BROWNOUT

Brownout

A brownout is an intentional or unintentional drop in voltage in an electrical power supply system. Intentional brownouts are used for load reduction in an emergency. The reduction lasts for minutes or hours, as opposed to short-term voltage sag . The term brownout comes from the dimming experienced by lighting when the voltage sags. A voltage reduction may be an effect of disruption of an electrical grid, or may occasionally be imposed in an effort to reduce load and prevent a power outage, known as a blackout.

The above text is a snippet from Wikipedia: Brownout (electricity)
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

brownout

Noun

  1. A period of low alternating current line voltage, causing a reduction in illumination
    When demand for electricity exceeds the available supply, a brownout occurs.
  2. Temporary dimming of vision, usually with a brown hue and accompanied by loss of peripheral vision or tunnel vision.
    On rising suddenly from her chair she experienced a brownout and had to sit down again quickly.
  3. Temporary closing of a fire station, usually due to budget restrictions.
    Fire departments across the country have been forced to rely on rolling brownouts because of the recession.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: brownout
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

brown out

Noun

Verb

  1. To experience a partial loss of vision having the characteristics of a brownout, to suffer a brownout.
    The pilot pulled up hard into a tight loop and browned out, losing sight of the target.


The above text is a snippet from Wiktionary: brown out
and as such is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

Need help with a clue?
Try your search in the crossword dictionary!