astronomical unit

astronomical unit (AU), mean distance between the earth and sun; one AU is c.92,960,000 mi (149,604,970 km). The astronomical unit is the principal unit of measurement within the solar system, e.g., Mercury is just over 1-3 AU and Pluto is about 39 AU from the sun.

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astronomical unit (AU)

Length of the semimajor axis of Earth's orbit around the Sun, 92,955,808 mi (149,597,870 km), often defined simply as the average distance from Earth to the Sun. Direct measurement through the parallax method cannot be used for accurate determinations, because the Sun's glare blots out the light of the background stars necessary to make the measurement. The most precise values have been obtained by measuring the distance from Earth to other objects orbiting the Sun. This indirect method requires an accurate proportional mathematical model of the solar system; once the distance to one planet or other object is determined, then the distance to the Sun can be calculated.

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astronomical unit

a unit of distance used in astronomy equal to the mean distance between the earth and the sun. 1 astronomical unit is equivalent to 1.495 × 10¹¹ metres or about 9.3 × 10⁷ miles

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astronomical unit [‚as·trə′näm·ə·kəl ′yü·nət]

(astronomy)

Abbreviated AU.

A measure for distance within the solar system equal to the mean distance between earth and sun, that is, about 92,956,000 miles (149,598,000 kilometers).

The semimajor axis of the elliptical orbit of earth.