PAL

Ptolemaeus Arabus et Latinus

_ (the underscore) is the placeholder for exactly one character.
% (the percent sign) is the placeholder for no, one or more than one character.
%% (two percent signs) is the placeholder for no, one or more than one character, but not for blank space (so that a search ends at word boundaries).

At the beginning and at the end, these placeholders are superfluous.

plus proche de la terre‘closer to the Earth’

Arabic

References: PH Morelon: I.10:5, 32:21; I.11:4, 38:9
Translation of:
Arabic: أقرب إلى الأرض [PH Morelon: I.10:5, 33:14-15]
Arabic: أقرب من الأرض [PH Morelon: I.11:4, 39:6-7]
Synonyms:
أقرب إلى الأرض[PH Morelon: I.10:5, 33:14-15]
أقرب من الأرض[PH Morelon: I.11:4, 39:6-7]
موضع البعد الأقرب من الأرض[Alm. MS Leiden: f. 38v]