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equatorial - 5 dictionary results

e⋅qua⋅to⋅ri⋅al

  [ee-kwuh-tawr-ee-uhl, -tohr-, ek-wuh-]
Use equatorial in a Sentence
–adjective
1. of, pertaining to, or near an equator, esp. the equator of the earth.
2. of, like, or typical of the regions at the earth's equator: equatorial temperatures.
–noun
3. a telescope mounting having two axes of motion, one parallel to the earth's axis and one at right angles to it.
4. a telescope with such a mounting.
Origin:
1655–65; equator + -ial

Related forms:
e⋅qua⋅to⋅ri⋅al⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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e·qua·to·ri·al   (ē'kwə-tôr'ē-əl, -tōr'-, ěk'wə-)   
adj.  
    1. Of, relating to, or resembling the earth's equator.
    2. Relating to conditions that exist at the earth's equator: equatorial heat.
  2. Having or constituting a support with two perpendicular axes, one of which is parallel to the earth's rotational axis.
n.  An equatorial telescope.
e'qua·to'ri·al·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Equatorial

E`qua*to"ri*al\, a. [Cf. F. ['e]quatorial.] Of or pertaining to the equator; as, equatorial climates; also, pertaining to an equatorial instrument.

Equatorial

E`qua*to"ri*al\, n. (Astron.) An instrument consisting of a telescope so mounted as to have two axes of motion at right angles to each other, one of them parallel to the axis of the earth, and each carrying a graduated circle, the one for measuring declination, and the other right ascension, or the hour angle, so that the telescope may be directed, even in the daytime, to any star or other object whose right ascension and declination are known. The motion in right ascension is sometimes communicated by clockwork, so as to keep the object constantly in the field of the telescope. Called also an equatorial telescope.

Note: The term equatorial, or equatorial instrument, is sometimes applied to any astronomical instrument which has its principal axis of rotation parallel to the axis of the earth.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : equatorial
Spanish: ecuatorial,
German: Äquatorial-…,
Japanese: 赤道の
More Translations »

Main Entry: equa·to·ri·al
Pronunciation: "E-kw&-'tOr-E-&l, "ek-w&-, -'tor-
Function: adjective
1 : of, located at,or relating to an equator <equatorial diameter>
2 : extending in a direction essentially in the plane of a cyclic structure (as of cyclohexane) <equatorialhydrogen atoms> —compare AXIAL 2b
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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