Longitude

Definition of Longitude

Lon´gi`tude

Length; measure or distance along the longest line; - distinguished from breadth or thickness; as, the longitude of a room; rare now, except in a humorous sense.

The longitude of their cloaks.

- Sir. W. Scott.

Mine [shadow] spindling into longitude immense.

- Cowper.

(Geog.) The arc or portion of the equator intersected between the meridian of a given place and the meridian of some other place from which longitude is reckoned, as from Greenwich, England, or sometimes from the capital of a country, as from Washington or Paris. The longitude of a place is expressed either in degrees or in time; as, that of New York is 74° or 4 h. 56 min. west of Greenwich.

(Astron.) The distance in degrees, reckoned from the vernal equinox, on the ecliptic, to a circle at right angles to the ecliptic passing through the heavenly body whose longitude is designated; as, the longitude of Capella is 79°.

Geocentric longitude
(Astron.) the longitude of a heavenly body as seen from the earth.

Heliocentric longitude
the longitude of a heavenly body, as seen from the sun's center.

Longitude stars
certain stars whose position is known, and the data in regard to which are used in observations for finding the longitude, as by lunar distances.

Related Words

Antarctic Zone, Arctic Circle, Arctic Zone, Cartesian coordinates, Frigid Zones, Lambert conformal projection, Mercator projection, Miller projection, Torrid Zone, Tropic of Cancer, Tropic of Capricorn, Variable Zones, abscissa, aeronautical chart, altitude, aphelion, apogee, astronomical chart, astronomical longitude, atlas, autumnal equinox, azimuth, azimuthal equidistant projection, azimuthal projection, cartographer, cartography, celestial chart, celestial equator, celestial globe, celestial longitude, celestial meridian, chart, chorographer, chorography, circle, climate, climatic chart, clime, colures, conic projection, contour line, contour map, coordinates, cylindrical coordinates, cylindrical projection, declination, distance, ecliptic, equator, equator coordinates, equinoctial, equinoctial circle, equinoctial colure, equinox, extension, extent, galactic longitude, general reference map, geocentric longitude, geodetic longitude, globe, gnomonic projection, graphic scale, great circle, grid line, hachure, heliocentric longitude, heliographic chart, horse latitudes, hydrographic chart, index, infinity, isoline, latitude, layer tint, legend, length, lengthiness, linear measures, long time, longitude in arc, longness, map, map maker, map projection, mapper, measure, meridian, mileage, orbit, ordinate, overall length, parallel, perigee, perihelion, period, perpetuity, photogrammetrist, photogrammetry, photomap, phototopography, physical map, polar coordinates, political map, polyconic projection, prime meridian, projection, reach, relief map, representative fraction, right ascension, road map, roaring forties, scale, sinusoidal projection, small circle, solstitial colure, span, special map, stretch, subtropics, terrain map, terrestrial globe, the line, thematic map, topographer, topographic chart, topography, trajectory, transportation map, tropic, tropics, vernal equinox, weather chart, weather map, yardage, zodiac, zone

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-Longitude-
Longitude stars
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longtailed duck
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Lonicera

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