LATITUDE AND LONGITUDE – Definition, Coordinates, And The Global Address
LATITUDE AND LONGITUDE – We will now learn about coordinates, the global address and the meaning of latitude and longitude.
Global Address and Coordinates
In locating a certain place, we were accustomed to locate them by knowing the street address. But aside from locating them with that method, we can also locate them by knowing the global address.
Unlike street address, the global address comes with two numbers called coordinates. The coordinates are composed of the location’s latitude number and a longitude number, thus, the format is Lat,Long (ex, 34,56). Instead of using a specific location, coordinates works with a numbered grid system, like a graph paper.
Simply find where the two numbers intersect and you have your location.
Now we will learn the meaning of latitude and longitude.
Latitude
Latitudes are horizontal maps on Earth. The line on the center of the latitude is called an equator and its value is zero degrees latitude. Likewise, lines that are above and below the equator are called parallels because they are parallel to the equator. Latitude measures how far to the North or South the location is to the equator.
The number of degrees in latitude will be measured from the equator all the way up to the poles, which are 90 degrees away from the equator, thus it’s format is __ degrees North or __ degrees South.
Longitude
Longitudes, on the other hand, refers to the vertical maps on the Earth. The universal vertical line is called the Prime Meridian which runs from the British Royal Observatory in Greenwich England. Likewise, the vertical lines are called Meridians.
Opposite to the Prime Meridian is a 180 degree line called the International Date Line(IDL). The number of degrees in longitude will be measured from the prime meridian all the way to the IDL, which is 180 degrees away from the equator, thus, it’s format is ___ degrees East or ___ degrees West.
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