Geography Chapter 2 - Latitudes and Longitudes Exercises Fill in the blanks:- 1. The prime meridian passes through_______. Ans. Green wich 2. The longest latitude is_______. Ans. Equator. 3. Both longitudes and latitudes are____ lines. Ans. Imaginary 4. The time of a place according to its longitude is called the______ Ans. Local time 5. Latitudes are also called______ Ans. Parallels Short answer questions 1. Define latitude and longitude. Ans. Latitudes are imaginary lines drawn on the earth's surface. They run from west to east, horizontally around the globe. Since they run parallel to the equator, they are also called parallels. Longitudes are imaginary lines drawn on the surface of the earth, in the north-south direction vertically between the poles. These lines are also called Meridians. 2. Why is longitude 0° also called the Greenwich Meridian? Ans. The north-south line that marks 0° longitude passes through Greenwich, England that's why this is called the Greenwich Meridian. 3. What is universal time? Ans. Astronomers, astronauts and people dealing with satellite data many day time schedule which is the same everywhere, not tied to a locality or time zone. The Greenwich Mean Time (averaged over the year) is generally used for this purpose. It is sometimes called universal time. 4. Why do many countries have a number of time zones? Ans. The earth has been divided into 24 time zones of 1 hour each. In one time zone, the middle longitude is taken as the standard Meridian, and the recorded local time on the particular Meridian is taken as the standard time in that zone. In case you fly between two zones you will have to change the time on your watch according to the time in the new zone. 5. Why isn't the International Date Line drawn straight? Ans. On the opposite side of the Prime Meridian (0° longitude), is the International Date Line(IDL) (180° longitude). It is an imaginary line which runs mostly through the Pacific Ocean and bends to avoid the land. If it had been state it would have passed over the islands in the Pacific Ocean. Long answer questions 1. What is the importance of each of the following? a. Latitude b. Longitude c. Equator Ans. a) Latitudes are imaginary lines drawn on the earth's surface. They run from west to east, horizontally around the globe. Since they run parallel to the equator, they are also called parallels. Lines of latitude describe whether a place is to the north or south of the equator. The equator is of 0° latitude, and is the starting point for measuring latitudes. The latitude of North Pole is 90° North (90° N), and that of the South Pole is 90° South. The latitude lying to the north of the equator are called North latitude smile attitude line towards the south of the equator are called South Latitudes. b) Longitudes are imaginary lines drawn on the surface of the earth, in the north-south direction vertically between the poles. These lines are also called Meridians. The north-south line that marks 0° longitude passes through Greenwich, England that's why this is called the Greenwich Meridian. The longitude for 180°E and 180°W is the same longitude. The 180° meridian, together with the Prime Meridian forms a circle, and divides the earth into two hemisphere- the Eastern hemisphere and the Western hemisphere. c) An imaginary line passes horizontally through the centre on the earth surface. It is called the Equator. It divides the earth into two equal parts then or than half is called the northern hemisphere and the southern half is called the southern hemisphere, the flattened northern and southern ends are the two poles the north pole, which points towards the pole star and the South Pole. These poles are also the two endpoints of the earth's axis and are fixed points. 2. Write down four features each of latitudes and longitudes. Ans. ●All attitudes are at the same distance to each other. ● The equator is the longest latitude. The latitudes become shorter as the distance from the equator increases. The equator is called the great circle, while the other latitudes are called small circles. ● Latitude is the angular distance between the equator and any point on the earth's surface. The vertex of the angle is at the centre of the earth. ● Each parallel is at the distance of 1 Degree which is approximately 111 kilometre apart. 3. How are longitudes used to calculate time? Ans. It takes an average time of 24 hours for the earth to rotate a full circle, which means 360 degrees. The rotation takes place from west to east in anticlockwise direction, the place which is located to the east of your location will be ahead in time then your place, while the place on the west would be behind it. To find the number of degrees the Earth turns in each hour. 360°/24 hours= 15° per hour 4. What is the International Date Line? How does this affect the passengers of a ship sailing around the world? Ans. International Date Line is an imaginary line which runs mostly through the Pacific Ocean and bends to avoid the land. If it had been straight, it would have passed over islands in the Pacific Ocean. The same place would have two different days across the line. To avoid the confusion, the line is bent to avoid it from passing over the land masses. Places to the west of it are 24 hours ahead of the places to the east coast of this means that if you travel East, across it, you lose a day and if you travel West, across it, you gain a day. .