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A spherical body; a globe; especially, one of the celestial spheres; a sun, planet, or star. In the small orb of one particular tear. Shak. Whether the prime orb, Incredible how swift, had thither rolled. Milton.

iculate. -- Or*bic"u*lar*ly, adv. -- Or*bic"u*lar*ness, n. Orbicular as the disk of a planet. De Quincey.

Of or relating to the time or act of rising; eastern; as, the ortive amplitude of a planet.

c. -- Paracentric motton or velocity, the motion or velocity of a revolving body, as a planet, by which it approaches to, or recedes from, the center, without reference to its motion in space, or to its motion as reckoned in any other direction.

he body by lines drawn from it to the earth and sun; as, the heliocentric parallax of a planet. -- Horizontal parallax, the geocentric parallx of a heavenly body when in the horizon, or the angle subtended at the body by the earth's radius. -- Optical parallax, the apparent displacement in position undergone by an ob…

is sometimes, but rarely, used of the nearest points of other orbits, as of a comet, a planet, etc. Called also epigee, epigeum.

That point of the orbit of a planet or comet which is nearest to the sun; -- opposed to Ant: aphelion.

lution; proceeding in a series of successive circuits; as, the periodical motion of the planets round the sun.

force additional to that which causes its regular motion; as, the perturbations of the planets are caused by their attraction on each other. Newcomb.

Of or pertaining to perturbation, esp. to the perturbations of the planets. "The perturbational theory." Sir J. Herschel.

to quantity of illumination or form of enlightened disk; as, the phases of the moon or planets. See Illust. under Moon.

The planet Venus, when appearing as the morning star; Lucifer. [Poetic] Pope. Tennyson.

A pianette, or small piano.

poems collectively; as, heroic poetry; dramatic poetry; lyric or Pindaric poetry. "The planetlike music of poetry." Sir P. Sidney. She taketh most delight In music, instruments, and poetry. Shak.

t 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, a…

The superior influence of a planet. Shak.

First in dignity or importance; chief; principal; as, primary planets; a matter of primary importance.

, the motion of which was supposed to carry with it all the inclosed spheres with their planets in a daily revolution from east to west. See Crystalline heavens, under Crystalline. The motions of the greatest persons in a government ought to be, as the motions of the planets, under primum mobile. Bacon.…

The position of planets when distant from each other five signs, or 150º. Hutton.

The aspect of planets when separated the fifth part of the zodiac, or 72º. Hutton.