vernal equinox
See under equinox (def. 1).
Also called ver·nal point . the position of the sun at the time of the vernal equinox.
Origin of vernal equinox
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How to use vernal equinox in a sentence
The line drawn from the sun toward the right of the figure shows the direction to the vernal equinox.
A Text-Book of Astronomy | George C. ComstockHow many days will be required for it to move completely around the ecliptic from vernal equinox back to vernal equinox again?
A Text-Book of Astronomy | George C. ComstockIt is the first of the twelve signs of the zodiac, which the sun enters at the vernal equinox, about the 21st of March.
At the vernal equinox, the ancients celebrated the bridal of the sun and the earth.
Ancient Pagan and Modern Christian Symbolism | Thomas InmanThe festival of the vernal equinox would then be celebrated on the first of April.
Traditions, Superstitions and Folk-lore | Charles Hardwick
British Dictionary definitions for vernal equinox
the time at which the sun crosses the plane of the equator towards the relevant hemisphere, making day and night of equal length. It occurs about March 21 in the N hemisphere (Sept 23 in the S hemisphere)
astronomy the point, lying in the constellation Pisces, at which the sun's ecliptic intersects the celestial equator
the time at which this occurs as the sun travels south to north (March 21)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for vernal equinox
[ vûr′nəl ]
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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