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

A means by which the pretended ignorance of a skillful questioner leads the person answering to expose his own ignorance (Collins).

→ Socratic; → irony.

The → sodium tail of the Moon as it appears in the sky opposite the Sun. The SMS undergoes changes in shape and brightness. It is brighter when the → new moon occurs at → perigee, when the new moon is north of the → ecliptic, and approximately five hours after the new moon.

→ sodium; → Moon; → spot.

A comet-like tail of the Moon comprised of → sodium (Na) atoms and invisible to the naked eye. The lunar surface is constantly bombarded by the → solar wind, → photons, and → meteoroids, which can liberate Na atoms from the → regolith. These atoms are subsequently accelerated by solar → radiation pressure to form a long comet-like tail opposite the Sun. Near → new moon, this diffuse cloud of Na atoms encounters the Earth's gravity and is "pinched" into a beam of enhanced density. This beam appears as the ~3° diameter Sodium Moon Spot (SMS) seen in the sky opposite the Sun. The spot is about five times the diameter of the → full moon, and is 50 times fainter than can be seen with the unaided eye. The spot is reflected light from millions of Na atoms that two days earlier were on the surface of the Moon. This spot is visible to sensitive cameras equipped with filters tuned to the orange light emitted by Na atoms near 589.3 nm (Baumgardner et al., 2021 Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets DOI: 10.1029/2020je006671).

→ sodium; → tail; → Moon.

Iron that has a low carbon content, in contrast to → steel. Because it is easily magnetized and demagnetized, it is used to make the cores of → solenoids and other electrical equipment.

→ soft; → iron.

The amount of solar radiation in all wavelengths received per unit of time per unit of area on a theoretical surface perpendicular to the Sun's rays and at Earth's mean distance from the Sun. Its mean value is 1367.7 W m^-2 or 1.37 × 10⁶ erg sec^-1 cm^-2. In other words, the solar constant is the mean → solar irradiance on the outer atmosphere when the Sun and Earth are spaced at 1 → astronomical unit. See also: → solar luminosity.

→ solar; → constant.

The outermost atmosphere of the Sun immediately above the → chromosphere, which can be seen during a total solar eclipse. It consists of hot (1-2 × 10⁶ K), extremely tenuous gas (about 10^-16 g cm^-3) extending for millions of kilometer from the Sun's surface.

→ solar; → corona.

The → angle between the → sea horizon, the → center of → Earth, and the center of the → solar disk.

→ solar; → depression.

In ancient astronomy, the difference between the Sun's mean and actual position. The ancients observed that, although the motion of the Sun in the ecliptic is almost uniform, it is subject to a small annual variation.

→ solar; → equation.

The ecliptic longitude of the Sun. It varies from 0° (at the vernal equinox) to 360° during the year. By Kepler's Second Law, the rate of change of the solar longitude is such that the Earth sweeps out equal areas on the ecliptic plane in equal times.

→ solar; → longitude.

All the constituents making up the Sun's emission: photons, electrons, protons, neutrinos, and atomic nuclei.

→ solar; → radiation.

The → radiation pressure of solar photons, which pushes a comet's dust outward to form a → dust tail.

→ solar; → radiation; → pressure.

The motion of the Sun around an axis which is roughly perpendicular to the plane of the → ecliptic; the Sun's rotational axis is tilted by 7.25° from perpendicular to the ecliptic. It rotates in the → counterclockwise direction (when viewed from the north), the same direction that the planets rotate (and orbit around the Sun). The Sun's rotation is differential, i.e. the period varies with latitude on the Sun (→ differential rotation). Equatorial regions rotate in about 25.6 days. The regions at 60 degrees latitude rotate more slowly, in about 30.9 days.

→ solar; → rotation.

A criterion for → convective stability in → massive stars. The Solberg-Høiland stability criterion corresponds to the inclusion of the effect of → rotation (variation of → centrifugal force) in the convective stability criterion. It is a combination of → Ledoux's criterion (or possibly → Schwarzschild's criterion) and → Rayleigh's criterion. Both the dynamical shear and Solberg-Høiland instabilities occur in the case of a very large → angular velocity decrease outwards. Therefore, in a → rotating star the Ledoux or Schwarzschild criteria for convective instability should be replaced by the Solberg-Høiland criterion. More specifically, this criterion accounts for the difference of the centrifugal force for an adiabatically displaced fluid element. It is also known as the axisymmetric baroclinic instability. It arises when the net force (gravity + buoyancy + centrifugal force) applied to a fluid parcel in an adiabatical displacement has components only in the direction of the displacement (A. Maeder, Physics, Formation and Evolution of Rotating Stars, 2009, Springer).

E. Høiland, 1939, On the Interpretation and Application of the Circulation Theorems of V. Bjerknes. Archiv for mathematik og naturvidenskab. B. XLII. Nr. 5. Oslo.
H. Solberg, 1936 (reprint), Le mouvement d'inertie de l'atmosphere stable et son rôle dans la théorie des cyclones.
H. Solberg, 1941, On the Stability of the Circular Vortex. Avhandl. utg. av Det Norske Videnskaps-Akademi i Oslo. I. Mat-Naturv. Klasse. No. 11.
Wasiutynski, J. 1946, Astrophysica Norvegica, 4, 1.

1) To become or make solid, hard, or firm.

→ solid; → -fy.

Math., Physics: A solution of a certain type of partial differential equation that represents a solitary wave. A soliton is a self-reinforcing wave that maintains its shape while it travels at constant speed. Solitons are caused by a cancellation of nonlinear and dispersive effects in the medium.

From solit(ary) + → -on.

1) The act of solving a problem, question. The state of being solved.
2a) Math.: The process of determining the answer to a problem. The answer itself.
2b) Math.: Of a differential equation, any function which, when put into the equation, converts it into an identity.
3) Chem.: The process by which a gas, liquid, or solid is dispersed homogeneously in a gas, liquid, or solid without chemical change. a homogeneous, molecular mixture of two or more substances.

Verbal noun of → solve.

Any of a class of chemical reactions in which solute and solvent molecules combine.

From solv(ent), → solvent + -ation.

Luyé, from luy- the stem of luyidé→ solute and luyandé→ solvent + -é nuance suffix.

A rocket or balloon carrying instruments to probe conditions in the upper atmosphere.

From Fr. sonde "ounding line; plumb line."

Gomâné "a shaft sunk in order to ascertain the depth of the water when making a subterraneous canal," from Proto-Iranian *vi-mā-, from vi- "apart, away from, out" (cf. Av. vi-; O.Pers. viy- "apart, away;" Skt. vi- "apart, asunder, away, out;" L. vitare "to avoid, turn aside") + mā- "to measure" (cf. O.Pers./Av. mā(y)- "to measure;" Mod.Pers. mâ/mun/mân "measure," as in Pers. terms âzmâ- "to test;" pirâmun "perimeter," âzmun "test, trial," peymân "measuring, agreement," peymâné "a measure; a cup, bowl;" PIE base *me- "to measure;" cf. Skt. mati "measures," matra- "measure;" Gk. metron "measure;" L. metrum).

Of, relating to, or being the speed of sound in a medium.

From L. sonus, → sound.

Sedâyi, pertaining to sedâ, → sound.

A noise caused by a shock wave that emanates from an object traveling at or above the speed of sound.

→ sonic; boom, M.E. bombon, bummyn "to buzz;" cf. Du. bommen, Ger. bummen, word made by sound imitation.

Qariv "shout, clamour, cry;" sedâyi, → sonic.