browse words by letter
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
m
n
o
p
q
r
s
t
u
v
w
x
y
z
precession |
2 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: Precession \Pre*ces"sion\, n. [L. praecedere praecessum to go before: cf F. pr['e]cession. See {Precede}.] The act of going before or forward. {Lunisolar precession}. (Astron.) See under {Lunisolar}. {Planetary precession}, that part of the precession of the equinoxes which depends on the action of the planets alone. {Precession of the equinoxes} (Astron.), the slow backward motion of the equinoctial points along the ecliptic, at the rate of 50.2[sec] annually, caused by the action of the sun, moon, and planets, upon the protuberant matter about the earth's equator, in connection with its diurnal rotation; -- so called because either equinox, owing to its westerly motion, comes to the meridian sooner each day than the point it would have occupied without the motion of precession, and thus precedes that point continually with reference to the time of transit and motion. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: precession n 1: the motion of a spinning body (as a top) in which it wobbles so that the axis of rotation sweeps out a cone 2: the act of preceding [syn: {precedence}]
more about precession
This work is licensed under a
