Sun / Moon

The solar azimuth angle is the azimuth angle of the sun. It defines in which direction the sun is, whereas the solar zenith angle or its complementary angle solar elevation defines how high the sun is. There are several conventions for the solar azimuth, however it is traditionally defined as the angle between a line due south and the shadow cast by a vertical rod on Earth. This convention states the angle is positive if the line is east of south and negative if it is west of south. For example due east would be 90° and due west would be -90°. Another convention is the reverse; it also has the origin at due south, but measures angles clockwise, so that due east is now negative and west now positive.

The solar elevation angle is the altitude of the sun, the angle between the horizon and the centre of the sun's disc.

In celestial mechanics, the mean anomaly is an angle used in calculating the position of a body in an elliptical orbit in the classical two-body problem. It is the angular distance from the pericenter which a fictitious body would have if it moved in a circular orbit, with constant speed, in the same orbital period as the actual body in its elliptical orbit.

In celestial mechanics, the longitude of the periapsis (symbolized ϖ) of an orbiting body is the longitude (measured from the point of the vernal equinox) at which the periapsis (closest approach to the central body) would occur if the body's inclination were zero. For motion of a planet around the Sun, this position could be called longitude of perihelion. The longitude of periapsis is a compound angle, with part of it being measured in the plane of reference and the rest being measured in the plane of the orbit. Likewise, any angle derived from the longitude of periapsis (e.g. mean longitude and true longitude) will also be compound.

The orbital eccentricity of an astronomical object is a parameter that determines the amount by which its orbit around another body deviates from a perfect circle. A value of 0 is a circular orbit, values between 0 and 1 form an elliptical orbit, 1 is a parabolic escape orbit, and greater than 1 is a hyperbola. The term derives its name from the parameters of conic sections, as every Kepler orbit is a conic section. It is normally used for the isolated two-body problem, but extensions exist for objects following a rosette orbit through the galaxy.

In astronomy, axial tilt, also known as obliquity, is the angle between an object's rotational axis and its orbital axis, or, equivalently, the angle between its equatorial plane and orbital plane. It differs from orbital inclination.

At an obliquity of zero, the two axes point in the same direction; i.e., the rotational axis is perpendicular to the orbital plane. Over the course of an orbit, the obliquity usually does not change considerably, and the orientation of the axis remains the same relative to the background stars. This causes one pole to be directed more toward the Sun on one side of the orbit, and the other pole on the other side — the cause of the seasons on the Earth. Earth's obliquity oscillates between 22.1 and 24.5 degrees on a 41000-year cycle. It is currently 23.4 degrees and decreasing.

The solar elevation angle is the altitude of the sun, the angle between the horizon and the centre of the sun's disc.

In astronomy, declination (abbreviated dec; symbol δ) is one of the two angles that locate a point on the celestial sphere in the equatorial coordinate system, the other being hour angle. Declination's angle is measured north or south of the celestial equator, along the hour circle passing through the point in question.

The Sun's declination varies with the seasons. As seen from arctic or antarctic latitudes, the Sun is circumpolar near the local summer solstice, leading to the phenomenon of it being above the horizon at midnight, which is called midnight sun. Likewise, near the local winter solstice, the Sun remains below the horizon all day, which is called polar night.

In astronomy and celestial navigation, the hour angle is one of the coordinates used in the equatorial coordinate system to give the direction of a point on the celestial sphere. The hour angle of a point is the angle between two planes: one containing the Earth's axis and the zenith (the meridian plane), and the other containing the Earth's axis and the given point (the hour circle passing through the point).

The angle may be expressed as negative east of the meridian plane and positive west of the meridian plane, or as positive westward from 0° to 360°. The angle may be measured in degrees or in time, with 24h = 360° exactly.

In astronomy, hour angle is defined as the angular distance on the celestial sphere measured westward along the celestial equator from the meridian to the hour circle passing through a point.[1] It may be given in degrees, time, or rotations depending on the application. In celestial navigation, the convention is to measure in degrees westward from the prime meridian (Greenwich hour angle, GHA), the local meridian (local hour angle, LHA) or the first point of Aries (sidereal hour angle, SHA).

Observing the sun from earth, the solar hour angle is an expression of time, expressed in angular measurement, usually degrees, from solar noon. At solar noon the hour angle is 0.000 degrees, with the time before solar noon expressed as negative degrees, and the local time after solar noon expressed as positive degrees. For example, at 10:30 AM local apparent time the hour angle is -22.5° (15° per hour times 1.5 hours before noon). The cosine of the hour angle (cos(h)) is used to calculate the solar zenith angle. At solar noon, h = 0.000 so cos(h)=1, and before and after solar noon the cos(± h) term = the same value for morning (negative hour angle) or afternoon (positive hour angle), i.e. the sun is at the same altitude in the sky at 11:00AM and 1:00PM solar time, etc.

Longitude and Latitude are ecliptic coordinates, which use the ecliptic as a fundamental plane. Both are measured in degrees, and these coorinates too are both zero at the Vernal Point. The Longitude is counted countersunwise along the ecliptic. The Latitude is positive north of the ecliptic. Of course longitude and latitude are also used as terrestial coordinates, to measure a position of a point on the surface of the Earth.

Right ascension (abbreviated RA; symbol α) is the angular distance measured eastward along the celestial equator from the vernal equinox to the hour circle of the point in question. When combined with declination, these astronomical coordinates specify the direction of a point on the celestial sphere in the equatorial coordinate system.

An azimuth (Listeni/ˈæzɪməθ/) (from Arabic al-sumūt, meaning "the directions") is an angular measurement in a spherical coordinate system. The vector from an observer (origin) to a point of interest is projected perpendicularly onto a reference plane; the angle between the projected vector and a reference vector on the reference plane is called the azimuth.

An example is the position of a star in the sky. The star is the point of interest, the reference plane is the horizon or the surface of the sea, and the reference vector points north. The azimuth is the angle between the north vector and the perpendicular projection of the star down onto the horizon.

In astronomy and celestial navigation, the hour angle is one of the coordinates used in the equatorial coordinate system to give the direction of a point on the celestial sphere. The hour angle of a point is the angle between two planes: one containing the Earth's axis and the zenith (the meridian plane), and the other containing the Earth's axis and the given point (the hour circle passing through the point).

The angle may be expressed as negative east of the meridian plane and positive west of the meridian plane, or as positive westward from 0° to 360°. The angle may be measured in degrees or in time, with 24h = 360° exactly.

In astronomy, hour angle is defined as the angular distance on the celestial sphere measured westward along the celestial equator from the meridian to the hour circle passing through a point.[1] It may be given in degrees, time, or rotations depending on the application. In celestial navigation, the convention is to measure in degrees westward from the prime meridian (Greenwich hour angle, GHA), the local meridian (local hour angle, LHA) or the first point of Aries (sidereal hour angle, SHA).