-- The 'great circle' route is the shortest distance between any two places on Earth (or on any other sphere).
-- A great circle is a circle on the surface whose center is at the center of the Earth.
-- The phrase "around the globe" is really not too clear.
the shortest way to get from one location on earth to another
The Antarctic Circumpolar Current circles eastward around Antarctica.
No meridian is a great circle. Each meridian is a semi-circle, extending between the poles.
Because any 'Great Circle' is the shortest distance across a sphere. Where the Earth is concerned , all the meridians and the Equator are Great Circles. The Plane of a 'Great Circles ' 'cut' the sphere into two equally sized hemispheres. NB Other than the Equator all the latitudes are NOT great Circles.
Straight line chord that tunnels through the globe. The shortest arc on the surface of the globe - which you may have wanted to ask about but did not - is found by drawing a great circle. This is the circle whose centre is the centre of the globe and whose circumference passes through the two points.
Because on a globe, a great-circle route is the shortest route between two places.
Great Circle routes are used because they are the shortest route between two points on the globe.
Because they make big circles around the Earth.
A great circle is a circle on a sphere that divides the sphere into two equal halves. It is the longest distance that can be traveled on the surface of a sphere. The equator can be described as a great circle, as can each line of longitude. See the related link for more information. A great circle route is the shortest distance between any two points on the earth, and is always a curve on a plane containing the two points and the center of the earth. It is the largest possible circle that can be made on the earth's surface that contains the two points.
The equator and all lines of longitude are called great circles because the represent the circumference of the earth. The other latitude lines along the globe are smaller then the actually circumference.
A great circle is defined as the largest possible circle that can be drawn on a sphere, resulting from the intersection of the sphere with a plane that passes through the sphere's center. It represents the shortest path between two points on the surface of the sphere, making it significant in navigation and geography. Examples of great circles include the equator and the longitudinal lines on a globe.
In plane geometry it is a straight line. If you want to know the shortest line between two points on a globe, it will be the intervening section or arc of the great circle route that connects the points. The great circle will be a circle that cuts the globe into exactly equal parts, like the equator.