Denoting the latitude by $\theta$, the longitude by $\phi$ and the Earth's radius by $R$ (with $R\approx 6371 \mathrm$. To get the Euclidean distance, you can first calculate the Cartesian coordinates of the points from their latitudes and longitudes. Again, if you only want to get to within 95% of the answer and the distances are as small as in your example, the difference is negligble, so you can take the Euclidean distance, which is easier to calculate. You can take the Euclidean distance between the two points (the actual points, not their latitude/longitude coordinates like your tool does), or you can take distance along the shortest curve along the surface of the Earth. There are two possible meanings for "the distance between two points" on a sphere. But since you only want to get within 95% of the answer, you can safely assume that the Earth is a sphere. To calculate distances between points given by latitudes and longitudes precisely, you need to know which geoid was used as a reference in specifying them. Not only is this number not a meaningful distance, but it no longer contains the information required to reconstruct a distance from it, so you won't be able to calculate anything meaningful from it you need to go back to the latitudes and longitudes themselves. This doesn't make any sense for latitudes and longitudes, which are not coordinates in a Cartesian coordinate system. This makes it incredibly useful in celestial navigation.The tool seems to be just calculating the Euclidean distance between the two points (the square root of the sum of the squared differences between the coordinates). It thus has a constant altitude when viewed from anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere. The North Star, Polaris, does not rise or set because Earth's axis passes directly through it. If a star has just set or is just about to rise, it is right at the horizon and has an altitude of 0 degrees. For example, if a star is directly overhead, its altitude is 90 degrees. It describes the angle between the horizon and some point in the sky. In astronomy, altitude has a somewhat different meaning. state of Alaska or the continent of Antarctica, it could never be summited without supplemental oxygen-the pressure would make the altitude seem 914 meters (3,000 feet) higher. For this reason, if Mount Everest was located in the U.S. Air pressure also decreases around the poles. Factors such as climate and humidity impact local air pressure. To prevent severe altitude sickness, mountaineers bring supplemental (extra) supplies of oxygen and limit their time in the "death zone."ĭifferent regions have different air pressures, even at the same altitude. Mountaineers call this altitude the "death zone." Above about 8,000 meters (26,000 feet), the human body cannot survive at all, and starts to shut down. These may range from headaches and dizziness to much more serious consequences, such as brain or lung damage. People who spend too much time in high-altitude locations risk more serious symptoms of altitude sickness. It can take days and even weeks for a body to adjust to high altitude and low air pressure. One normal effect of altitude is shortness of breath, since the lungs have to work harder to deliver oxygen to the bloodstream. Decreased air pressure means that less oxygen is available for breathing. The human body struggles in high altitudes. Air expands as it rises, and the fewer gas molecules-including nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide-have fewer chances to bump into each other. High-altitude locations are usually much colder than areas closer to sea level. This is what meteorologists and mountaineers mean by "thin air." Thin air exerts less pressure than air at a lower altitude. As altitude increases, the amount of gas molecules in the air decreases-the air becomes less dense than air nearer to sea level. Earth's gravity pulls air as close to the surface as possible. In other words, if the indicated altitude is high, the air pressure is low. This is called indicated altitude, and is measured by an instrument called an altimeter.Īs altitude rises, air pressure drops. In fact, aviators and mountaineers can measure their altitude by measuring the air pressure around them. All 1.2 million residents live about 4,150 meters (13,615 feet) above sea level.Īltitude is related to air pressure. The urban area of El Alto, Bolivia, is the highest-altitude city on Earth. Mount Everest is 8,850 meters (29,035 feet) tall. The most high-altitude point on Earth is Mount Everest, in the Himalayan mountain range on the border of Nepal and the Chinese region of Tibet. Areas are often considered "high-altitude" if they reach at least 2,400 meters (8,000 feet) into the atmosphere. Altitude, like elevation, is the distance above sea level.
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