Platonic year
- noun
- /pləˈtɒnɪk jɪr/
- Specialized
:
año platónico
- The duration of a Platonic year is about 25,800 years, corresponding to the precession of the equinoxes.
Examples
-
A Platonic year lasts approximately 25,800 years.
-
Astronomers study the Platonic year to understand long-term changes in Earth's orientation.
-
Some ancient astronomers believed that the Platonic year governed the rise and fall of civilizations.
-
The concept of a Platonic year is fascinating.
-
The duration of a Platonic year is approximately 25,800 years, which is necessary for the precession of the equinoxes.
-
Astronomers study the Platonic year to comprehend the precession of the equinoxes over millennia.
-
Some ancient cultures based their calendars on the Platonic year, marking a complete cycle of Earth's axial precession.
Synonyms
1
9.9
A very long period of about 25,800 years for Earth's axis to slowly turn once
Surface Forms
Morphology
Although 'Platonic' (relating to Plato or Platonic/ideal) and 'year' (a period of time) are individually understandable, their combination names a specific astronomical concept—the ~25,800-year precession cycle—which is technical and not compositional. The connection to precession is historical/disciplinary rather than derivable from the constituent meanings, so a B1 learner who knows the words would not predict the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Platonic year comes from the name Plato and the word year, because ancient thinkers used the idea of a very slow sky movement as a kind of long 'year'. Imagine Earth's axis as a wobbling top that makes a full turn in about 25,800 years, and that's why Platonic year means the long 'cycle' of Earth's slow wobble today.