quadrature

American  

[kwod-ruh-cher, -choor] / ˈkwɒd rə tʃər, -ˌtʃʊər /

noun

1. the act of squaring.

2. Mathematics.

   1. the act or process of finding a square equal in area to a given surface, especially a surface bounded by a curve.

   2. the act or process of finding an area or calculating an integral, especially by numerical methods.

   3. a definite integral.

3. Astronomy.

   1. the situation of two heavenly bodies when their longitudes differ by 90°.

   2. either of the two points in the orbit of a body, as the moon, midway between the syzygies.

   3. (of the moon) those points or moments at which a half moon is visible.

4. Electronics. the relation between two signals having the same frequency that differ in phase by 90°.

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quadrature British  

/ ˈkwɒdrətʃə /

noun

1. maths the process of determining a square having an area equal to that of a given figure or surface

2. the process of making square or dividing into squares

3. astronomy a configuration in which two celestial bodies, usually the sun and the moon or a planet, form an angle of 90° with a third body, usually the earth

4. electronics the relationship between two waves that are 90° out of phase

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quadrature Scientific  

/ kwŏd′rə-chr′ /

1. The process of constructing a square equal in area to a given surface.

2. A configuration in which the position of one celestial body is 90° from another celestial body, as measured from a third. For example, the half moon lies in quadrature from the Sun when Earth is the reference point.

3. See more at elongation

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Etymology

Origin of quadrature

1545–55; < Latin quadrātūra, equivalent to quadrāt ( us ) (past participle of quadrāre; quadrate ) + -ūra -ure

Example Sentences

The systematic component is then calculated by subtracting in quadrature the statistical component from the total uncertainty.

From Nature • May 12, 2015

The Moon is then a semi-circle, or in quadrature.

From The Astronomy of Milton's 'Paradise Lost' by Orchard, Thomas Nathaniel

From this equation and the n − 1 equations Πiω = 0, Pσω = 0, we can determine ω by a quadrature only.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 4 "Diameter" to "Dinarchus" by Various

Such ideas are evidently akin to the poetic notion of the quadrature.

From The Seven Follies of Science [2nd ed.] A popular account of the most famous scientific impossibilities and the attempts which have been made to solve them. by Phin, John

His quadrature was defended by Giovanni Motti in a work entitled Matematica Vera.

From A Budget of Paradoxes, Volume II by Smith, David Eugene