gegenschein

American

[gey-guhn-shahyn] / ˈgeɪ gənˌʃaɪn /

noun

Astronomy.

a faint, elliptical patch of light in the night sky that appears opposite the sun, being a reflection of sunlight by meteoric material in space.

gegenschein British

/ ˈɡeɪɡənˌʃaɪn /

noun

Also called: counterglow. a faint glow in the sky, just visible at a position opposite to that of the sun and having a similar origin to zodiacal light

"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 gegenschein

First recorded in 1875–80, gegenschein is from the German word Gegenschein counterglow

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