airglow

[ air-gloh ]

noun

1. a dim light from the upper atmosphere caused by emissions from atoms and molecules ionized by solar radiation: observed at night nightglow, during the day dayglow, and at twilight twilight glow, with each having slightly different characteristics.

airglow

/ ˈɛəˌɡləʊ /

noun

1. the faint light from the upper atmosphere in the night sky, esp in low latitudes

airglow

/ âr′glō′ /

1. A faint photochemical luminescence in the upper atmosphere caused by the collision of x-rays and charged particles from the Sun with atoms and molecules, especially of oxygen, sodium, and the hydroxyl radical (OH). Airglow is strongest over low and middle latitudes.

Word History and Origins

Origin of airglow¹

First recorded in 1950–55; air ¹ + glow