What does microlensing mean?

Definitions for microlensing
mi·crolens·ing

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word microlensing.

Wiktionary

  1. microlensingnoun

    gravitational lensing

Wikipedia

  1. microlensing

    Gravitational microlensing is an astronomical phenomenon due to the gravitational lens effect. It can be used to detect objects that range from the mass of a planet to the mass of a star, regardless of the light they emit. Typically, astronomers can only detect bright objects that emit much light (stars) or large objects that block background light (clouds of gas and dust). These objects make up only a minor portion of the mass of a galaxy. Microlensing allows the study of objects that emit little or no light. When a distant star or quasar gets sufficiently aligned with a massive compact foreground object, the bending of light due to its gravitational field, as discussed by Albert Einstein in 1915, leads to two distorted images (generally unresolved), resulting in an observable magnification. The time-scale of the transient brightening depends on the mass of the foreground object as well as on the relative proper motion between the background 'source' and the foreground 'lens' object. Ideally aligned microlensing produces a clear buffer between the radiation from the lens and source objects. It magnifies the distant source, revealing it or enhancing its size and/or brightness. It enables the study of the population of faint or dark objects such as brown dwarfs, red dwarfs, planets, white dwarfs, neutron stars, black holes, and massive compact halo objects. Such lensing works at all wavelengths, magnifying and producing a wide range of possible warping for distant source objects that emit any kind of electromagnetic radiation. Microlensing by an isolated object was first detected in 1989. Since then, microlensing has been used to constrain the nature of the dark matter, detect exoplanets, study limb darkening in distant stars, constrain the binary star population, and constrain the structure of the Milky Way's disk. Microlensing has also been proposed as a means to find dark objects like brown dwarfs and black holes, study starspots, measure stellar rotation, and probe quasars including their accretion disks. Microlensing was used in 2018 to detect Icarus, then the most distant star ever observed.

How to pronounce microlensing?

How to say microlensing in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of microlensing in Chaldean Numerology is: 6

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of microlensing in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of microlensing in a Sentence

  1. Jessica Lu:

    With microlensing, we're able to probe these lonely, compact objects and weigh them. I think we have opened a new window onto these dark objects, which can't be seen any other way.

  2. Oklahoma University:

    We are very excited about this discovery. This is the first time anyone has discovered planets outside our galaxy, these small planets are the best candidate for the signature we observed in this study using the microlensing technique. We analyzed the high frequency of the signature by modeling the data to determine the mass.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

microlensing#100000#118594#333333

Translations for microlensing

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

Get even more translations for microlensing »

Translation

Find a translation for the microlensing definition in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Word of the Day

Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:


Citation

Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"microlensing." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 16 Apr. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/microlensing>.

Discuss these microlensing definitions with the community:

0 Comments

    Are we missing a good definition for microlensing? Don't keep it to yourself...

    Image or illustration of

    microlensing

    Credit »

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Browse Definitions.net

    Quiz

    Are you a words master?

    »
    an onerous or difficult concern
    A flair
    B encumbrance
    C brasserie
    D helm

    Nearby & related entries:

    Alternative searches for microlensing: