Topic summary

Minute of arc

Minute of arc

Extracted from the Wikipedia article Minute and second of arc.

A minute of arc, arcminute (abbreviated as arcmin), arc minute, or minute arc, denoted by the symbol ′, is a unit of angular measurement equal to ⁠1/60⁠ of a degree. Since one degree is ⁠1/360⁠ of a turn, or complete rotation, one arcminute is ⁠1/21600⁠ of a turn. The nautical mile (nmi) was originally defined as the arc length of a minute of latitude on a spherical Earth; therefore, the actual Earth's circumference is approximately 21600 nmi. A minute of arc is ⁠π/10800⁠ of a radian.