Latitude and Longitude Notes Lines of Latitude Measure

Latitude and Longitude Notes

Lines of Latitude • Measure distances North and South from the Equator (the higher the latitude, the further from the equator) • Run East and West • The Equator is the largest line of latitude (decrease in size as they near the poles) • Called “parallels” because they never touch

Lines of Longitude • Measure distances East and West from the Prime Meridian • “prime” means starting point • “meridian” means middle because every line of longitude divides the earth in ½ • Run North and South

Lines of Longitude (cont. ) • Touch at the North and South Poles • The Prime Meridian is also called the Greenwich Meridian because it passes through Greenwich, England (near London) • The International Date Line is located directly across from the Prime Meridian

Greenwich Observatory

The Prime Meridian

Important Measurements • • • Equator = 0° North Pole = 90º N South Pole = 90º S Prime Meridian = 0º International Date Line = 180º

Important Measurements (cont. ) • • Tropic of Cancer = 23. 5º N Tropic of Capricorn = 23. 5º S Arctic Circle = 66. 5º N Antarctic Circle = 66. 5º S

Practice • • • Name the measurements of… Equator Tropic of Cancer South Pole Prime Meridian International Date Line

Practice • Lines of latitude measure how far ______ and ______ a place is from the ______. • Lines of longitude measure how far ______ and _____ a place is from the _____.

More Practice • Lines of _____ are all the same size. • Lines of _____ are also called parallels. • Lines of longitude touch at the ____ and ______.