Meanings
- astrophysicsA process by which solar radiation causes a dust grain orbiting a star to lose angular momentum relative to its orbit around the star.
Synonyms: Poynting-Robertson drag
Synonyms & antonyms
proper nounA process by which solar radiation causes a dust grain orbiting a star to lose angular momentum relative to its orbit around the star.
Origin
Named after English physicist John Henry Poynting (1852–1914) and American mathematician Howard P. Robertson (1903–1961).
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Poynting-Robertson effect. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Poynting-Robertson%20effect
“Poynting-Robertson effect.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Poynting-Robertson%20effect. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Poynting-Robertson effect,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Poynting-Robertson%20effect.
Source: Poynting-Robertson effect on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.