occultation
- noun
- /ˌɑːkʌlˈteɪʃən/
- Specialized
- During the occultation, the moon completely obscured the bright star, making it invisible to viewers.
- occultation timing
- grazing occultation
- occultation of stars
Examples
-
The second planetary ring system was discovered during a star occultation by Uranus in 1977.
Academic text (1995) -
Such an event is called an occultation, a purely scientific term derived from the Latin word "to cover."
Academic text (1993) -
Now they detected the occultation showing where the asteroid itself passed in front of that background star and blocked the light for five seconds.
-
During a grazing occultation, the star seems to move along a line tangent to the lunar disk.
Academic text (1993) -
Amateur astronomers can make serious contributions to astronomical research with accurate occultation timings.
Academic text (1993) -
Accurate timing of lunar occultations can help astronomers get better maps of the mountains and valleys on the edges of the Moon.
Academic text (1993) -
Astronomers eagerly awaited the occultation of Venus by the moon, which would create a stunning celestial event.
-
The occultation event lasted several minutes, allowing scientists to collect valuable data about the celestial bodies.
Antonyms
How Obscuring
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
- Specialized
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
The word occultation comes from the Latin root occult-, which means 'hidden' and is the same root as the word occult. So an occultation is when one object passes in front of another and 'hides' it from view.