Encke's comet
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of Encke's comet
Named after Johann F. Encke (1791–1865), German astronomer
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.
Some, like Encke's comet, which makes a pass around the sun every 3.3 years, have relatively small orbits.
From Time Magazine Archive
No one expects that Encke's comet will cease to be accelerated, and to revolve in periods continually shorter; though all the other motions hitherto observed in the system are cyclical.
From The Plurality of Worlds by Hitchcock, Edward
Encke's comet has several times, although with difficulty, been observed by the naked eye, as in Europe in 1819, and according to Rumker, in New Holland in 1822.
From COSMOS: A Sketch of the Physical Description of the Universe, Vol. 1 by Humboldt, Alexander von
Encke's comet is usually so faint that even the most powerful telescope in the world would not show a trace of it.
From The Story of the Heavens by Ball, Robert S. (Robert Stawell), Sir
In the case of a fixed star, we have much less reason to look for such a cycle, than we have in Encke's comet.
From The Plurality of Worlds by Hitchcock, Edward
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
