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ee.Geometry.BBox.distance
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Returns the minimum distance between two geometries.
| Usage | Returns | BBox.distance(right, maxError, proj, spherical) | Float |
| Argument | Type | Details | this: left | Geometry | The geometry used as the left operand of the operation. |
right | Geometry | The geometry used as the right operand of the operation. |
maxError | ErrorMargin, default: null | The maximum amount of error tolerated when performing any necessary reprojection. |
proj | Projection, default: null | The projection in which to perform the operation. If not specified, the operation will be performed in a spherical coordinate system, and linear distances will be in meters on the sphere. |
spherical | Boolean, default: false | If true, the calculation will be done on the unit sphere. If false, the calculation will be elliptical, taking earth flattening into account. Ignored if proj is specified. Default is false. |
Examples
Code Editor (JavaScript)
// Define a BBox object.
var bBox = ee.Geometry.BBox(-122.09, 37.42, -122.08, 37.43);
// Define other inputs.
var inputGeom = ee.Geometry.Point(-122.090, 37.423);
// Apply the distance method to the BBox object.
var bBoxDistance = bBox.distance({'right': inputGeom, 'maxError': 1});
// Print the result to the console.
print('bBox.distance(...) =', bBoxDistance);
// Display relevant geometries on the map.
Map.setCenter(-122.085, 37.422, 15);
Map.addLayer(bBox,
{'color': 'black'},
'Geometry [black]: bBox');
Map.addLayer(inputGeom,
{'color': 'blue'},
'Parameter [blue]: inputGeom');
Python setup
See the
Python Environment page for information on the Python API and using
geemap for interactive development.
import ee
import geemap.core as geemap
Colab (Python)
# Define a BBox object.
bbox = ee.Geometry.BBox(-122.09, 37.42, -122.08, 37.43)
# Define other inputs.
input_geom = ee.Geometry.Point(-122.090, 37.423)
# Apply the distance method to the BBox object.
bbox_distance = bbox.distance(right=input_geom, maxError=1)
# Print the result.
display('bbox.distance(...) =', bbox_distance)
# Display relevant geometries on the map.
m = geemap.Map()
m.set_center(-122.085, 37.422, 15)
m.add_layer(bbox, {'color': 'black'}, 'Geometry [black]: bbox')
m.add_layer(input_geom, {'color': 'blue'}, 'Parameter [blue]: input_geom')
m
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Last updated 2025-06-23 UTC.
[null,null,["Last updated 2025-06-23 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eCalculates the minimum distance between two Earth Engine geometries.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eTakes a Geometry as the right operand and optional \u003ccode\u003emaxError\u003c/code\u003e and \u003ccode\u003eproj\u003c/code\u003e parameters.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eReturns the distance as a float, representing meters on the sphere if \u003ccode\u003eproj\u003c/code\u003e is not specified.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eCan be used with BBox, Point, and other geometry types for distance computations.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["The `distance` method calculates the minimum distance between two geometries. It takes a `right` geometry as input, and optionally `maxError`, `proj` (projection), and `spherical` parameters. `maxError` sets the tolerated error, `proj` defines the projection, and `spherical` determines if the calculation is spherical or elliptical. The method returns a float representing the distance. Example usage demonstrates calculating the distance between a BBox and a Point geometry, printing the distance, and visualizing both geometries on a map.\n"],null,["# ee.Geometry.BBox.distance\n\nReturns the minimum distance between two geometries.\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\n| Usage | Returns |\n|-----------------------------------------------------------------|---------|\n| BBox.distance`(right, `*maxError* `, `*proj* `, `*spherical*`)` | Float |\n\n| Argument | Type | Details |\n|--------------|----------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|\n| this: `left` | Geometry | The geometry used as the left operand of the operation. |\n| `right` | Geometry | The geometry used as the right operand of the operation. |\n| `maxError` | ErrorMargin, default: null | The maximum amount of error tolerated when performing any necessary reprojection. |\n| `proj` | Projection, default: null | The projection in which to perform the operation. If not specified, the operation will be performed in a spherical coordinate system, and linear distances will be in meters on the sphere. |\n| `spherical` | Boolean, default: false | If true, the calculation will be done on the unit sphere. If false, the calculation will be elliptical, taking earth flattening into account. Ignored if proj is specified. Default is false. |\n\nExamples\n--------\n\n### Code Editor (JavaScript)\n\n```javascript\n// Define a BBox object.\nvar bBox = ee.Geometry.BBox(-122.09, 37.42, -122.08, 37.43);\n\n// Define other inputs.\nvar inputGeom = ee.Geometry.Point(-122.090, 37.423);\n\n// Apply the distance method to the BBox object.\nvar bBoxDistance = bBox.distance({'right': inputGeom, 'maxError': 1});\n\n// Print the result to the console.\nprint('bBox.distance(...) =', bBoxDistance);\n\n// Display relevant geometries on the map.\nMap.setCenter(-122.085, 37.422, 15);\nMap.addLayer(bBox,\n {'color': 'black'},\n 'Geometry [black]: bBox');\nMap.addLayer(inputGeom,\n {'color': 'blue'},\n 'Parameter [blue]: inputGeom');\n```\nPython setup\n\nSee the [Python Environment](/earth-engine/guides/python_install) page for information on the Python API and using\n`geemap` for interactive development. \n\n```python\nimport ee\nimport geemap.core as geemap\n```\n\n### Colab (Python)\n\n```python\n# Define a BBox object.\nbbox = ee.Geometry.BBox(-122.09, 37.42, -122.08, 37.43)\n\n# Define other inputs.\ninput_geom = ee.Geometry.Point(-122.090, 37.423)\n\n# Apply the distance method to the BBox object.\nbbox_distance = bbox.distance(right=input_geom, maxError=1)\n\n# Print the result.\ndisplay('bbox.distance(...) =', bbox_distance)\n\n# Display relevant geometries on the map.\nm = geemap.Map()\nm.set_center(-122.085, 37.422, 15)\nm.add_layer(bbox, {'color': 'black'}, 'Geometry [black]: bbox')\nm.add_layer(input_geom, {'color': 'blue'}, 'Parameter [blue]: input_geom')\nm\n```"]]