Waypoint

A waypoint is term used to refer to an intermediate point or place on a route or line of travel, a stopping point or point at which course is changed, first use of the term tracing to 1880. In modern terms, it most often refers to coordinates which specify ones position on the globe at the end of each "leg" (stage) of an air flight or sea passage, the generation and checking of which are generally done computationally (with a computer or other programmed device).

Hence, the term connotes a reference point in physical space, most often associated with navigation, especially in the sea or air—e.g., in the case of sea navigation, a longitudinal and latitidunal coordinate or a GPS point in open water, a location near a known mapped shoal or other entity in a body of water, a point a fixed distance off of a geographical entity such as a lighthouse or harbour entrance, etc. When such a point corresponds to an element of physical geography on land, it can be referred to as a landmark. In air navigation, waypoints most often consist of series of abstract GPS points that create artificial airways—“highways in the sky”—created specifically for purposes of air navigation that have no clear connection to features of the real world.

Waypoints are sets of coordinates that identify a point in physical space. Coordinates used can vary depending on the application. For terrestrial navigation these coordinates can include longitude and latitude. Air navigation also includes altitude. Waypoints have only become widespread for navigational use by the layman since the development of advanced navigational systems, such as the Global Positioning System (GPS) and certain other types of radio navigation. Waypoints located on the surface of the Earth are usually defined in two dimensions (e.g., longitude and latitude); those used in the Earth's atmosphere or in outer space are defined in at least three dimensions (four if time is one of the coordinates, as it might be for some waypoints outside the Earth).

Although the term waypoint has only entered common use in recent years, the equivalent of a waypoint in all but name has existed for as long as human beings have navigated. Waypoints have traditionally been associated with distinctive features of the real world, such as rock formations, springs, oases, mountains, buildings, roadways, waterways, railways, and so on. Today, these associations persist, but waypoints are more often associated with physical artifacts created specifically for navigation, such as radio beacons, buoys, satellites, control points, etc.

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