Latitude and longitude on the map: determine the exact "address"

Each place on earth has its own exact "address", where you can quickly find it. This is not as difficult as it seems at first glance. Latitude and longitude on the map allows you to locate an object. To do this, you need to have a map at hand or a modern GPS-navigator. Interestingly, the same system of geographical coordinates is used on other planets.

Why is latitude and longitude measured in degrees

You probably already know that the planet Earth is a sphere. If you look at the globe, you can see that the entire surface of our planet is covered by conventional lines - meridians and parallels. Their coordinates, respectively, are the latitude and longitude on the map, which are measured in degrees. Many do not quite understand why geographical coordinates are measured in degrees. Although it's pretty simple, you just need to draw a corner. To do this, imagine a point in the very center of the Earth, this will be the top of our corner. One side must pass through the equator, which divides the planet in half. The second side must pass through the point that we need, let it be the city of Moscow. As a result, we got a corner. To determine the latitude, it is necessary to measure it with a protractor. It turned out about 55 degrees, and since the capital of the Russian Federation lies to the north of the equator, it is necessary to write down the result as follows: 55 p.s. (55 degrees north latitude). To determine the value of longitude, you must draw an angle, the top of which will also be in the center of the planet. But one side of the corner should lie on the Greenwich meridian, and the second - to pass through the point we need, in our case this is Moscow. We get 37 degrees. Since the city lies to the east of the zero meridian, we record the exact result - 37 east. (37 degrees east longitude).

Determination of coordinates on the map

This example was given in order to make it easier to understand how the coordinates are calculated. In fact, everything is much simpler, because many maps and globes already have a grid of geographical coordinates. The degrees of latitude are shown at longitudes, which are parallel to the equator. Meridians, on the contrary, cross the equator, you can learn from them the longitude. First, you need to find out which hemisphere is the point we need: north or south; West or east. The latitude and longitude on the map are determined by the degree grid. If you look at the globe, you can see that all meridians have the same length, while the parallels are different. The longest parallel is the equator itself , the length of which is about 40,000 km. And the closer to the poles, the more parallels become shorter. At the north and south poles, the latitude turns into just a point, with coordinates of 90 s. And 90 S. What is surprising - only these two places on the whole Earth do not have longitude.

Determination of longitude and latitude by modern methods

In the World Wide Web, you can find many useful maps, the most popular of which are Google and Yandex maps. The latitude and longitude on the map are determined by just one mouse click. And accurate coordinates are displayed, up to 10 meters. Manually such results can be achieved only on large-scale maps. Another option for determining the latitude and longitude is a GPS-navigator. This device allows you to find the exact coordinates, wherever you are. The principle of its operation is based on the reception of signals from satellites. And he is able to show not only latitude and longitude, but also height. The most modern navigators are able to show the location with an accuracy of 2 meters.