looking for an intelligent → radio signal. Other SETI teams search by looking for signals in pulses of light emanating from the stars.

→ search; → extraterrestrial; → intelligence.

A → spectral line for which the upper and lower → energy levels have different values of S, the total → spin angular momentum. These lines violate the quantum mechanical → selection rule under → LS coupling, ΔS = 0. For example, the Ca I λ6573 line results from transition between the upper → triplet state (³P₁) with a total spin angular momentum S = 1 and the → ground state, a → singlet state (¹S₀, total spin angular momentum S = 0). A semi-forbidden line is marked by a right bracket following the atom name, i.e. Ca I], in the above-mentioned case. Same as → interconnection line and → intersystem line.

→ semi-; → forbidden; → line.

An → atomic transition whose probability is reduced by a factor of the order of 10⁶ because of → selection rules. Same as → interconnection line.

→ semi-; → forbidden; → transition.

Same as → Weizsacker formula.

→ semiempirical; → binding; → energy; → formula.

The formation of second-generation stars in a → molecular cloud, as triggered by the presence of → massive stars. The observation that some nearby → OB associations contain distinct, spatially separate subgroups of → OB stars in a sequence of monotonically changing age led Blaauw (1964, ARA&A 2, 213) to suggest that star formation in fact occurs in sequential bursts during the lifetimes of the corresponding molecular clouds. The first quantitative model of this mechanism was presented by Elmegreen and Lada (1977, ApJ 214, 725), who showed that the powerful ultraviolet photons of the massive star create an → ionization front which advances in the molecular cloud and is preceded by a → shock front. The compressed neutral gas lying between the ionization and shock fronts is gravitationally unstable and collapses in time-scales of a few million years to form a new generation of massive stars. The propagation of successive births of OB groups would produce a chain of associations presenting a gradient of age. Elmegreen and Lada estimated the propagation velocity to be 5 km s^-1. For a region with a length larger than 100 pc, this would imply an age difference of the order of 20 million years between the extremities. See also → stimulated star formation, → triggered star formation; → collect and collapse model.

→ sequential; → star formation.