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tangent plane

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tangent plane
n.
The plane containing all the lines tangent to a specified point on a surface.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.tangent plane - the plane that contains all the lines tangent to a specific point on a surface
plane, sheet - (mathematics) an unbounded two-dimensional shape; "we will refer to the plane of the graph as the X-Y plane"; "any line joining two points on a plane lies wholly on that plane"


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great circles: If a vector is pinned onto a sphere and then transported along a meridian to the equator, for some angle [alpha] along the equator and back to the initial point without changing its length and its direction in the tangent plane to the surface of the sphere, the vector will point in a different direction with a relative angle of [alpha] as the holonomy associated with the loop.
Using a set of data points and an algorithm called "least squares(*)," they draw an imaginary plane that would actually lie somewhere under the contact or tangent plane of that part if it were lying on a surface plate.
The reflection model known as the ray method, is based on the assumption that incident light is specularly reflected by the local tangent plane on the surface.
 
 
 
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