Understanding Great Circle Routes — Why Flights Curve on Maps
Blog › Math · 6 min read · Published 2026-03-01
Discover why airplane flight paths appear curved on flat maps.
What Is a Great Circle?
The largest circle on a sphere's surface. The shortest path between any two points always lies along a great circle.
Why Flights Look Curved
Mercator projection distorts great circles into curves. The path is actually the straightest possible line on the sphere.