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meteor shower

(Encyclopedia)meteor shower, increase in the number of meteors observed in a particular part of the sky. The trails of the meteors of a meteor shower all appear to be traceable back to a single point in the sky, kn...

Morteratsch

(Encyclopedia)Morteratsch môrˈtəräch [key], glacier, SE Switzerland, one of the largest in the country. It lies at the foot of Piz Morteratsch, an Alpine peak, 12,317 ft (3,754 m) high, in the Bernina Mts. ...

Gran Paradiso

(Encyclopedia)Gran Paradiso grän pärädēˈzō [key], mountain, 13,323 ft (4,061 m) high, in Valle d'Aosta, NW Italy. In the Graian Alps, it is the highest Alpine peak entirely in Italian territory. ...

Hamilton, Mount

(Encyclopedia)Hamilton, Mount, peak 4,372 ft (1,333 m) high, W Calif., in the Coast Ranges, E of San Jose. It is the site of Lick Observatory (built 1876–88), directed by the Univ. of California Observatories. ...

Spars

(Encyclopedia)Spars [from the motto “Semper Paratus,” Lat.,=always prepared], the women's reserve of the U.S. Coast Guard, created in Nov., 1942, to release men for sea duty. Wartime enlistment reached a peak o...

Lukács, György

(Encyclopedia)Lukács, György dyörˈdyə lo͞oˈkäch [key], 1885–1971, Hungarian writer, one of the foremost modern literary critics. Converted to Communism in 1918, Lukács served (1919) in the cabinet of Bé...

Kazantzakis, Nikos

(Encyclopedia)Kazantzakis, Nikos nēˈkôs käˌzändzäˈkēs [key], 1883?–1957, Greek writer, b. Crete. After obtaining a law degree he studied philosophy under Henri Bergson in Paris and traveled widely in Eur...

Transantarctic Mountains

(Encyclopedia)Transantarctic Mountains, mountain chain stretching across Antarctica from Victoria Land to Coats Land; separating the E Antarctic and W Antarctic subcontinents. Mt. Markham (14,275 ft/4,351 m high), ...

Selkirk Mountains

(Encyclopedia)Selkirk Mountains, rugged range of the Rocky Mts., SE British Columbia, Canada, near the Alta. border and extending northwest c.200 mi (320 km) from the U.S. border. Mt. Sir Sanford (11,590 ft/3,533 m...

Semeru

(Encyclopedia)Semeru səmĕrˈo͞o [key], volcanic peak, 12,060 ft (3,676 m) high, E Java, Indonesia. Formerly called Mt. Mahameru, it is the island's highest point. The mountain has experienced frequent eruptions ...