High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which emanates from a central point, getting progressively farther away as it revolves around the point.A spiral is typically a planar curve (that is, flat), like the groove on a record or the arms of a spiral galaxy. A helix, on the other hand, is a three-dimensional coil that runs along the surface of a cylinder, like the groove on a screw. There are many instances where in colloquial usage spiral is used as a synonym for helix, notably spiral staircase and spiral binding of books.