Parallax error - Hutchinson encyclopedia article about Parallax error Printer Friendly
The Free Dictionary
988,143,336 visitors served.
?
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

parallax
(redirected from Parallax error)

    Also found in: Medical, Acronyms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia 0.04 sec.

parallax

Enlarge picture
The parallax of a star, the apparent change of its position during the year, can be used to find the star's distance from the Earth. The star appears to change its position because it is viewed at a different angle in July and January. By measuring the angle of parallax, and knowing the diameter of the Earth's orbit, simple geometry can be used to calculate the distance to the star.
Enlarge picture
The parallax of a star, the apparent change of its position during the year, can be used to find the star's distance from the Earth. The star appears to change its position because it is viewed at a different angle in July and January. By measuring the angle of parallax, and knowing the diameter of the Earth's orbit, simple geometry can be used to calculate the distance to the star. The technique was developed by the German astronomer Friedrich Bessel.

Change in the apparent position of an object against its background when viewed from two different positions. In astronomy, nearby stars show a shift owing to parallax when viewed from different positions on the Earth's orbit around the Sun. A star's parallax is used to deduce its distance from the Earth.

Nearer bodies such as the Moon, Sun, and planets also show a parallax caused by the motion of the Earth.
?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
 Email
Feedback
?Sign in SSL protected
Email:
Password:
Register

? Mentioned in
 
Hutchinson browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Hutchinson Encyclopedia
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2008 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.