gegenschein
[ gey-guh n-shahyn ]
/ ˈgeɪ gənˌʃaɪn /
noun Astronomy.
a faint, elliptical patch of light in the night sky that appears opposite the sun, being a reflection of sunlight by meteoric material in space.
Also called
counterglow.
Compare
zodiacal light.
Origin of gegenschein
First recorded in 1875–80,
gegenschein is from the German word
Gegenschein counterglow
Words nearby gegenschein
geest,
geez,
geezah,
geezer,
gefilte fish,
gegenschein,
geggie,
gehenna,
gehlenite,
gehrig,
gehrig, lou
Example sentences from the Web for gegenschein
British Dictionary definitions for gegenschein
gegenschein
/ (ˈɡeɪɡənˌʃaɪn) /
noun
a faint glow in the sky, just visible at a position opposite to that of the sun and having a similar origin to zodiacal light
Also called: counterglow
Word Origin for gegenschein
German, from
gegen against, opposite +
Schein light; see
shine