The time of opposition can occur as much as 8.5 days away from the closest approach. The distance at close approach varies between about 54 and about 103 million km due to the planets' elliptical orbits, which causes comparable variation in angular size.
Cosmos often simply means universe. But the word is generally used to suggest an orderly or harmonious universe, as it was originally used by Pythagoras in the 6th century B.C. Thus, a religious mystic may help put us in touch with the cosmos, and so may a physicist.
2. : a complex orderly self-inclusive system. 3. plural cosmos \-mÉs, -mÉz\ also cosÂ·mosÂ·es \-mÉ-sÉz\ [New Latin, genus name, from Greek kosmos] : any of a genus (Cosmos) of tropical American composite herbs; especially: a widely cultivated tall annual (C. bipinnatus) with yellow or red disks and showy ray flowers.See cosmos defined for English-language learners.he cosmos: the universe especially when it is understood as an ordered system.