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occultation

(Encyclopedia)occultation ŏkˌəltāˈshən [key], in astronomy, eclipse of one celestial body by another, e.g., when the moon lies between a star and the earth. Occultations of stars by the moon are important in ...

transit

(Encyclopedia)transit, in astronomy, passage of a body across a meridian or passage of a small body across the visible disk of a larger one. (The passage of a large body across a smaller one is called an eclipse or...

imam

(Encyclopedia)imam ĭmämˈ [key] [Arab.,=leader], in Islam, a recognized leader or a religious teacher. Among the Sunni the term refers to the leader in the Friday prayer at the mosque; any pious Muslim may functi...

Uranus , in astronomy

(Encyclopedia)Uranus yo͝orāˈnəs, yo͝orˈə– [key], in astronomy, 7th planet from the sun, at a mean distance of 1.78 billion mi (2.87 billion km), with an orbit lying between those of Saturn and Neptune; its...

Shiites

(Encyclopedia)Shiites shēˈītz [key] [Arab., shiat Ali,=the party of Ali], the second largest branch of Islam, Shiites currently account for 10%–15% of all Muslims. Shiite Islam originated as a political moveme...