Geodesic

adj. of or pertaining to geodesy, pertaining to the branch of science which deals with the measurement of land and determination of geographical points

In mathematics, a geodesic is a generalization of the notion of a "straight line" to "curved spaces". In presence of a metric, geodesics are defined to be (locally) the shortest path between points on the space. In the presence of an affine connection, geodesics are defined to be curves whose tangent vectors remain parallel if they are transported along it.
See more at Wikipedia.org...

Noun
1. (mathematics) the shortest line between two points on a mathematically defined surface (as a straight line on a plane or an arc of a great circle on a sphere)
(synonym) geodesic line
(hypernym) line
(classification) mathematics, math, maths
Adjective
1. of or resembling a geodesic dome
(pertainym) geodesic dome
2. of or relating to or determined by geodesy
(synonym) geodetic, geodesical
(pertainym) geodesy

(n.)
A geodetic line or curve.
  

(a.)
Alt. of Geodesical
  

The shortest path on the spacetime continuum between two points. Objects which travel under the sole influence of gravity follow geodesics.