Which term describes the angle of something with the horizontal, such as the direction of a celestial object?

Which term describes the angle of something with the horizontal, such as the direction of a celestial object?

• A. Elevation
• B. Azimuth
• C. Pitch
• D. Tilt

Answer: (A)

In astronomy, elevation describes how high above the horizon an object is. It’s the angle between the object’s direction and the horizontal plane, so it tells you how high in the sky to look. A celestial object at the horizon has elevation 0°, and directly overhead is 90°. The other terms describe different ideas: azimuth is the compass direction along the horizon, not how high the object is; pitch is a rotation around a side-to-side axis (used for aircraft or telescope tilt); tilt is a general leaning angle, not the specific measure from the horizon used in sky coordinates.

In astronomy, elevation describes how high above the horizon an object is. It’s the angle between the object’s direction and the horizontal plane, so it tells you how high in the sky to look. A celestial object at the horizon has elevation 0°, and directly overhead is 90°. The other terms describe different ideas: azimuth is the compass direction along the horizon, not how high the object is; pitch is a rotation around a side-to-side axis (used for aircraft or telescope tilt); tilt is a general leaning angle, not the specific measure from the horizon used in sky coordinates.