ephemeris
a table showing the positions of a heavenly body on a number of dates in a regular sequence.
an astronomical almanac containing such tables.
Archaic. an almanac or calendar.
Origin of ephemeris
1Words Nearby ephemeris
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use ephemeris in a sentence
In the 1790s, he calculated ephemerides, predictions about the future positions of the sun, the moon, the planets and the stars over the course of the coming year.
U.S. worries about space aliens and UFOs are older than you think | Gordon Fraser | June 25, 2021 | Washington PostNot surprisingly, with such traumatic lessons, scientists have sweated over getting the ephemerides of solar-system objects pinned down better and better.
We Never Know Exactly Where We’re Going in Outer Space - Issue 92: Frontiers | Caleb Scharf | November 4, 2020 | NautilusDictys (the full title of whose book is ephemeris Belli Trojani) is not only the longer but the better written of the two.
The Flourishing of Romance and the Rise of Allegory | George SaintsburyFor instance, under the entry newspaper occurs the attractive word ephemeris.
Public Speaking | Clarence StrattonKnowing the location of Venus in the sky, which can be ascertained from the ephemeris, the observer can find it by day.
Pleasures of the telescope | Garrett Serviss
Take in hand, then, the ephemeris for the year of your birth and read this chapter with it in view.
Astrology | SepharialPossibly the Latin ephemeris was the work of Septimius himself.
British Dictionary definitions for ephemeris
/ (ɪˈfɛmərɪs) /
a table giving the future positions of a planet, comet, or satellite
an annual publication giving the positions of the sun, moon, and planets during the course of a year, information concerning eclipses, astronomical constants, etc
obsolete a diary or almanac
Origin of ephemeris
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for ephemeris
[ ĭ-fĕm′ər-ĭs ]
A table giving the coordinates of a celestial body at specific times during a given period. Ephemerides can be used by navigators to determine their longitude while at sea and by astronomers in following objects such as comets. The use of computers has allowed modern ephemerides to determine celestial positions with far greater accuracy than in earlier publications.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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