Waypoint

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A waypoint is a point or place on a route or line of travel, a stopping point, an intermediate point, or point at which course is changed,^[1][2] the first use of the term tracing to 1880.^[2] In modern terms, it most often refers to coordinates which specify one's position on the globe at the end of each "leg" (stage) of a journey.^[1]

Hence, the term connotes a reference point in physical space, most often associated with navigation. For example, in the case of sea navigation, a waypoint could mark the longitudinal and latitudinal coordinate or a GPS point in open water, a location near a known mapped shoal or other entity in a body of water, a point a fixed distance off of a geographical entity such as a lighthouse or harbour entrance, etc.^{[citation needed]} In air navigation, waypoints most often consist of a series of abstract GPS points that create artificial airways—"highways in the sky"—created specifically for purposes of air navigation that have no clear connection to features of the real world.