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horizon

(Encyclopedia)horizon, in astronomy, roughly circular line bounding an observer's view of the surface of the earth where the sky and earth seem to meet. This is the visible horizon. At sea the visible horizon is a ...

Hamilton, Sir William Rowan

(Encyclopedia)Hamilton, Sir William Rowan, 1805–65, Irish mathematician and astronomer, b. Dublin. A child prodigy, he had mastered 13 languages by the age of 13 and was still an undergraduate when he became prof...

Helene

(Encyclopedia)Helene həlēnˈ, hĕlˈənə [key], in astronomy, one of the named moons, or natural satellites, of Saturn. Also known as Saturn XII (or S12), Helene is an irregularly shaped (nonspherical) body meas...

spectroscope

(Encyclopedia)spectroscope, optical instrument for producing spectral lines and measuring their wavelengths and intensities, used in spectral analysis (see spectrum). When a material is heated to incandescence it e...

Carruthers, George Richard

(Encyclopedia) Carruthers, George Richard, 1939-2020, African-American astrophysicist, b. Cincinnati, OH, Univ. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (BS, 1961; MS, nuclear...

Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory

(Encyclopedia)Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory sāˈrō tōlōˈlō [key], astronomical observatory located on Cerro Tololo peak, Chile, with offices in La Serena, about 40 mi (64 km) to the west. Funded by ...

lock and key

(Encyclopedia)lock and key, fastening fitted to an entryway, such as a gate or door, or a container, such as a cabinet, drawer or safe, to keep it closed and/or prevent unauthorized access or use. Locks typically c...

astrology

(Encyclopedia)astrology, form of divination based on the theory that the movements of the celestial bodies—the stars, the planets, the sun, and the moon—influence human affairs and determine the course of event...

loran

(Encyclopedia)loran lôrˈănˌ [key], long-range, accurate radio navigational system used by a ship or aircraft to confirm or to determine its geographical position. The term loran is derived from the words long-r...

Mayröcker, Friederike

(Encyclopedia) Mayröcker, Friederike, 1924-2021, German-language poet, b. Vienna, Austria. Mayröcker served in World War II as a secretary in the German airforce a...