ecliptic longitude

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Related to ecliptic longitude: celestial longitude

ecliptic longitude

[i¦klip·tik ′län·jə‚tüd]

(astronomy)

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References in periodicals archive ?

Mars arrived in Virgo around January 12th, creating an 8-planet array spanning less than 60[degrees] of ecliptic longitude. In fact, January 12th through 15th marked the tightest bunching of the planets for the past several centuries.

The grand conclave: one of the greatest celestial events was seen by only a few

Interestingly, this event is a "quasi-conjunction"--two planets coming within 5[degrees] of each other without ever having the same right ascension or ecliptic longitude. There are no other quasi-conjunctions of bright planets until 2010.

Dance of the planets: get ready for some stunning dawn groupings of the Moon and planets

This perspective, popular among terrestrial cartographers of the time, had parallels of ecliptic latitude shown as equidistant straight lines and the great circles of ecliptic longitude as sloping straight lines.

The cartographic legacy of John Flamsteed: modern-day star atlases benefited from the seminal work of England's first royal astronomer

Because of precession, the ecliptic longitude of each intersection point increases 50.3 arcseconds per year.

Galactic coincidence

The inner ring will contain a scale of the ecliptic longitude, the direction of the First Point of Aries, [??] (the Sun's position as seen from Earth at the spring equinox, which is March 20th this year), and the boundaries of Ophiuchus and the 12 zodiacal constellations through which the Sun passes during a year.

The human orrery: putting the solar system in perspective: an interactive outdoor exhibit in Northern Ireland explains the motions of the Sun's family members

Each month you can find the exact time of new Moon (which is defined as when the Moon and Sun have the same ecliptic longitude) on our almanac page (page 66 in this issue).