An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics
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The sixth of → Jupiter's known moons and the fourth largest; it is the second of the → Galilean satellites. With a diameter of 3140 km, Europa is slightly smaller than Earth's Moon. Its mass is 4.80 × 10²² kg, i.e. 1.5 times less massive than Earth Moon. Its distance to Jupiter is 670,900 km, or about 9 Jovian radii. Its → orbital period is 3.55 Earth days which equals its → rotation period. Europa's density is 3.0 g cm^-3, typical of a mixture of rocks including → ice. Its high → albedo (0.67) suggests that its surface is mostly → water ice. The → surface temperature of Europa ranges between about 125 K (-150 °C) at the equator and about 50 K (-220 °C) at the poles. There are few → impact craters on Europa, because its surface is too active and therefore young. The most striking features of Europa's surface are structures called → lineae and → lenticulae. The thickness of the ice crust could range between a few kilometers to a few tens of kilometers. It is now believed that there is an ocean of salty water, up to 100 km deep, flowing under Europa's ice. Europa's ocean is kept liquid due to → tidal heating by Jupiter.

In Gk. mythology, Europa was a Phoenician princess (Agenor's daughter) abducted to Crete by Zeus, who had assumed the form of a white bull, and by him the mother of Minos, Sarpedon, and Rhadamanthys.

The northern hemisphere → continent that has the Atlantic Ocean to its west, the Arctic Ocean to its north, Asia to its east, and Africa to its south (area 10,354,636 square kilometers).

From → Europa.

Of or relating to Europe or its inhabitants.

→ Europe.

An major intergovernmental research organisation in astronomy supported by 14 European countries. ESO was founded in 1962 as a consortium among Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden. The ESO Headquarters are located in Garching near Munich, Germany. The organization operates three outstanding observing sites in the Atacama Desert region of Chile: → La Silla, → Paranal, and Chajnantor. The → Very Large Telescope (VLT), the world's most advanced visible-light astronomical facility, is located on the 2600 m high mountain of Paranal, which also hosts the → VLT Interferometer (VLTI). The Chajnantor site, 5000 m above sea level, near San Pedro de Atacama, operates a submillimeter telescope (APEX). Moreover, a giant array of 12 m submillimeter antennas, called → ALMA, is being constructed in collaboration with North America, East Asia and Chile. ESO is currently planning a 42 m European Extremely Large optical/near-infrared Telescope, the → E-ELT.

→ European; → southern; → observatory.

An intergovernmental organisation dedicated to space research and technology as well as peaceful exploration of space, founded in 1975. It is headquartered in Paris and currently comprises 18 member states and one associated state (Canada). ESA has developed the Ariane series of space launch vehicles, and supports a launch facility in French Guiana. Moreover, ESA has four major research centers: The European Space Research and Technology Center (ESTEC), located in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, is the primary research center and manages the satellite projects. The European Space Operations Center (ESOC), situated in Darmstadt, Germany, is responsible for satellite control, monitoring, and data retrieval. The European Space Research Institute (ESRIN), located in Frascati, Italy, supports the ESA documentation service and manages the data obtained from remote sensing satellites. The European Astronaut Center (EAC), located in Cologne, Germany, is responsible for the selection and training of astronauts for space station missions. The European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC), located in Villafranca del Castillo, Madrid, Spain, which holds scientific operations centres as well as archives. Some of the past ESA missions are the following ones. The Giotto space probe, which enabled examination of the core of → Halley's Comet in 1986. ESA also developed the Ulysses spacecraft (launched 1990) to explore the Sun's polar regions. Similarly, ESA established a system of meteorological satellites known as Meteosat. In 2003 ESA launched the Mars Express orbiter and its lander, Beagle 2. In 2009 ESA launched → Planck Satellite, that is designed to study the → cosmic microwave background, and the → Herschel Satellite, an infrared observatory that is the largest telescope in space.

→ European; → space; agency, from M.L. agentia, from L. ag-, root of agere, → act + -entia noun suffix.

Sâzmân, → organization; fazâyi adj. of fazâ, → space; Orupâ, → Europa.

A ductile silvery-white metallic → chemical element; symbol Eu. → Atomic number 63; → atomic weight 151.96; → melting point about 820°C; → boiling point about 1,600°C; → specific gravity 5.25 at 25°C. Europium occurs in monazite and bastnaesite and is used to dope → lasers and to absorb → neutrons in research. It was separated from the mineral samaria in magnesium-samarium nitrate by the French chemist Eugène-Anatole Demarçay (1852-1904) in 1901.

Named after the continent Europe, → Europa.

Mixture of two substances which solidifies as a whole when cooled, without change in composition. The eutectic point is the temperature at which the eutectic mixture solidifies.

From Gk. eutektos "easily melted," from → eu- + tektos "melted" + → -ic.

Hugodâz, from hu-, → eu-, + godâz, → melt.

The act or practice of putting painlessly to death, or allowing to die, especially in cases of incurable suffering.

From Gk. euthanasia "an easy or happy death," from → eu- "good" + thanatos "death."

Âsânmiri, literally "easy dyind," from âsân, → easy, + miri "dying," from mordan "to die," → death.

To determine or set the value or amount of; to judge or determine the significance, worth, or quality of.

Verbal form of → evaluation.

An act or instance of evaluating; to examine and judge carefully.

From Fr. évaluer "to find the value of," from → ex- "out" + value "worth, value," p.p. of valoir "be worth," from L. valere "be strong, be of value;" PIE base *wal- "to be strong."

