earthshine

[ urth-shahyn ]

noun

, Astronomy.

1. the faint illumination of the part of the moon not illuminated by sunlight, as during a crescent phase, caused by the reflection of light from the earth.

earthshine

/ ˈɜːθˌʃaɪn /

noun

1. the ashen light reflected from the earth, which illuminates the new moon when it is not receiving light directly from the sun

Word History and Origins

Origin of earthshine¹

First recorded in 1825–35; earth + shine ¹

Example Sentences

Using ground-based instruments at Big Bear, Goode and his colleagues measured earthshine — the light that reflects off our planet, to the moon and then back to Earth — from 1998 to 2017.

From Science News

Because earthshine is most easily gauged when the moon is a slim crescent and the weather is clear, the team collected a mere 801 data points during those 20 years, Goode and his colleagues report.

From Science News

Whether the decline in earthshine is a short-term blip or yet another ominous sign for Earth’s climate is up in the air, scientists suggest.

From Science News

And now day begins to decline; and your globe, which never sets to us, will soon shed her pale earthshine over the landscape.

From Project Gutenberg

The ancients were greatly exercised in their minds to account for this "earthlight," or "earthshine," as it is also called.

From Project Gutenberg

One might have supposed that Fanny's influence had added a slim crescent of silvery light to her habitual earthshine.

From Project Gutenberg