Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Horizon?

\Ho*ri"zon\, n. [F., fr. L. horizon, fr. Gr. ? (sc. ?) the bounding line, horizon, fr. ? to bound, fr. ? boundary, limit.] 1. The circle which bounds that part of the earth's surface visible to a spectator from a given point; the apparent junction of the earth and sky. And when the morning sun shall raise his car Above the border of this horizon. --Shak. All the horizon round Invested with bright rays. --Milton. 2. (Astron.) (a) A plane passing through the eye of the spectator and at right angles to the vertical at a given place; a plane tangent to the earth's surface at that place; called distinctively the sensible horizon. (b) A plane parallel to the sensible horizon of a place, and passing through the earth's center; -- called also {rational or celestial horizon}. (c) (Naut.) The unbroken line separating sky and water, as seen by an eye at a given elevation, no land being visible. 3. (Geol.) The epoch or time during which a deposit was made. The strata all over the earth, which were formed at the same time, are said to belong to the same geological horizon. --Le Conte. 4. (Painting) The chief horizontal line in a picture of any sort, which determines in the picture the height of the eye of the spectator; in an extended landscape, the representation of the natural horizon corresponds with this line. {Apparent horizon}. See under {Apparent}. {Artificial horizon}, a level mirror, as the surface of mercury in a shallow vessel, or a plane reflector adjusted to the true level artificially; -- used chiefly with the sextant for observing the double altitude of a celestial body. {Celestial horizon}. (Astron.) See def. 2, above. {Dip of the horizon} (Astron.), the vertical angle between the sensible horizon and a line to the visible horizon, the latter always being below the former. {Rational horizon}, and {Sensible horizon}. (Astron.) See def. 2, above. {Visible horizon}. See definitions 1 and 2, above.