[OSM-dev] Question about Calculating Radius from GPS cord

[Rogier Wolff]

On Fri, Aug 08, 2008 at 04:02:10PM +0100, David Earl wrote:
> On 08/08/2008 14:30, Fire Girl wrote:
> > I am working with OSM data, and would like to be able to spec out 5 mile 
> > bounding boxes from certain GPS points.
> > 
> > After research into this problem, I am to understand that each degree of 
> > latitude is approximately 69 miles (111 kilometers) apart with a slight 
> > variance (68.703 - 69.407 miles) between the equator and the poles, and 
> > that each degree of longitude is widest at the equator @ 69.172 miles 
> > (111.321 kilometers) and gradually shrinks to zero at the poles. : ) :)
> > 
> > So what does this mean?  If I want to take a input point, like lets say,
> > 
> > 167.9 lat
> > -29.1 lon
> > 
> > or
> > 
> > -63.1
> > 18.1
> > 
> > Can someone say with authority, what the 'calculus' would be to 
> > definitivly construct a NSWE bounding box with a 5 mile radius around 
> > those points?.... that would be basically close enough or accurate? :)

A degree longitude is about 40000km / 360 * cos (lat). 
A degree lattitude is about 40000km / 360. 

So 5 miles would be in longitude: 
   5 / (40000 / 1.609 / 360 * cos (lat))   
        km/circle    degrees/circle
   mile         km/mile 

and about

   5 / (40000 / 1.609 / 360)   
        km/circle    degrees/circle
   mile         km/mile 

lattidude. This comes to about 0.0725, 0.0725/cos(lat) degrees for
5 miles (lat, lon).

This defines an almost-square where the circle would be almost
completely inside.

This especially doesn't work near the poles. 

	Roger. 

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