Dijkstra Algorithm Questions
The main difference between the Dijkstra Algorithm and the A* Algorithm lies in their approach to finding the shortest path in a graph or network.
Dijkstra's Algorithm is a greedy algorithm that explores all possible paths from a starting node to all other nodes in the graph. It calculates the shortest path by iteratively selecting the node with the smallest distance and updating the distances of its neighboring nodes. Dijkstra's Algorithm does not consider any heuristic or estimate of the remaining distance to the goal.
On the other hand, the A* Algorithm combines the elements of Dijkstra's Algorithm with a heuristic function to guide the search towards the goal. It uses an admissible heuristic, typically the estimated distance from the current node to the goal, to prioritize the exploration of nodes. A* Algorithm considers both the actual cost from the start node and the estimated cost to the goal, which makes it more efficient in finding the shortest path compared to Dijkstra's Algorithm.
In summary, while Dijkstra's Algorithm explores all possible paths without considering any heuristic, A* Algorithm incorporates a heuristic function to guide the search and improve efficiency in finding the shortest path.