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visual binary

American

noun

Astronomy.

a binary star having components that are sufficiently separated to be resolved by a telescope.

visual binary Scientific

/ vĭzh′o̅o̅-əl /

See under binary star

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.

Which is easier to observe at large distances—a spectroscopic binary or a visual binary?

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

If a visual binary system were to have two equal-mass stars, how would they be located relative to the center of the mass of the system?

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

The two components that make up this visual binary, known as Mizar A and Mizar B, are both spectroscopic binaries.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

Two stars are in a visual binary star system that we see face on.

From Textbooks • Oct. 13, 2016

Alpha Centauri—the nearest star to the earth—is a visual binary, the component bodies revolving around each other in a period of about eighty-one years.

From Astronomy of To-day A Popular Introduction in Non-Technical Language by Dolmage, Cecil Goodrich Julius

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