1. What is the Haversine Formula?

The Haversine formula calculates the great-circle distance between two points on a sphere given their longitudes and latitudes. It's particularly accurate for calculating distances between points on the Earth's surface.

2. How Does the Calculator Work?

The calculator uses the Haversine formula:

Where:

• 6371 — Earth's radius in kilometers
• lat1, lat2 — Latitude of points 1 and 2 (in radians)
• lon1, lon2 — Longitude of points 1 and 2 (in radians)
• arccos — Inverse cosine function

Explanation: The formula accounts for the curvature of the Earth, providing more accurate results than simple planar geometry calculations for locations far apart.

3. Importance of Distance Calculation

Details: Accurate distance calculation between geographic points is essential for navigation, logistics, geography studies, and many location-based services.

4. Using the Calculator

Tips: Enter latitude and longitude in decimal degrees (e.g., 40.7128 for New York City). Positive values are North/East, negative values are South/West.

5. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: How accurate is this calculation?
A: The Haversine formula provides very accurate results (within 0.5%) for most practical purposes on Earth's surface.

Q2: Can I use this for very short distances?
A: For distances less than 20km, simpler planar approximations may be sufficient, but this formula will still work.

Q3: What coordinate system should I use?
A: Use decimal degrees in WGS84 coordinate system (standard GPS coordinates).

Q4: Does altitude affect the calculation?
A: No, this formula calculates distance along the Earth's surface ignoring altitude differences.

Q5: What's the maximum distance this can calculate?
A: The formula works for any distance on Earth, but for antipodal points (exact opposites), special consideration may be needed.