Subscriber login


Forgot your password?

Library card login

Other

parsec

Syllabification: (par·sec)
Pronunciation: /ˈpärˌsek/
(abbreviation: pc)
Definition of parsec

noun

  • a unit of distance used in astronomy, equal to about 3.25 light years (3.08 × 1016 meters). One parsec corresponds to the distance at which the mean radius of the earth’s orbit subtends an angle of one second of arc.

Origin:

early 20th century: blend of parallax and second2

parsec in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of parsec in the British & World English dictionary
  |  Cite

Word of the day

epithalamium

/ ˌɛpɪθəˈleɪmɪəm /
noun
a song or poem celebrating a marriage …