<P> The ecliptic is the circular path on the celestial sphere that the Sun appears to follow over the course of a year ; it is the basis of the ecliptic coordinate system . The term also refers to the plane of this path , which is coplanar with Earth 's orbit around the Sun ( and hence the Sun 's apparent orbit around Earth ) . The ecliptic is not normally noticeable from Earth 's surface because Earth rotates , carrying the observer through the cycles of sunrise and sunset , which obscure the Sun 's apparent motion against the background of fixed stars . </P>
the plane of earth 's orbit is called the
ecliptic