Maximum Ordinate
Also: Max Ordinate · Midrange Trajectory
The highest point the bullet rises above the line of sight on its arcing path out to the zero distance. Also called the midrange trajectory height.
Maximum ordinate is the greatest height a bullet reaches above the line of sight as it travels downrange, occurring slightly past the midpoint of the trajectory for a given zero. Because the bore is angled slightly upward relative to the sight line, the bullet climbs above that line after leaving the muzzle, crests at the maximum ordinate, then falls back through the line of sight at the far zero. Shooters also call this value the midrange trajectory height.
Knowing the maximum ordinate matters when a target sits between the rifle and the zero distance, since the bullet may pass well above the aiming line at that range. It is the mirror image of bullet drop past the zero: one describes how high the path rises before the zero, the other how far it falls after. A flatter-shooting load lowers the maximum ordinate for any chosen zero, which is part of why high velocity is valued at long range.