| ellipticity | Deviation of an ellipse or a spheroid from the form of a circle or a sphere; especially, in reference to the figure of the earth, the difference between the equatorial and polar semidiameters, divided by the equatorial; thus, the ellipticity of the earth is 1/29966. Some writers use ellipticity as the ratio of the difference of the two semiaxes to the minor axis, instead of the major. Origin: Cf. F. Ellipticite. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998) |
|---|