meridian circle

American  

noun

Astronomy.

1. a transit instrument provided with a graduated vertical scale, used to measure the declinations of heavenly bodies and to determine the time of meridian transits.

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meridian circle British  

noun

1. an instrument used in astronomy for determining the declination and right ascension of stars. It consists of a telescope attached to a graduated circle

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Etymology

Origin of meridian circle

First recorded in 1540–50

Example Sentences

The points of contact thus ascertained were marked with faint dots, and the meridian circle thereby divided into 256 very nearly equal parts.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 3 "Gordon, Lord George" to "Grasses" by Various

One is a polar astrolabe, mounted somewhat as a modern equatorial telescope is, and the meridian circle is adjustable so that it can be used in any place, no matter what its latitude might be.

From Astronomy: The Science of the Heavenly Bodies by Todd, David Peck

Physicists were sometimes jocularly greeted among astronomers as "ribbon men," and no one even dreamed that their researches were one day to advance to equal recognition with results derived from micrometer, meridian circle, and heliometer.

From Astronomy: The Science of the Heavenly Bodies by Todd, David Peck

But the accuracy of the meridian circle renders these minute quantities evident, and gives to them their true significance.

From The Story of the Heavens by Ball, Robert S. (Robert Stawell), Sir