$center (geospatial)

APPLIES TO: MongoDB vCore

The $center operator specifies a circle using legacy coordinate pairs to be used in $geoWithin queries. It defines a circle for a geospatial query on a flat, Euclidean plane.

Syntax

The syntax for the $center operator is as follows:

{
  $geoWithin: {
    $center: [ [ <x>, <y> ], <radius> ]
  }
}

Parameters

Parameter Type Description
<x> number The x-coordinate of the circle's center point
<y> number The y-coordinate of the circle's center point
<radius> number The radius of the circle in the same units as the coordinates

Example

Let's find all stores within a 50-degree radius of a central point using our stores dataset. This query can help identify stores that are within a certain distance of a specific location.

db.stores.find({
  "location": {
    $geoWithin: {
      $center: [[-112.7858, -29.1866], 50]
    }
  }
})

This query will return stores like:

{
  "_id": "f2a8c190-28e4-4e14-9d8b-0256e53dca66",
  "name": "Fabrikam, Inc. | Car Accessory Outlet - West Adele",
  "location": {
    "lat": -47.2548,
    "lon": -38.4071
  },
  // ... other fields
}

The query searches for stores within a 50-degree radius of the First Up Consultants Microphone Bazaar location, which could be useful for analyzing market coverage or planning delivery routes.

Important

The $center operator works on a flat, Euclidean plane.

For more accurate Earth-like spherical calculations, use $centerSphere instead.

The radius is specified in the same units as the coordinate system being used.

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