2007-09-26 04:30:29 · 2 answers · asked by wadood s 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
All the known early navigators lived in the northern hemisphere, and Polaris (the North Star) was a very useful reference. 360 was chosen for the number of degrees because it is evenly divisible in lots of ways. East is 90. Northeast is 45. A third of a circle is 120. A sixth is 60 (equilateral triangle). Mathematicians do it in radians, which aren't evenly related to anything except pi.
2007-09-26 05:22:19 · answer #1 · answered by Frank N 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If it was from west, people would ask "why west?", same for any other direction. This just happens to be the standard chosen - possibly due to the northern star as well.
And I guess that was decided as the needed number of significant figures to be relatively accurate, you could use more or less if you wanted to. Google earth uses a whole lot more :P
2007-09-26 11:36:00 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