Sextant to Quadrant Converter

A sextant is a unit of angular measurement equal to 1/6 of a full rotation, or 60 degrees. It represents one of six equal sections when a circle is divided into six parts.

The sextant as an angular unit is related to the navigational instrument of the same name, developed in the 18th century. The division of circles into six parts (hexagonal division) has ancient roots in geometry, as 60 degrees represents the angle in an equilateral triangle.

Sextants as angular units are rarely used in modern applications, though the 60-degree angle remains important in crystallography, molecular geometry, and some engineering applications. The term is more commonly associated with the navigational instrument rather than the angular unit itself.

A quadrant is a unit of angular measurement equal to 1/4 of a full rotation, or 90 degrees. It represents one of the four equal sections created when a circle is divided by perpendicular diameters.

The quadrant concept dates back to ancient geometry and astronomy, where circles were naturally divided into four equal parts. The term comes from the Latin 'quadrans' meaning 'fourth part'. Quadrants were fundamental in early navigation instruments and astronomical observations.

Quadrants are used in coordinate geometry for describing the four sections of the Cartesian plane, in navigation for general directional references, and in some engineering applications. They're also used in describing rotational positions in mechanical systems and in some educational contexts for teaching angle concepts.