transit instrument

American  

noun

1. Astronomy. meridian circle.

2. Surveying. transit.

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transit instrument British  

noun

1. an astronomical instrument, mounted on an E-W axis, in which the reticle of a telescope is always in the plane of the meridian. It is used to time the transit of a star, etc, across the meridian

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Etymology

Origin of transit instrument

First recorded in 1805–15

Example Sentences

The planetarium's dome will float over a reflecting pool, will house an "intermediate space transit instrument" which will project the heavens not only as they appear on earth but from the moon.

From Time Magazine Archive

The transit instrument is always reversed at least once in the course of an evening’s observing, the level being frequently read and recorded.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 6 "Geodesy" to "Geometry" by Various

We now come to the consideration of the determination of time with the transit instrument.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 6 "Geodesy" to "Geometry" by Various

With Leverrier's bad English and my bad French we talked but little, but he showed me the transit instrument, the mural circle, the computing-room, and the private office.

From Maria Mitchell: Life, Letters, and Journals by Mitchell, Maria

The demands of astronomy, especially in regard to small minor planets, required a transit instrument and mural circle with a more powerful telescope.

From History of Astronomy by Forbes, George