Dictionary term
Lunar Distance Table
Direct answer
Lunar Distance Table is a table of predicted angular distances between the Moon and selected bodies for determining Greenwich time.
Lunar Distance Table is a historical longitude table used in historical astronomy, timekeeping, or navigation.
- Source
- The Great Almanac Dictionary
- Category
- Historical Almanacs & Instruments
- Also appears in
- Historical Almanacs & Instruments
- Aliases
- None listed
- Last updated
- 2026-07-16
Quick reference
- Use when
- Use Lunar Distance Table by combining a carefully timed sextant observation with clearing corrections and the matching almanac interpolation.
- Do not use it for
- The method is calculation-heavy and highly sensitive to observation, refraction, parallax, and limb corrections.
- Reference category
- Historical Almanacs & Instruments
- Related terms
- Tide Table, Equation of Time Table, Star Atlas, Planisphere
The story behind Lunar Distance Table
Eighteenth- and nineteenth-century nautical almanacs published lunar distances for practical longitude work.
Lunar Distance Table in spiritual tradition
Lunar Distance Table rewards careful observation, explicit assumptions, and humility about the limits of every model or measurement.
The Great Almanac frames Lunar Distance Table with educational restraint. Mystical or symbolic language may be meaningful, but it should not be exaggerated into certainty, panic, or permission to ignore ordinary responsibility.
Lunar Distance Table in the Bible
This is a factual history-of-science, instrument, timekeeping, or navigation reference. It may support wonder and disciplined attention without becoming a claim of fate, worship, or private revelation.
Lunar Distance Table in numerology
Lunar Distance Table is not a numerology claim. Any numbers attached to it should retain their ordinary scientific, calendrical, navigational, or historical meaning unless a separate symbolic interpretation is clearly labeled.
Why Lunar Distance Table matters
Lunar Distance Table matters because it made the Moon into a moving celestial clock before reliable marine chronometers were widely available.
Example in a reading: A navigator compares a cleared Moon-star distance with the tabulated sequence to infer Greenwich time.
Interpretive caution: The method is calculation-heavy and highly sensitive to observation, refraction, parallax, and limb corrections.
How Lunar Distance Table is used in a reading
Use Lunar Distance Table by combining a carefully timed sextant observation with clearing corrections and the matching almanac interpolation.
Where interpretation stops
Lunar Distance Table is presented as sourced astronomy, calendrical, Earth-science, cultural, or instrument-history reference. Definitions should distinguish measured phenomena from civil convention and historical interpretation, preserve location and time dependencies, and avoid turning factual sky data into a deterministic personal claim.
Sources and editorial method
Research references used for this entry include:
- U.S. Naval Observatory: Astronomical and Navigational Almanacs - Official descriptions of the Astronomical Almanac, Nautical Almanac, and their tabular data.
- National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency: The American Practical Navigator - Official modern reference for navigation principles, celestial observations, sight reduction, and navigational tables.
The page starts with a direct definition, then separates use, example, caution, spiritual meaning, and historical context. For astrology, occult, demonology, curse, and spiritual warfare terms, the editorial rule is to explain the term without making fear-based, fatalistic, medical, legal, financial, or ritual-instruction claims.
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These related entries help place Lunar Distance Table inside a wider reference cluster instead of leaving it as a standalone keyword.
