Azimuth

Azimuth is simply which compass direction a sector antenna points, measured in degrees clockwise from true north (0 = north, 90 = east, and so on). It's the horizontal half of how you aim an antenna — tilt being the vertical half. A standard three-sector macro site usually splits the circle three ways, with azimuths around 0, 120, and 240 degrees, though real azimuths get nudged off those textbook values to follow roads, fill gaps, or steer away from a neighbour.

Two gotchas catch people. First, true north versus magnetic north: azimuths are referenced to true north, but a magnetic compass reads magnetic north, and the local declination between them can be several degrees — enough to point a sector noticeably wrong if you forget to correct for it. Second, azimuth interacts with the antenna's horizontal beamwidth: a 65-degree antenna and a 90-degree antenna pointed at the same azimuth cover quite different swaths, so getting the direction right is only half the job. Wrong azimuth is a classic install error that shows up later as a coverage gap on one side and unexpected interference on another.