apparent solar time
A measure of time based on the actual daily motion of the real Sun. That motion is not uniform because the Sun's path through the sky is inclined to the celestial equator and because the Earth's orbit around the Sun is elliptical, not circular. Apparent solar noon is the time when the Sun crosses the meridian of a particular observer and the apparent solar day is the interval between two successive meridian passages. The difference between apparent solar time and mean solar time, which varies through the year, is called the equation of time.