Equinoctial

Equinoctial is the same as the celestial Equator (q.v.). The equinoctial points are those in which the equinoctial and the ecliptic (q.v.) intersect. Equinoctial time is time reckoned from the moment in each year when the sun passes the Vernal Equinox (see EQUINOXES). This instant is selected as a convenient starting-point of a uniform reckoning of time for the purposes of astronomical observers.