fictitious year

fictitious year

[fik′tish·əs ′yir] (astronomy) The period between successive returns of the fictitious mean sun to a sidereal hour angle of 80° (right ascension 18 hours 40 minutes; about January 1); the length of the fictitious year is the same as that of the tropical year, since both are based upon the position of the sun with respect to the vernal equinox. Also known as Besselian year.

fictitious year

fictitious yearThe period between successive returns of the sun to a sidereal hour angle of 80° (about January 1). The length of the fictitious year is the same as that of the tropical year, because both are based upon the position of the sun with respect to the vernal equinox. Also called a Besselian year or a Bessel fictitious year.