Eddington limit

British

/ ˈɛdɪŋtən /

noun

astronomy the theoretical upper limit of luminosity that a star of a given mass can reach; occurs when the outward force of the radiation just balances the inward gravitational force

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of Eddington limit

C20: named after A. S. Eddington (1882–1944), English astronomer and physicist

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

This theoretical cap is known as the Eddington limit.

From Science Daily • Jan. 24, 2026

Just before the planned observations, GX13+1 unexpectedly brightened and reached or even surpassed the Eddington limit.

From Science Daily • Nov. 10, 2025

That is swift on Earth but slow compared with winds near the Eddington limit around supermassive black holes, where outflows can reach 20 to 30 percent of light speed, more than 200 million km/h.

From Science Daily • Nov. 10, 2025

At the Eddington limit, the high-energy light being produced can drive almost all of the infalling matter back into space as a wind.

From Science Daily • Nov. 10, 2025

This is called the Eddington limit, and it is thought to severely hinder the rate at which any black hole can swallow matter and grow.

From Scientific American • Sep. 29, 2017

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023