1. Having or nearly having the shape of a sphere; that is, rounded, globular, global, or round like a ball or globe.
2. Of or concerning a sphere, or formed on the surface of a sphere; such as, a geometric figure.
3. Of or concerning heavenly bodies regarded astrologically as exerting influence on human nature and events.
4. Referring to the heavenly bodies, or to their supposed revolving spheres or shells.

1. An aberration arising from the fact that rays which are initially at different distances from the optical axis come to a focus at different distances along the axis when they are reflected from a spherical mirror or refracted by a lens with spherical surfaces.
2. A fault in a lens or curved mirror in which light passing through the edge has a different focal point from light passing through the center, resulting in blurred images.
3. The blurring of an image that occurs when light from the margin of a lens or mirror with a spherical surface comes to a shorter focus than light from the central portion.

The changing focal length is caused by deviations in the lens or mirror surface from a true sphere.

In electromagnetism, an antenna having the shape of a sphere, used primarily in theoretical studies.

The branch of astronomy dealing with positions on the celestial sphere.

A capacitor made of two concentric metal spheres with a dielectric filling the space between the spheres.

A system of curvilinear coordinates (co-ordinate system composed of intersecting surfaces) in which the position of a point in space is designated by its distance from the origin or pole, called the radius vector, the angle φ between the radius vector and a vertically directed polar axis, called the cone angle or co-latitude, and the angle θ between the plane of φ and a fixed meridian plane through the polar axis, called the polar angle or longitude: The spherical coordinates are a set of coordinates used for locating a point in space, representing its distance from an origin and two angles describing its orientation relative to perpendicular axes extending from that origin.

Geographical coordinates refer to a system of coordinates for locating a point in space by the length of its radius vector and the angles this vector makes with two perpendicular polar planes.

A curve; such as, a cycloid, cardioid, or epicycloid; generated by a point of a circle that rolls (without slipping) on a given curve.

It involves the intersection of a quadric surface with a sphere.

1. A solid angle equal to one-ninetieth of a spherical right angle.
2. A unit of relative surface area for spheres, equal to 1/720 the total surface area.

Thinking in terms of the earth's surface, this is the area of the region in one hemisphere (northern or southern) bounded by the equator and two meridians of longitude one degree apart.

The geometry of circles, angles, and figures on the surface of a sphere.

1. A mirror, either convex or concave, whose surface forms part of a sphere.
2. A curved reflective surface, which may be either convex, bulging outwardly; or concave, bulging inwardly.

Most curved mirrors have surfaces which are shaped like part of a sphere, but other shapes are sometimes used in optical devices, too.

Any part of a spherical surface that is bounded by arcs of three or more great circles.

A powder consisting of globular-shaped or round particles.

1. Any of the sailing computation methods which are used to solve the problems of course, distance, difference of latitude, difference of longitude, and departure which take into account the spherical or spheroidal shape of the earth.
2. A method of navigation in which the curvature of the earth is taken into consideration.

A solid formed by rotating a sector of a circle around a diameter of the circle.

The diameter may contain one of the radii bounding the circular sector or it may lie outside the circular sector.

A ball-shaped vessel used for gas and oil separation.

A spherical separator can be used for two-phase or three-phase separation purposes.

Spherical separators are less efficient than either horizontal or vertical cylindrical separators and are seldom used; however, their compact sizes and ease of transportation have made them suitable for crowded processing areas.

1. A spherical polygon that has three sides with three intersecting great circular arcs.
2. A triangle the three sides of which are arcs of great circles intersecting.

1. Trigonometry that deals with spherical triangles.
2. The study of spherical triangles from the viewpoints of angles, lengths, and areas.
3. A branch of trigonometry concerned with the measurements of the angles and sides of spherical triangles.

A wave generated from a point source; such as, that generated by an underground explosion.

Typical seismic sources; such as, vibrators and air-gun arrays emit elastic waves that are assumed to be spherical waves.

1. The chemical weathering of blocks of rock so that they take on a more rounded shape; such as rounded boulders that help to create domed monoliths.
2. Chemical weathering in which concentric or spherical shells of decayed rock are successively separated from a block of rock.

It commonly results in the formation of a rounded boulder of decomposition.

1. The portion of a sphere bounded by two semicircles and a lune (the surface of the sphere between the semicircles).
2. That part of a sphere included between two planes which intersect in a diameter.

A robot in which the degrees of freedom of the manipulator arm are defined primarily by spherical coordinates or the coordinates of a sphere.

A three-dimensional system for locating points in space b means of a radius vector and two angles measured from the center of a sphere with respect to two arbitrary, fixed, perpendicular directions.

In electromagnetism, attenuation over an imperfectly conducting spherical earth in excess of that over a perfectly conducting plane.

The term attenuation refers to the reduction with distance from the source of the intensity of an electromagnetic signal propagating through the atmosphere caused by the interaction of the signal with gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, aerosols, or hydrometeors.

It also includes the reduction of intensity of a radiation as it passes through a medium and it includes reductions due to both absorption and scattering.

The ratio of the electric field strength in a wave that would result from propagation over an imperfectly conducting spherical earth to that which would result from propagation over a perfectly conducting plane.