Arzyâbi, from arz "value" + yâbi "finding." The first component arz, present stem of arzidan "to be worth," arzân "worthy; of small value, cheap," arj "esteem, honour, price, worth;" Mid.Pers. arz "value, worth," arzidan "be worth," arzân "valuable;" Av. arəjaiti "is worth," arəja- "valuable," arəg- "to be worth;" cf. Skt. arh- "to be worth, to earn," árhant- "worthy person;" Gk. alphanein "to bring in as profit," alphein "to ear, obtain;" Lith. algà "salary, pay;" PIE base *alg^wh- "to earn; price, value." The second component yâbi, verbal noun of yâftan, yâbidan "to find, discover; to obtain, acquire;" Mid.Pers. ayâftan, ayâpênitan "to reach, attain;" Manichean Mid.Pers. 'y'b "to attain;" Parthian, Sogdian (+ *pati-) pty'b "to reach, obtain;" Av. ap- "to reach, overtake," apayeiti "achieved, reached;" Skt. âp- "to reach, gain," âpnoti "reaches, gains;" Gk. hapto, haptomai "to touch, cling to, adhere to;" L. apiscor "touch, reach;" PIE base *ap- "to take, reach."

To disappear gradually.

→ vanish.

Tending to → vanish gradually.

Verbal adj. from → evanesce.

A wave whose → amplitude → decreases → exponentially with distance from the → interface at which it is formed. Evanescent waves are formed when → sinusoidal waves are internally reflected off an interface at an angle greater than the → critical angle so that → total internal reflection occurs.

→ evanescent; → wave.

(v.intr.) To change from liquid state into vapor; (v.tr.) To convert into a gaseous state or vapor.

Verbal form of → evaporation.

The physical process by which a liquid is transformed to the gaseous state, usually by means of heat; the opposite of → condensation. Also called vaporization.

From L. evaporationem (nom. evaporatio), from evaporare "to disperse in vapor," from → ex- "out" + → vapor "steam."

Boxârš, verbal noun of boxâridan "to evaporate," from boxâr, → vapor.

A periodic perturbation in the motion of the → Moon caused by the variation in the gravitational pull of the Sun, which causes a change in the → eccentricity of the Moon's orbit during its monthly revolution. As a result, the Moon's → ecliptic longitude oscillates with a amplitude of ± 1°16' during a period of about 31.8 days.

From L. evection- "carrying away, going upwards, flight," from evect(us) p.p. of evehere "to carry forth, move forth," from e-, → ex- + vehere "to carry," cognate with Av. vaz- "to carry, move," as below.

Osbaz "carrying away," from os-, → ex-, + *baz "to carry," ultimately from Proto-Ir. *uaz- "to carry, drive;" from which Av. vaz- "to move, carry, drive (a chariot)," vazaiti "to lead;" Kurd. (Kurmanji) bazin/baz- "to run;" Mod./Mid.Pers. bazidan, vazidan "to blow (as the wind)," parvâz, → flight; cf. Skt. vah- "to ride, drive, transport;" Gk. oxos "carriage;" L. vehere "to carry;" Lith. veži "I ride;" O.H.G. wegan "to move, carry;" PIE base *wegh- "to go, carry, drive." See also: → advection; → convection.

A classical variable which does not change upon spatial inversion, such as time, energy, angular momentum and so on. → odd parity.

Even, from O.E. efen "level; equal," from P.Gmc. *ebnaz (cf. Ger. eben; Goth. ibns); → parity.

Hamâli, → parity; zowj "pair, couple; an even number," from Ar.

The latter part of the → day and early part of the → night. Not an astronomical term proper. → evening star.

From O.E. verb æfnung "to grow toward evening," from æfnian "to become evening," from æfen "evening," from P.Gmc. *æbando- (cf. O.H.G. aband, Ger. abend).

Ivâr "evening" (Lori, Laki êvâra; Borujerdi ivâra; Kurd. ewâra); Mid.Pers. êwârak "evening," ultimately from Proto-Ir. *upa-ayara- "end of the day," from *upa- "up, on," + *ayara- "day;" cf. Av. ayar- (aiiar-) "day;" Shughni, Roshani, Bartangi prefixed (*api-) biyôr, Sariqoli biyur "yesterday;" PIE *ayer- "day, morning;" cf. Gk. eerios "at breakfast," ariston "breakfast;" Du. eer, Ger. eher "earlier;" E. ere "soon, before (in time)."

Any bright → planet, often → Venus, seen low in the western sky after → sunset. → Hesperus.

→ evening; → dusk; → star.

1) General: Something that happens or is regarded as happening; an occurrence, especially one of some importance.
2) Einstein's relativity: An occurrence in the → space-time continuum referenced by three spatial coordinates and a complementary temporal ordinate. → world line; → space-time diagram.
3) Statistics: A subset of the → sample space.

From M.Fr. event, from L. eventus "occurrence, issue," from evenire "to come out, happen, result," from → ex- "out" + venire "to come," from PIE base *gwem- "to go, come;" cf. Mod/Mid.Pers. gâm "step, pace;" O.Pers. gam- "to come; to go;" Av. gam- "to come; to go," jamaiti "goes;" Mod.Pers. âmadan "to come;" Skt. gamati "goes;" Gk. bainein "to go, walk, step;" L. venire "to come;" Tocharian A käm- "to come;" O.H.G. queman "to come;" E. come.

Ruydâd, noun from ruy dâdan "to occur, happen," originally "to appear," from ruy "face; aspect; appearance" (Mid.Pers. rôy, rôdh "face;" Av. raoδa- "growth," in plural "appearance," from raod- "to grow, sprout, shoot;" cf. Skt. róha- "rising, height") + dâdan "to give; to command" (Mid.Pers. dâdan "to give;" O.Pers./Av. dā- "to give, grant, yield," dadāiti "he gives;" cf. Skt. dadáti "he gives;" Gk. didomi "I give;" L. dare "to give, offer," facere to make;" PIE base *do- to give").