the fixed line in a system of polar coordinates from which the polar angle, θ, is measured anticlockwise
polar axis in American English
noun
Math
the fixed line, usually horizontal, from which the angle made by the radius vector is measured in a polar coordinate system
Word origin
[1890–95]This word is first recorded in the period 1890–95. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: blanket roll, historicism, honky-tonk, plein-air, wireless
Examples of 'polar axis' in a sentence
polar axis
Wear-pattern extended from 12° above superior head-margin to approximately 40° inferior to polar axis.
Paul Burton, Erla Medina, Michelle Burgett-Moreno, Thomas Donaldson, Ian Clarke 2015, 'Biomechanical Alignment of Main Wear-Pattern on MOM Total Hip Replacement', Reconstructive Reviewhttp://reconstructivereview.org/ojs/index.php/rr/article/view/111. Retrieved from DOAJ CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode)
The polar axis can be set at any latitude and a graduated arc gives the exact position.
WM. Gaertner & CO. Astronomical Instruments and Accessories (1908). Retrieved in 2019 from Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/)