Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Vega vāˈgə [key], brightest star in the constellation Lyra; Bayer designation Alpha Lyrae; 1992 position R.A. 18h36.7m, Dec. +38°47′. A white main-sequence star of spectral class A0 V, its appar...

(Encyclopedia) raffia rāˈfēə [key], fiber obtained from the raffia palm of Madagascar, exported for various uses, such as tying up plants that require support, binding together vegetables to be marketed, and wea...

(Encyclopedia) actinometer ăkˌtənŏmˈətər [key], instrument used to measure the heating power of radiation. Actinometers are used chiefly in meteorology to measure solar radiation as transmitted directly by th...

(Encyclopedia) Thales thāˈlēz [key], c.636–c.546 b.c., pre-Socratic Greek philosopher of Miletus and reputed founder of the Milesian school of philosophy. He is the first recorded Western philosopher. Thales ta...

(Encyclopedia) Eilshemius, Louis Michel īlshēˈmēəs [key], 1864–1941, American painter, b. near Newark, N.J. The son of a wealthy Dutch importer, he spent much of his youth abroad. After two years at Cornell h...

(Encyclopedia) stratosphere strătˈəsfēr [key], second lowest layer of the earth's atmosphere. The level from which it extends outward varies with latitude; it begins c.51⁄2 mi (9 km) above the poles, c.6 or 7 ...

(Encyclopedia) transit, in astronomy, passage of a body across a meridian or passage of a small body across the visible disk of a larger one. (The passage of a large body across a smaller one is called an eclipse or...

(Encyclopedia) astronomy, branch of science that studies the motions and natures of celestial bodies, such as planets, stars, and galaxies; more generally, the study of matter and energy in the universe at large. ...

(Encyclopedia) Pluto, in astronomy, a dwarf planet and the first Kuiper belt, or transneptunian, object (see comet) to be discovered (1930) by astronomers. Pluto has an elliptical orbit usually lying beyond that of ...

(Encyclopedia) Noyes, Alfred noiz [key], 1880–1958, English poet, best known for his poems “The Highwayman” and “The Barrel-Organ.” His first volume of verse, Loom of Years, appeared in 1902. It was follow...