What Is Syzygy In Positional Astronomy and What Does the Word Syzygy Mean In Latin?

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Karen Hill

This bizarre-looking word, pronounced sih-zih-gee, is used to describe the alignment of three celestial bodies in a row.

For instance, during a lunar or solar eclipse, the Sun, Earth, and Moon are in syzygy.

The term syzygy is also applied to each instance of new moon or full moon when Sun and Moon are in conjunction or opposition

The word syzygy comes from the Late Latin word “syzygia”, which means “conjunction,”

Syzygy is the shortest English word containing three “y”s.

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