solar day

American  

noun

1. Astronomy. the time interval between two successive transits by the sun of the meridian directly opposite that of the observer; the 24-hour interval from one midnight to the following midnight.

2. Law. the period of time from sunrise to sunset.

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solar day British  

noun

1. the period of time during which the earth makes one complete revolution on its axis relative to the sun See day

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solar day Scientific  

1. See under solar time

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Etymology

Origin of solar day

First recorded in 1755–65

Compare meaning

How does solar-day compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• sidereal vs. solar day
• sidereal day vs. solar day

Example Sentences

Yes, year-round standard time ensures that the solar day is centered on 12 p.m.

From Washington Post • Nov. 8, 2022

Yet in 2020 there were 28 separate occasions in which a solar day occurred from anywhere between 1.0516 milliseconds and 1.4602 milliseconds less than that period.

From Salon • Jan. 8, 2021

The reason we don’t all walk around in a state of perpetual jet lag, waking and sleeping at random, is that our circadian rhythm evolved to be tied to the solar day.

From New York Times • Mar. 10, 2017

For many years it was defined as 1/86,400 of a mean solar day.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

Or does thy unprophetic fire Thro' the wide realms of solar day Mad Heat or purple Pestilence inspire?

From Gustavus Vasa and other poems by Walker, William Sidney