azimuth

American  

[az-uh-muhth] / ˈæz ə məθ /

noun

1. Astronomy, Navigation. the arc of the horizon measured clockwise from the south point, in astronomy, or from the north point, in navigation, to the point where a vertical circle through a given heavenly body intersects the horizon.

2. Surveying, Gunnery. the angle of horizontal deviation, measured clockwise, of a bearing from a standard direction, as from north or south.

---

azimuth British  

/ ˈæzɪməθ, ˌæzɪˈmʌθəl /

noun

1. astronomy nautical the angular distance usually measured clockwise from the north point of the horizon to the intersection with the horizon of the vertical circle passing through a celestial body Compare altitude

2. surveying the horizontal angle of a bearing clockwise from a standard direction, such as north

---

azimuth Scientific  

/ ăz′ə-məth /

1. The position of a celestial object along an observer's horizon. Azimuth is a horizontal angle measured clockwise in degrees from a reference direction, usually the north or south point of the horizon, to the point on the horizon intersected by the object's line of altitude (a line from the observer's zenith through the object to the horizon). If north is the reference point (0°), then east has an azimuth of 90°, south is 180°, and so forth through 360°.

2. See more at altazimuth coordinate system

---

Other Word Forms

• azimuthal adjective
• azimuthally adverb

Etymology

Origin of azimuth

1350–1400; Middle English azimut < Middle French ≪ Arabic as sumūt the ways (i.e., directions)

Example Sentences

The team succeeded to extract the distribution of scattering azimuth angle.

From Science Daily • Feb. 13, 2024

By looking through crosshairs and using a topographical map along the azimuth, Henterly can reasonably pinpoint the fire location to direct aircraft or firefighting crews.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 30, 2022

The test last year of a new polar-orbiting hypersonic missile provides Chinese nuclear forces with an unlimited range strike weapon that can launch nuclear attacks “from any azimuth… with great performance,” he said.

From Washington Times • Jul. 28, 2022

The location of missile attacks can be accurately computed using a back azimuth calculation.

From Washington Post • Jul. 7, 2022

That point, called the azimuth, is where the process of bringing the spacecraft down to the landing point would begin.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson