An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

A measure of the blurring and degradation of the image of astronomical objects caused by → turbulence in the Earth’s atmosphere, including the telescope environment. Seeing causes the images of stars to break up into → speckle patterns, which change very rapidly with time. See also → Fried parameter; → differential image motion monitor.

Etymology (EN): → see; → -ing.

Etymology (PE): Šekân “wrinkle, plait; curl; rupture, breach,” variant of šekan “fold, curl; ripples on water,” from šekastan “to break, split;” Mid.Pers. škastan “to break;” Av. scind-, scand “to break, cleave;”
Proto-Iranian *skand- “to break, cleave;” PIE sken- “to cut off.”