Steer a constant compass heading and you follow a rhumb line — simple but longer. Take the shortest path and you follow a great circle — but your heading keeps changing.
Rhumb Line vs Great CircleLive
two ways to cross an ocean
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A rhumb line holds a constant compass bearing — easy to steer, and a straight line on a Mercator map, but longer. A great circle is the shortest route but its bearing changes continuously, tracing a curve on the map. Ships and planes crossing oceans follow the great circle, adjusting heading along the way to save fuel and time.
Reading this result: Steering the constant-bearing rhumb line adds about 1750 km (18.9%) over the great circle — the penalty grows with higher latitudes and a wider longitude gap.
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How it works
A rhumb line (loxodrome) crosses every meridian at the same angle, appearing as a straight line on a Mercator chart and easy to steer, but it is not the shortest route. A great circle is the shortest path yet curves on the map and demands continuous heading changes. Long-haul ships and aircraft fly great-circle routes, breaking them into rhumb-line segments in practice.
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Is this rhumb line great circle tool really free?▾
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The solver uses established numerical methods, but results are for research and educational purposes and should be validated against experiment or professional review before you rely on them.