Image of a bright circle on a darker background with a square patternImage of a bright circle on a darker background with a square pattern
A curve or geometric figure, each part of which has the same statistical character as the whole. Fractals are useful in modeling structures (such as eroded coastlines or snowflakes) in which similar patterns recur at progressively smaller scales, and in describing partly random or chaotic phenomena such as crystal growth, fluid turbulence, and galaxy formation. Relating to or of the nature of a fractal or fractals.