Definition

Noun: * A rhumb line; a path of constant bearing: A loxodrome is a navigational line on the surface of a sphere (like the Earth) that crosses all lines of longitude (meridians) at the same, constant angle. It represents the course followed by a ship or aircraft that maintains a steady compass direction.

Usage

• Navigational Path: The term is primarily used in the context of navigation, cartography, and spherical geometry to describe a specific type of route.
  • Early navigators learned that following a loxodrome was simpler than a great-circle route, even if it was not the shortest distance.
  • On a Mercator projection map, a loxodrome appears as a straight line, which is why this map projection became essential for marine navigation.

Advanced Usage

• Mathematical Representation: In mathematics, a is a curve on a sphere that makes a constant angle with the meridians. It spirals towards the poles but never reaches them in a finite number of turns.
  • The equation for a loxodrome on a unit sphere involves the tangent function and the constant bearing angle.

Variants and Related Words

• Rhumb Line (noun): This is the more common, practical synonym for in navigation.
• Loxodromic (adjective): Pertaining to or having the nature of a loxodrome.
  • The ship maintained a loxodromic course of 045 degrees.

Synonyms

• Rhumb line
• Constant-compass-direction course

Antonyms

• Great Circle: A circle on the surface of a sphere whose center is the sphere's center, representing the shortest path between two points. A great circle route does maintain a constant compass bearing.

Noun

1. a line on a sphere that cuts all meridians at the same angle; the path taken by a ship or plane that maintains a constant compass direction