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Radial velocity in astronomy refers to the speed at which a celestial object is moving directly toward or away from an observer. This is also known as the line-of-sight velocity. It is determined by observing shifts in the object's light spectrum, a phenomenon explained by the Doppler effect.12

If an object is moving towards an observer, its light is blueshifted (higher frequency, shorter wavelength). If it's moving away, its light is redshifted (lower frequency, longer wavelength). This measurement is crucial for understanding stellar motions and is a primary method for detecting extrasolar planets by observing the wobble of their host stars.234

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