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Longitudes
- Imaginary lines
- Sketched vertically, connecting the North Pole and the South Pole.
- They are also called lines or meridians of longitude.
- These lines of longitude are seen as semi-circles.
Degrees of longitudes can be divided into minutes, and each minute of longitude can be further divided into seconds.
Important!
\(1°\) (degree) \(= \)\(60\)' (minutes)
\(1' \)(minute) \(=\)\(60\)'' (seconds)
Important!
Prime Meridian: \(0°\) line of longitude
Number of lines on either side of Prime meridian: \(180\) lines of longitude
Total lines of longitude: \(360\) lines.
- These lines converge at the poles.
- The \(180°\) W and \(180°\) E line of longitude are the same line.
- Eastern Longitudes: The lines of longitude found between the Prime Meridian(\(0°\)) and the\(\ 180° \)East line of longitude.
- Western Longitudes: The lines of longitude found between the Prime Meridian (\(0°\)) and the\(\ 180°\) West line of longitude.
Two opposite meridians form a great circle.
The lines of longitude are
| At Equator: | Semi circles covering \(111\) km |
| At \(45°\) latitude | \(79\) km |
Important!
As the longitudes converge there is no space between them at the poles .
Eastern Hemisphere: The portion of the Earth that lies between the \(0°\) line of longitude and the \(180° \)East line of longitude.
Western Hemisphere: The portion of the Earth that lies between \(0°\) line of longitude to \(180°\)West line of longitude.
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