Definitions
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun In astronomy: Any great circle of the sphere which passes through the two poles: so called because the hour of the day is ascertained when the circle upon which the sun is for the time being is ascertained.
- noun A circle upon an equatorial telescope lying parallel to the plane of the earth's equator, and graduated into hours and subdivisions of hours.
Etymologies
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Examples
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In both these collections the distances separating the individuals of each pair were carefully measured, and (with a few exceptions) the angles made with the hour-circle by the lines joining their centres (technically called
A Popular History of Astronomy During the Nineteenth Century Fourth Edition 1874
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