Fixed-star Synonyms

fĭkst
A star or other celestial object so distant from Earth that its position in relation to other stars appears not to change over time. The fixed stars, which include virtually all visible objects beyond the solar system, form the background against which the motions of the Sun, planets, and other bodies of the solar system are measured, and they provide the reference for determining sidereal time. In actuality, no celestial object has a fixed position in relation to any other, and the movement of so-called fixed stars can be measured by precise observation over long periods of time.
Synonyms:
  1. real star
  2. starry host

Fixed-star Sentence Examples

  • It is thus possible to exhibit a series of objects beginning at one end with the most diffused nebulosity and ending at the other with an ordinary fixed star or group of stars.

  • On the different days of the year each hour was determined by a fixed star culminating or nearly culminating in it, and the position of these stars at the time is given in the tables as in the centre, on the left eye, on the right shoulder, &c. According to the texts, in founding or rebuilding temples the north axis was determined by the same apparatus, and we may condude that it was the usual one for astronomical observations.

  • Distances and .Parallaxes of the Stars.-As the earth traverses annually its path around the sun, and passes from one part of its orbit to another, the direction in which a fixed star is seen changes.

Fixed-star Is Also Mentioned In