ablation

[ a-bley-shuhn ]

noun

1. the removal, especially of organs, abnormal growths, or harmful substances, from the body by mechanical means, as by surgery.
2. the reduction in volume of glacial ice, snow, or névé by the combined processes of melting, evaporation, and calving. Compare alimentation ( def 3 ).
3. Aerospace. erosion of the protective outer surface ablator of a spacecraft or missile due to the aerodynamic heating caused by travel at hypersonic speed during reentry through the atmosphere.

ablation

/ æbˈleɪʃən /

noun

1. the surgical removal of an organ, structure, or part
2. the melting or wearing away of an expendable part, such as the heat shield of a space re-entry vehicle on passing through the earth's atmosphere
3. the wearing away of a rock or glacier

ablation

/ ă-blā′shən /

1. The wearing away or destruction of the outer or forward surface of an object, such as a meteorite or a spacecraft, as it moves very rapidly through the atmosphere. The friction of the air striking the object heats and often melts or burns its outer layers. Spacecraft and missiles are often equipped with heat shields designed to wear away by ablation in order to prevent heat from building up in structurally important parts.
2. The process by which snow and ice are removed from a glacier or other mass of ice. Ablation typically occurs through melting, sublimation, wind erosion, or calving.
3. ◆ The ablation zone is the area of a glacier that has the lowest elevation, where annual water loss is greater than the annual accumulation of snow.

Word History and Origins

Origin of ablation¹

First recorded in 1570–80, ablation is from the Late Latin word ablātiōn- (stem of ablātiō ). See ablate, -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of ablation¹

C15: from Late Latin ablatiōn-, from Latin auferre to carry away, remove

Example Sentences

Getting another ablation procedure, which could help treat irregular heartbeats by destroying tissue that causes abnormal electrical signals, remains an option after the initial monitoring period.

From Los Angeles Times

After his two previous episodes of atrial flutter, Harbaugh underwent ablations, which are minimally invasive procedures that treat irregular heartbeats by destroying heart tissue that causes abnormal electrical signals.

From Los Angeles Times

It also facilitates a wide range of therapeutic applications such as biopsy, drug delivery, ablation, and catheter placement within deep brain regions.

From Science Daily

Next, the coins were analysed by 'portable laser ablation' in which microscopic samples were collected onto Teflon filters for lead isotope analysis.

From Science Daily

Current treatment methods for prostate cancer include androgen ablation, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and radical prostatectomy, but are ineffective against advanced prostate cancers.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• depletion
• depreciation
• erosion