The Earth As An Ellipsoid
Comment: early literature uses the term oblate spheroid to describe a sphere "squashed at the poles". Modern literature uses the term "ellipsoid of revolution" although the qualifying words "of revolution" are usually dropped. An ellipsoid which is not an ellipsoid of revolution is called a tri-axial ellipsoid. Spheroid and ellipsoid are used interchangeably in this article.
Read more about this topic: Meridian Arc
Famous quotes containing the word earth:
“For Man is God
and man is eating the earth up
like a candy bar
and not one of them can be left alone with the ocean
for it is known he will gulp it all down.”
—Anne Sexton (1928–1974)