RE: [PHP] Re: Google Maps Distance Between UK Postcodes

> -----Original Message----- > From: tedd [mailto:tedd.sperling@gmail.com] > Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2008 10:17 AM > To: php-general@lists.php.net > Subject: [PHP] Re: Google Maps Distance Between UK Postcodes > > At 5:37 PM +0100 9/1/08, Colin Guthrie wrote: > >Tom Chubb wrote: > >>That's all way above my head, but I think I'll be able to understand > it > >>after a strong coffee! > > > >I should point out that this is really just trig and is only an > >approximate distance as the crow flies. Not even sure if it takes > >the curvature of the earth into consideration, but it's probably > >"good enough" for most things. > > > I've reviewed your code and it does not include the curvature of the > earth -- it's a flat surface computation. > > Considering that my other profession is Geophysicist, I'm kind of up > on those sort of things. The Earth is an oblate spheroid and the > computation to include the curvature of the earth would be a bit more > involved. ---8<--- snip But it's also NOT an oblate spheroid! :) http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2008/09/08/ten-things-you -dont-know-about-the-earth/ Todd Boyd Web Programmer