tachocline

T1A1C3H4O1C3L1I1N1E1
/ta.ko.klaɪn/

noun

A region of abrupt transition from rotation to convection in the interior of the sun.

Scrabble 17
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Meanings

nountachocline (plural tachoclines)

plural tachoclines

  1. astronomyA region of abrupt transition from rotation to convection in the interior of the sun.

Origin

From tacho- + -cline; coined in a paper by Edward A. Spiegel and Jean-Paul Zahn in 1992 (Spiegel, E. A.; & Zahn, J.-P.; "The solar tachocline", Astronomy and Astrophysics, 265, 106–114, 1992) by analogy to the oceanic thermocline.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French tachocline
  • tachoclineTranslations
German Tachocline
  • TachoclineTranslations
Spanish tacoclina
  • tacoclinaTranslations
Tamil வேகச்சரிவு
  • வேகச்சரிவு (vēkaccarivu)Translations
Cite this entry
APA

tachocline. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tachocline

MLA

“tachocline.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tachocline. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tachocline,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tachocline.

Source: tachocline on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.