An informal illustration of technology in action |
Sketch by Jonathan Sills
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The zenith sector pointed straight and directly overhead.
A telescope rotated on a pivot and allowed astronomers to
measure the zenith distances (the angle between the star and
the highest point in the sky) of celestial bodies.
This also necessitated aligning the instrument in the meridian
(a line through the poles).
Since the graduated scale was so low to the ground, the astronomer
usually had to lie on his back or a special reclined seat in
order to effectively make observations with the zenith sector.
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