SOLUTION: Discuss why ships and airplanes use nautical miles to measure distance. Explain the difference between a nautical mile and a statute mile.

Question 818670: Discuss why ships and airplanes use nautical miles to measure distance. Explain the difference between a nautical mile and a statute mile.
Answer by TimothyLamb(4379) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
The nautical mile was historically defined as a minute of arc (1/60 of a degree) along any of the Earth's meridians (any of the north-south latitude lines), making a meridian exactly 180*60 = 10,800 historical nautical miles.
The nautical mile can therefore be used to closely approximate a change of latitude (in degrees) on a nautical chart.
For example, traveling 120 Nm south along a meridian is equivalent to:
120(1/60) = 2 degrees change in latitude towards the south, easy to plot on a nautical chart.
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