Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Gamma-Ray Observatory: see gamma-ray astronomy. ...

(Encyclopedia) Bond, William Cranch, 1789–1859, American astronomer, b. Portland, Maine. He early aided his father in the trades of silversmith and clockmaker in Boston. He soon became an expert in the making of c...

(Encyclopedia) Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory: see gamma-ray astronomy. ...

(Encyclopedia) azimuth ăzˈəməth [key], in astronomy, one coordinate in the altazimuth coordinate system. It is the angular distance of a body measured westward along the celestial horizon from the observer's sou...

(Encyclopedia) Herschel hûrˈshəl [key], family of distinguished English astronomers. Sir William Herschel,Sir William Herschel, 1738–1822, born Friedrich Wilhelm Herschel, was a great pioneer in astronomy. Bor...

(Encyclopedia) declination, in astronomy, one of the coordinates in the equatorial coordinate system. The declination of a celestial body is its angular distance north or south of the celestial equator measured alon...

(Encyclopedia) culminate, in astronomy, the maximum height in the sky reached by a celestial body on a given day. At the culminate the body is crossing the observer's celestial meridian and is said to be in upper tr...

(Encyclopedia) Arecibo Observatory, radio-astronomy facility located near Arecibo, Puerto Rico, part of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center. Conceived by, designed by, and built under the supervision of Wil...

(Encyclopedia) vertical circle, in astronomy, the great circle on the celestial sphere that passes from the observer's zenith through a given celestial body. In the altazimuth coordinate system the altitude of a bod...

(Encyclopedia) Langley, Samuel Pierpont, 1834–1906, American scientist, b. Roxbury, Mass., received only a high school education but continued his studies in science in Boston libraries. He became, in 1866, profes...