- Celestial sphere
[
celestial equator .]In
astronomy andnavigation , the celestial sphere is an imaginary rotatingsphere of "giganticradius ", concentric andcoaxial with theEarth . All objects in thesky can be thought of as lying upon the sphere. Projected from their correspondinggeographic equivalents are thecelestial equator and thecelestial pole s. The celestial sphere projection is a very practical tool forpositional astronomy .The celestial sphere can be used
geocentric ally andtopocentric ally. The former means that it is centred upon an imaginary observer in the centre of the Earth, and noparallax effects need to be taken into account. In the latter case it is centred upon an observer on the surface of the Earth and then horizontalparallax cannot always be ignored; especially not for the Moon.In the Aristotelic and
Ptolemaic models, the celestial sphere was imagined as a physical reality rather than a geometrical projection (seeCelestial spheres ).The celestial sphere is divided by projecting the
equator into space. This divides the sphere into the north celestial hemisphere and the south celestial hemisphere. Likewise, one can locate the Celestial Tropic of Cancer, Celestial Tropic of Capricorn, North Celestial Pole, and South Celestial Pole. The directions toward various objects in the sky can be quantified by constructing acelestial coordinate system .As the Earth rotates from
west toeast around its axis once every 23 hours 56 minutes, the celestial sphere and all objects on it appear to rotate fromeast towest around thecelestial pole s in the same time. This is thediurnal motion . Therefore stars will rise in the east, culminate on the north-south line (meridian) and set in the west, (unless a star is circumpolar). On the next night a particular star will rise again, but with our normal clocks running a 24 hour 0 minutes cycle, it will do so 4 minutes earlier. By the following night the difference will be 8 minutes, and so forth with every following night (or day).The reason for this apparent misadjustment of our clocks is that the Sun is not standing still on the celestial sphere, as the stars do, but moves about 1° per day eastwards over a
great circle known as theecliptic (which is 360° or a full circle in one year, theannual motion of the Sun). As an angle of 1° corresponds to 4 minutes in time (360° = 24 hours), we need therefore 4 extra minutes of diurnal motion to see the Sun back on (for example) the meridian again, making the duration of one rotation just 24 hours exactly (on the average, ignoring small seasonal variations, seeequation of time )Normal clocks therefore indicate
solar time .Astronomers studying the movements of stars may want clocks indicatingsidereal time , going around once in 23h56m (solar time units).A celestial sphere can also refer to a physical model of the celestial sphere. Also known as a star globe, this sort of celestial sphere will indicate which constellations are visible at a given time and place.
See also
Columns-list|3
*Armillary sphere
*Celestial coordinate system
*Celestial equator
*Celestial horizon
*Celestial pole
*Celestial spheres
*Conformal geometry
*Equinox
*Geocentric universe
*North Star
*Pole Star
*Prograde and retrograde motion
*Setting circles
*Solstice
*South Star
*Spherical Earth
*Zodiac External links
* [http://skyandtelescope.com/observing/skychart/# SkyandTelescope.com SkyChart]
* [http://astroclub.tau.ac.il/skymaps/monthly/ Monthly skymaps for every location on Earth]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
celestial sphere — n. an imaginary sphere of infinite extent on which all celestial objects appear to lie: the observer is always at its center … English World dictionary
celestial sphere — An imaginary sphere of infinite radius, centered at the center of the earth, on which the apparent motion of celestial bodies takes place. Because all stars are so far from an earthbound observer that they can be located solely by their direction … Aviation dictionary
celestial sphere — dangaus sfera statusas T sritis fizika atitikmenys: angl. celestial sphere vok. Himmelskugel, f; Himmelssphäre, f rus. небесная сфера, f; небосвод, m pranc. sphère céleste, f … Fizikos terminų žodynas
celestial sphere — dangaus sfera statusas T sritis Gynyba apibrėžtis Įsivaizduojama neriboto spindulio sfera, koncentriška su Žemės rutuliu, į kurią projektuojami visi dangaus kūnai, išskyrus Žemę. atitikmenys: angl. celestial sphere pranc. sphère céleste … NATO terminų aiškinamasis žodynas
celestial sphere — the imaginary spherical shell formed by the sky, usually represented as an infinite sphere, the center of which is a given observer s position. [1875 80] * * * Apparent surface of the heavens, on which the stars seem to be fixed. For the purpose… … Universalium
celestial sphere — noun the apparent surface of the imaginary sphere on which celestial bodies appear to be projected • Syn: ↑sphere, ↑empyrean, ↑firmament, ↑heavens, ↑vault of heaven, ↑welkin • Derivationally related forms: ↑firmamental … Useful english dictionary
celestial sphere — An imaginary sphere of infinite radius concentric with the Earth, on which all celestial bodies except the Earth are imagined to be projected … Military dictionary
celestial sphere — noun Date: 1829 an imaginary sphere of infinite radius against which the celestial bodies appear to be projected and of which the apparent dome of the visible sky forms half … New Collegiate Dictionary
celestial sphere — noun An abstract sphere of infinite radius which serves as the imaginary backdrop for celestial objects, and of which the visible sky is one hemisphere. Syn: empyrean, firmament … Wiktionary
celestial sphere — noun an imaginary sphere of which the observer is the centre and on which all celestial objects are considered to lie … English new terms dictionary