rhumb line
Sign in to saveAlso known as rhumb, loxodrome
arc crossing all meridians of longitude at the same angle
~18 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Image of a loxodrome, or rhumb line, spiraling towards the North Pole
In navigation, a rhumb line (also rhumb (/rʌm/) or loxodrome) is an arc crossing all meridians of longitude at the same angle. It is a path of constant azimuth relative to true north, which can be steered by maintaining a course of fixed bearing. When drift is not a factor, accurate tracking of a rhumb line course is independent of speed.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “rhumb line” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.