blueshift

or blue shift

[ bloo-shift ]

noun

, Astronomy.

1. a shift toward shorter wavelengths of the spectral lines of a celestial object, caused by the motion of the object toward the observer.

blueshift

/ ˈbluːˌʃɪft /

noun

1. a shift in the spectral lines of a stellar spectrum towards the blue end of the visible region relative to the wavelengths of these lines in the terrestrial spectrum: a result of the Doppler effect caused by stars approaching the solar system Compare redshift

Word History and Origins

Origin of blueshift¹

First recorded in 1950–55; blue + shift

Example Sentences

Keck Observatory on Hawaii's Mauna Kea, they could detect slight variations in stellar motion via the redshift and blueshift of the Doppler effect -- which helped them determine planetary mass readings of unprecedented precision.

From Science Daily

By carefully examining the spectrum of SDSO-1, the velocity of its gas can be determined via the Doppler effect—the slight blueshift of its color if the gas is moving toward us or the redshift if it’s moving away.

From Scientific American

Caroline Nash, a river scientist at the consulting firm CK Blueshift LLC who has published research on beaver-related restoration, emphasized that projects should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

From New York Times

This can be seen clearly in this map of the 2016 presidential vote by county, which I generated using tools provided by Blueshift.

From Salon

There is a small but apparent spectral shift of the emission data upon decreasing the temperature that is generally expected for low-temperature experiments, resulting from thermal effects, including temperature-dependent solvent reorganization effects, causing a gradual blueshift and sharpening of the emission features.

From Nature