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Webster 1913 Edition

Longitude

Lon′gi-tude

,
Noun.
[F., fr. L.
longitudo
, fr.
longus
long.]
1.
Length; measure or distance along the longest line; – distinguished from
breadth
or
thickness
;
as, the
longitude
of a room
; rare now, except in a humorous sense.
Sir H. Wotton.
The
longitude
of their cloaks.
Sir. W. Scott.
Mine [shadow] spindling into
longitude
immense.
Cowper.
2.
(Geog.)
The arc or portion of the equator intersected between the meridian of a given place and the meridian of some other place from which longitude is reckoned, as from Greenwich, England, or sometimes from the capital of a country, as from Washington or Paris. The longitude of a place is expressed either in degrees or in time;
as, that of New York is 74° or 4 h. 56 min. west of Greenwich.
3.
(Astron.)
The distance in degrees, reckoned from the vernal equinox, on the ecliptic, to a circle at right angles to the ecliptic passing through the heavenly body whose longitude is designated;
as, the
longitude
of Capella is 79°
.
Geocentric longitude
(Astron.)
,
the longitude of a heavenly body as seen from the earth.
–
Heliocentric longitude
,
the longitude of a heavenly body, as seen from the sun’s center.
–
Longitude stars
,
certain stars whose position is known, and the data in regard to which are used in observations for finding the longitude, as by lunar distances.

Webster 1828 Edition

Longitude

LON'GITUDE

,
Noun.
[L. longitudo, from longus, long.]
1.
Properly length; as the longitude of a room; but in this sense not now used. Appropriately, in geography,
2.
The distance of any place on the globe from another place, eastward or westward; or the distance of any place from a given meridian. Boston, in Massachusetts, is situated in the 71st degree of longitude west from Greenwich. To be able to ascertain precisely the longitude of a ship at sea, is a great desideratum in navigation.
3.
The longitude of a star, is its distance from the equinoctial points, or the beginning of Aries or Libra.

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