approacher

From approach +‎ -er.

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approacher (plural approachers)

1. Someone or something that approaches.

   The monkeys’ calls warn other animals of approachers.

   • 1589, Paul Ive (translator), Instructions for the Warres by Raimond Beccarie de Pavie, Seigneur de Fourquevaux, London: Thomas Man and Toby Cooke, Chapter 5, p. 38,

     houses or other thing standing néere vnto a towne, or fort, are meanes to surprise and approach vnto it, and the approacher not be discouered, or impeached by the defenders.

   • c. 1605–1608, William Shakespeare, “The Life of Tymon of Athens”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :

     Thou gavest thine ears like tapsters that bid welcome
     To knaves and all approachers:

   • 1718, Aaron Hill, The Northern-Star‎, London: E. Berington and J. Morphew, page 13:

     Stop, Headstrong Muse! And e’er we Higher go,
     Look down, with Caution, on the Depth below;
     Prospects, so vast, the Rash Approacher fright,
     And, dazling, wound the uncollected Sight:

   • 1971, Ian Wallace, The Purloined Prince‎, New York: McCall, act 3, page 125:

     her vigilant ear picked up approachers in the corridor

2. (astronomy) An asteroid on a near-Earth trajectory.

   Synonym: earth approacher

   • 1997 December 19, Erik Asphaug, “PLANETARY SCIENCE: Enhanced: New Views of Asteroids”, in Science‎, volume 278, number 5346, →DOI, pages 2070–2071:

     Extensive upgrades to the Arecibo antenna will be completed this spring, providing dozens of Toutatis-quality detections per year, spacecraft-quality images of the closest approachers, and hundred-pixel images of dozens of main-belt asteroids ( 9 ).

   • 2005 June 3, Ted McClelland, “Something Big Is Out There”, in Chicago Reader‎:

     We have some close approachers," he says, "but not one that would have an impact trajectory."

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