: the side of a celestial body (such as the earth, the moon, or a planet) not in daylight
Examples of nightside in a Sentence
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With no shield to steer solar particles, the entire nightside sky can glow with diffuse green light, caused by oxygen atoms less than 60 miles (about 100 kilometers) above the surface.
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Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Its star-facing dayside is scorching, while its nightside is much cooler.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2025
The bright purple color depicts auroras on Mars’ nightside that were detected by the ultraviolet instrument aboard NASA’s MAVEN orbiter between May 14 and 20.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN, 14 June 2024
The light data also revealed something striking about the gas giant’s atmospheric conditions—a total lack of methane, which astronomers previously hypothesized may be detectable, at least on the nightside.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 1 May 2024
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Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Its star-facing dayside is scorching, while its nightside is much cooler.
—Jamie Carter, Forbes, 19 Feb. 2025
The bright purple color depicts auroras on Mars’ nightside that were detected by the ultraviolet instrument aboard NASA’s MAVEN orbiter between May 14 and 20.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN, 14 June 2024
The light data also revealed something striking about the gas giant’s atmospheric conditions—a total lack of methane, which astronomers previously hypothesized may be detectable, at least on the nightside.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 1 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for nightside
Cite this Entry
“Nightside.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nightside. Accessed 23 Sep. 2025.
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