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

The quality of an object whose → luminosity exceeds a certain value.

→ ultra-; → luminous.

A galaxy that emits more than 90% of its energy in the infrared (8-1000 µm) and whose infrared luminosity exceeds 10¹² solar luminosities. → luminous infrared galaxy (LIRG). Quasars can also have such high or even higher bolometric luminosities. However LIRGs and ULIRGs emit the bulk of their energy in the infrared. Most of ULIRGs are found in merging and interacting galaxy systems. It is thought that their luminosity results from galactic collisions, which increase the rate of star formation.

→ ultraluminous; → infrared; → galaxy.

An X-ray source that is not in the nucleus of a galaxy, and is more luminous than 10³⁹ ergs s^-1, brighter than the → Eddington luminosity of a 10 → solar mass → black hole. In general, there is about one ULX per galaxy in galaxies which host ULXs. The Milky Way contains no such objects. ULXs are thought to be powered by → accretion onto a → compact object. Possible explanations include accretion onto → neutron stars with strong → magnetic fields, onto → stellar black holes (of up to 20 → solar masses) at or in excess of the classical Eddington limit, or onto → intermediate-mass black holes (10³-10⁵ solar masses). NGC 1313X-1, NGC 5408X-1, and NGC 6946X-1 are three ULXs with X-ray luminosities up to ~ 10⁴⁰ erg s^-1 (Ciro Pinto et al., 2016, Nature 533, N) 7601).

→ ultraluminous; → X-ray source.

Describing a system or situation for which the → Lorentz factor, γ, is much larger than 1. See also → subrelativistic.

→ ultra- + → relativistic

A gas composed of ultrarelativistic particles.

→ ultrarelativistic; → gas.

A → Cepheid star of → spectral type A-F with regular pulsation period of 1-3 hours and with small variations in amplitude. This group is also known as δ Scuti stars.

→ ultra-; → short; → period; → Cepheid.

The branch of physics dealing with elastic waves of frequencies above 20 kHz to 10¹⁰ kHz propagated in solids, liquids, and gases.

→ ultra-; sonic from L. sonus→ sound + → -ics.

Sound with a frequency lying above the audition frequency range, usually taken to be about 20 kHz. → sound wave.

→ ultra- + → sound.

The part of the electromagnetic radiation beyond the violet end of the visible spectrum with wavelengths approximately in the range 50 Å to 4,000 Å. → extreme ultraviolet; → far ultraviolet.

→ ultra-; → violet.

The study of astronomical objects in the ultraviolet portions of the electromagnetic spectrum, in the waveband 3000 Å to about 10 Å. At these wavelengths, the atmosphere prevents ultraviolet radiation from reaching the Earth surface. Therefore ground-based observatories cannot observe in the ultraviolet. Only with the advent of space-based telescopes has this area of astronomy become available for research.

→ ultraviolet; → astronomy.

A → paradox encountered in the classical theory of → thermal radiation (→ Rayleigh-Jeans law), whereby a → blackbody should radiate an infinite amount of energy at infinitely short wavelengths, in contradiction with what is observed. The problem was solved by Max Planck in 1900, who suggested that, rather than being continuous, the energy comes in discrete parcels called → quanta. The avoidance of the ultraviolet catastrophe was one of the first great achievements of → quantum mechanics.

This problem was first raised by Lord Rayleigh (1842-1919), whereas the term ultraviolet catastrophe was first used by Paul Ehrenfest (1880-1933); → ultraviolet; → catastrophe.

Ultraviolet emission from an object in excess of that expected for a reference. For example, → subdwarf stars show ultraviolet excess with respect to that expected from a star with → solar metallicity at a given → effective temperature. In this case, UV excess results from smaller → line blanketing in → population II stars.

→ ultraviolet; → excess.

A star, such as O types or hot central stars of planetary nebulae, which radiates essentially in the ultraviolet part of the electromagnetic spectrum.

→ ultraviolet; → star.

1) Optics: A dark area, especially the blackest part of a shadow from which all light is cut off. → penumbra.
2) Sun: The central darkest part of a → sunspot, which is also the coolest part (~ 4,200 K).

From L. umbra "shade, shadow."

Sâyé "shadow," from Mid.Pers. sâyak "shadow;" Av. a-saya- "throwing no shadow;" Skt. chāya- "shadow;" Gk. skia "shade;" Rus. sijat' "to shine;" M.H.G. schinen, O.H.G. skinan, Ger. Schein "glow, shine;" PIE base *skai- "bright."

The thirteenth of Uranus's known satellites and the third largest. It has a diameter of 1170 km and orbits Uranus every 4.144 days at a mean distance of about 265,980 km. Umbriel is very dark, with an albedo of 0.18. It has a heavily cratered surface. Umbriel was discovered by William Lassell (1799-1880) in 1851.

Umbriel named for an evil spirit in Alexander Pope's (1688-1744) poem The Rape of the Lock. Moreover, Umbriel derives from L. → umbra "shadow," which fits the satellite's appearance.

A prefix meaning "not."

M.E., O.E. un- (cf. O.Fris., O.H.G., Ger. un-, Goth. un-, Du. on-), cognate with Pers. nâ-, as below.

Nâ- "not," variants na "no, not," ma- "not" (prohitive); Mid.Pers. nê, ma "no, not;" O.Pers. naiy, nai "not;" Av. nôit, naē "not;" cf. Skt. ná "not;" L. ne-, in-, un-; Gk. ni; Lith. nè; O.C.S. ne "not;" E. un-, as above; PIE *ne-.

The eye unassisted by an optical instrument, except for eyeglasses. Same as → naked eye.

→ un- + aided, from aid, M.E. ayde, from O.Fr. aidier, from L. adjutare, frequentative of adjuvare "to give help to," from → ad- "to" + juvare "to help;" → eye.

Cašm, → eye; biyâvar "without help," from bi- "without" + yâvar, variant yâr "helper; companion" (Mid.Pers. hayyâr "helper," hayyârêh "help, aid, assistance," Proto-Iranian *adyāva-bara-, cf. Av. aidū- "helpful, useful"); berehné, → naked.

Impossible to avoid.

→ avoid; → -ance.

Not biased or prejudiced.
Statistics: With an expected value that is equal to the parameter being estimated.

→ un- + → biased.

Bi- "without" + varak, → bias.

A sample statistics when the mean of the sampling distribution of that statistic can be shown to be equal to the parameter being estimated.

→ unbiased; → estimator.