pericenter

[per-uh-sen-ter]

noun

Astronomy.

1. the point at which a heavenly body orbiting around a primary other than the earth or sun is closest to the primary.

Other Word Forms

• pericentral adjective
• pericentric adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pericenter¹

First recorded in 1900–05; peri- + center

Example Sentences

The plume was present when Europa was near apocenter and was not detected close to its pericenter, in agreement with tidal modeling predictions.

Read more on Science Magazine