Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

may, in botany

(Encyclopedia)may, name for several plants; in England, particularly the hawthorn. See also mayflower. ...

quadrant, in technology

(Encyclopedia)quadrant, in technology, angle-measuring device based on a scale of 90°. It is sometimes confused with the sextant, a similar instrument based on a scale of 60°. The quadrant is rarely used today. ...

scale, in cartography

(Encyclopedia)scale, in cartography, the ratio of the distance between two points on a map to the real distance between the two corresponding points portrayed. The scale may be expressed in three ways: numerically,...

Metis, in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Metis mēˈtĭs [key], in astronomy, one of the 39 known moons, or natural satellites, of Jupiter. ...

Leda, in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Leda lēˈdə [key], in astronomy, one of the 39 known moons, or natural satellites, of Jupiter. ...

Triton , in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Triton trītˈən [key], in astronomy, innermost and largest of the eight known moons, or natural satellites, of Neptune. ...

Proteus, in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Proteus prōˈtēəs, –tyo͞os [key], in astronomy, one of the natural satellites, or moons, of Neptune. ...

Pasiphaë, in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Pasiphaë pəsĭfˈəēˌ [key], in astronomy, one of the 39 known moons, or natural satellites, of Jupiter. ...

Callisto, in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Callisto kəlĭsˈtō [key], in astronomy, one of the 39 known moons, or natural satellites, of Jupiter. ...

nimbus, in meteorology

(Encyclopedia)nimbus, in meteorology, low, dark, formless cloud covering the entire sky, from which rain or snow is steadily falling. The term is usually applied to any cloud from which rain descends. Modifications...