Earth and Space Science / Unit 1: Earth as a System
1.4 Latitude and Longitude
Notes
Location on Earth is given by coordinates in degrees.
- Latitude measures distance north or south of the equator (0°). Range: 0° to 90° N or S. Lines of latitude are parallel.
- Longitude measures distance east or west of the prime meridian (0°, through Greenwich, England). Range: 0° to 180° E or W.
- One degree of latitude is about 111 km everywhere. Longitude lines meet at the poles, so their spacing shrinks toward the poles.
- Earth turns 360° in 24 hours, so 15° of longitude equals one hour of time.
- Example: a place at 30° W is 45° west of one at 15° E, a difference of 3 hours.
Practice
The equator is the line of:
The equator is 0° latitude and divides Earth into hemispheres.
Which pair of coordinates is in the Southern and Western Hemispheres?
South latitude and west longitude.
How many hours of solar time separate two places that are 60° apart in longitude?
60° divided by 15° per hour is 4 hours.
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