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kiloparsec

American  
[kil-uh-pahr-sek] / ˈkɪl əˌpɑrˌsɛk /

noun

  1. a unit of distance, equal to 1000 parsecs. kpc


Etymology

Origin of kiloparsec

First recorded in 1920–25; kilo- + parsec

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.

See Examples For:

According to the researchers, this is the first time a precessing radio jet spanning kiloparsec scales has been observed in a disk galaxy.

From Science Daily Jan. 19, 2026

"To our knowledge, this is the first time we have seen a kiloparsec, or galactic-scale, precessing radio jet driving a massive coronal gas outflow."

From Science Daily Jan. 10, 2026

But technology, he explained, could have started the same distance away — a kiloparsec is 3,261 light-years in distance — and moved closer to Earth over eons.

From New York Times Sep. 15, 2022

Past models have ignored the innermost kiloparsec, Forgan says, because astronomers were not sure how to take into account the supermassive black hole.

From Scientific American May 30, 2017

Its size seems almost diminutive, only about one kiloparsec in diameter.

From Astronomy: The Science of the Heavenly Bodies by David Peck Todd

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