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solar wind
noun
: plasma continuously ejected from the sun's surface into and through interplanetary space
Examples of solar wind in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Jupiter may be untouchable by solar winds, but the Jovian system—Jupiter and its moons— generates its own energetic particles.
—Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 May 2024
The auroras occur when the Earth's magnetic field becomes disrupted by intense solar winds traveling at 3 million mph that carry plasma particles that interact with gases – namely oxygen and nitrogen – in the planet's atmosphere.
—Stephen J. Beard, USA TODAY, 18 May 2024
As a result, scientists think that Venus lost part of its water due to solar wind hitting its upper atmosphere, causing the water molecules to escape over the 4,500 million years since the planet’s birth.
—Passant Rabie / Gizmodo, Quartz, 8 May 2024
In contrast, solar wind averages about 870,000 miles per hour all day, every day according to NASA.
—Corinne Purtill, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2024
Earth is lucky to have a magnetic field that shields it from the solar wind, while Venus gets slammed by it.
—Passant Rabie / Gizmodo, Quartz, 8 May 2024
Park’s team feeds the lunar and solar position data — alongside similar parameters for the planets and hundreds of asteroids, and corrections for things like pressure from the solar wind, and not just the laws of Newton’s gravity but the subtler tweaks of general relativity — into a computer model.
—Joshua Sokol, Quanta Magazine, 5 Apr. 2024
This information helps researchers better understand phenomena such as solar flares, coronal mass ejections and the solar wind, which can have significant impacts on space weather and technology on Earth.
—The Arizona Republic, 27 Mar. 2024
These data will include that will capture some of the solar wind’s interactions with the moon’s surface.
—Michael Greshko, Scientific American, 23 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'solar wind.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1958, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near solar wind
Cite this Entry
“Solar wind.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/solar%20wind. Accessed 28 May. 2024.
Kids Definition
solar wind
noun
: the continuous radiation of charged particles from the sun's surface
More from Merriam-Webster on solar wind
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about solar wind
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