What do meridians of longitude measure

Latitude lines are a numerical way to measure how far north or south of the equator a place is located. The equator is the starting point for measuring latitude--that's why it's marked as 0 degrees latitude. The number of latitude degrees will be larger the further away from the equator the place is located, all the way up to 90 degrees latitude at the poles.

Longitude Vertical mapping lines on Earth are lines of longitude, known as "meridians". One simple way to visualize this might be to think about having hula hoops cut in half, vertically positioned with one end at the North Pole and the other at the South Pole.

Visualize hula hoops cut in half, vertically positioned with one end at the North Pole and the other at the South Pole. If we look at them from the poles, they appear circular. The latitude is the angle formed by a line going from the center of the earth to the equator at the point on the equator that is closed to the point of interest and another line that goes from the center of the earth to the parallel that goes through the point of interest.

Geospatial Activities. Latitude and Longitude When we describe the Earth in spherical coordinates it is called Geographic, or Un-projected. Merdians and Parallels You've seen lines running across maps your whole life and may not have noticed them.

Each meridian measures one arc degree of longitude. The distance around the Earth measures degrees. The meridian that runs through Greenwich, England, is internationally accepted as the line of 0 degrees longitude, or prime meridian.

The antimeridian is halfway around the world, at degrees. It is the basis for the International Date Line. Half of the world, the Eastern Hemisphere, is measured in degrees east of the prime meridian. The other half, the Western Hemisphere, in degrees west of the prime meridian. Degrees of longitude are divided into 60 minutes.

Each minute of longitude can be further divided into 60 seconds. A degree of longitude is about kilometers 69 miles at its widest. The widest areas of longitude are near the Equator , where the Earth bulges out. Because of the Earth's curvature , the actual distance of a degrees, minutes, and seconds of longitude depends on its distance from the Equator.

The greater the distance, the shorter the length between meridians. All meridians meet at the North and South Poles. Longitude is related to latitude , the measurement of distance north or south of the Equator. Lines of latitude are called parallel s. Maps are often marked with parallels and meridians, creating a grid.

Lines of latitude and longitude form the grid system used on globes, maps and charts. Latitude is a measure of how far north or south somewhere is from the Equator; longitude is a measure of how far east or west it is from the Prime Meridian. Although the Equator is the obvious zero point from which to measure latitude, there is no equivalent point from which to measure longitude.

Latitude and longitude are both measured in degrees. Each degree of longitude however, corresponds to a distance that varies with latitude.

The distance is about km at the Equator, reducing to 0 km at the Poles.