radiation pressure
Save This Word!
noun Physics.
the pressure exerted on a surface by electromagnetic radiation or by sound waves.
QUIZZES
THINK YOU’VE GOT A HANDLE ON THIS US STATE NICKNAME QUIZ?
Did you ever collect all those state quarters? Put them to good use on this quiz about curious state monikers and the facts around them.
Question 1 of 8
Mississippi’s nickname comes from the magnificent trees that grow there. What is it?
Origin of radiation pressure
First recorded in 1900–05
Words nearby radiation pressure
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for radiation pressure
Scientific definitions for radiation pressure
radiation pressure
Force per unit area exerted by waves or particles of radiation, especially photons. Though photons have no mass, they do have momentum, and can transfer that momentum to other particles upon impact. The amount of pressure exerted by a given amount of radiation depends on whether the radiation is absorbed or reflected. Radiation pressure is responsible for the Casimir effect; solar radiation pressure is exploited in the design of solar sails.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.