css types atan2()

The atan2() CSS function is a trigonometric function that returns the inverse tangent of two values between -infinity and infinity. The function accepts two arguments and returns the number of radians representing an <angle>() between -180deg and 180deg.

Syntax

/* Two <number> values */
transform: rotate(atan2(3, 2));

/* Two <dimension> values */
transform: rotate(atan2(1rem, -0.5rem));

/* Two <percentage> values */
transform: rotate(atan2(20%, -30%));

/* Other values */
transform: rotate(atan2(pi, 45));
transform: rotate(atan2(e, 30));

Parameters

The atan2(y, x) function accepts two comma-separated values as its parameters. Each value can be a <number>(), a <dimension>(), or a <percentage>(). Both values must be of the same type, although if they are <dimension>() they can be of different units (example: atan2(100px, 5vw) is valid).

y

The y-coordinate of the point. A calculation which resolves to a <number>(), a <dimension>(), or a <percentage>().

x

The x-coordinate of the point. A calculation which resolves to a <number>(), a <dimension>(), or a <percentage>().

Return value

Given two values x and y, the function atan2(y, x) calculates and returns the <angle>() between the positive x-axis and the ray from the origin to the point (x, y).

Examples

Rotate elements

The atan2() function can be used to rotate elements as it return an <angle>().

HTML

<div class="box box-1"></div>
<div class="box box-2"></div>
<div class="box box-3"></div>
<div class="box box-4"></div>
<div class="box box-5"></div>

CSS

div.box {
  width: 100px;
  height: 100px;
  background: linear-gradient(orange, red);
}
div.box-1 {
  transform: rotate(atan2(3, 2));
}
div.box-2 {
  transform: rotate(atan2(3%, -2%));
}
div.box-3 {
  transform: rotate(atan2(-1, 0.5));
}
div.box-4 {
  transform: rotate(atan2(1, 0.5));
}
div.box-5 {
  transform: rotate(atan2(1rem, -0.5rem));
}

See also