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Encyclopedia of Astrobiology pp 1Cite as

Doppler Shift

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Definition

The Doppler shift is the change in frequency and wavelength of a propagating wave (acoustic, electromagnetic, etc.), caused by the movement of the source emitting the wave relative to the observer. This effect is named after the Austrian physicist Christian Doppler who proposed it in 1842. In France, the effect is currently called Doppler–Fizeau, because the French physicist Hippolyte Fizeau proposed it for electromagnetic waves in 1848. If the source is moving away from the observer, the wavelength appears stretched while frequencies are shifted toward lower values, and if the source is approaching, the wavelength appears compressed and frequencies shifted toward higher values. In the case of light, the effect is called redshift (receding source) and blueshift (approaching source), respectively. This effect is of great importance in astronomy because it allows direct determination of the radial speed of celestial objects and of the distance of remote galaxies (because of...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. LESIA, Observatoire Paris-Site de Meudon, 5 Pl Jules Janssen, 92195, Meudon, France

    Daniel Rouan

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  1. Daniel Rouan
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Correspondence to Daniel Rouan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Ricardo Amils

  2. Labo. d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux (LAB), Observatoire Aquitain des Sciences de l'Univers (OASU), Floirac CX, France

    Muriel Gargaud

  3. Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), Inst. Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial, Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid, Spain

    José Cernicharo Quintanilla

  4. Geophysical Lab., Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, USA

    Henderson James Cleaves

  5. Astronomy Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA

    William M. Irvine

  6. Dépt. Sc. de la Terre et de l’Atmosphère, Université du Québec, Montréal, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    Daniele Pinti

  7. Centre National d'Etudes Spatiale (CNES) DPI/E2U, Paris CX, France

    Michel Viso

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© 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Rouan, D. (2014). Doppler Shift. In: Amils, R., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_455-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_455-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27833-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Physics and AstronomyReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics

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