Longitudes and Time Zones

Longitude and latitude are fictitious boundaries that circumnavigate the globe. They are being used to precisely nail down the location of a person or object. Such lines are expressed in degrees and are drawn on maps. Each degree is split into 60 minutes, with 60 seconds each minute.

It took generations to decide on standard phase differences for all time zones from GMT or Coordinated Universal Time. By 1929, many nations had accepted hourly time differences, except Iran, India, and sections of Australia, which had 30-minute offset time zones. 

Latitude:

Latitude refers to the east-west lines that circumnavigate the globe parallel to the equator. The latitude at whatever point all along the equator is 0°. Although the equator seems to be the maximum length among these lines, they become relatively short as we tend to go nearer towards the poles, which provide a latitude of 90°. The equator segregates the Earth into two halves or two hemispheres: northern and southern. Every degree will have the same distance, approximately 69 miles, which is 111 km. The Earth’s axis leans towards each other and is the distance from the sun because it spins around it. 

This is why particularly unique latitude lines exist:

• In June, the sun shines, passing overhead at the Tropic of Cancer which will occur at the latitude approximately 23 1/2 ° north of the terrestrial equator).
• In December, the sun shines, passing overhead at the Tropic of Capricorn, which will occur at the latitude approximately 23 1/2 ° south of the terrestrial equator).
• In June, the sun is well above the horizon in the Arctic Circle, and it is parallel of latitude on the Earth at approximately66 1/2 ° North of the terrestrial equator). In June, the day will be 24 hours long.
• In December, the sun is always well above the horizon at Antarctic Circle (66 1/2 ° south of the terrestrial equator). The duration of daylight is 24 hours.

Longitude:

Longitude, also known as meridians, has been lines that pass from North to south worldwide. In Greenwich, England, the British Royal Observatory serves as the system’s starting point (0°). This prime meridian was selected when England monopolized mapmaking and route planning.

Locations situated towards the west of this line have longitudes close to 179° west, whereas those located towards the East of this line have longitudes approximately 179° East. The 180th meridian has always been located in the middle of the Pacific, on the opposite side of the world. The International Date Line is also referred to in this context. Travellers who cross the dateline to the west change to the next day.

Each extent of longitude has a greater distance between it. It is the longest at the equator, close to 69 miles, and the shortest at the poles recorded at 0 miles because this is where the lines intersect each other. 

Coordinates are statistics that identify a particular location upon the system. For example, Japan is located at 36.2048° North, 138.2529° East. Unlike explorers in the Middle Ages and the Age of Exploration, who had used stars to ascertain their location, we now use satellites, space telescopes, and GPS to nail down our precise location everywhere on the planet.

Time Zones:

Since the Earth spins once a day on its axis, it is divided into 24 time zones. The prime meridian in Greenwich, furthermore known as Greenwich Mean Time, sets the foundation for these time zones. In theory, every other 15 degrees East or west of Greenwich implies one hour just about more or less close. Indiscipline, time zones don’t run through into the middle of regions of the world.

More significant nations with long distances of thousands of kilometres between them, such as the United States, practice multiple time zones. 

Let’s understand Time zones for a few locations.

• Ahmedabad’s longitude and latitude time zone coordinates are 23.033863 72.585022, respectively.
• Cheyyar time zone longitude and latitude coordinates are 79.543484 12.661975, respectively.
• Dublin, California time zone latitude and longitude coordinates are 37.702152, -121.935791.
• Switzerland’s time zone latitude and longitude coordinates are 46.818188 8.227511999999933.
• Srilankan time zone latitude and longitude coordinates are: 7.873053999999999, 80.77179699999999 

Conclusion 

We discussed Time zones, Longitudes, latitudes, and other related topics through the study material notes on Longitudes and time zones. We also discussed latitude and longitude coordinates of a few locations to give you proper knowledge. 

The rate over which the sun navigates definite degrees of longitude is being utilized to determine the local time zone of a region in comparison to the time at the Prime Meridian, which is 0°Longitude.