The parallels of the Earth are the circles that are formed by the intersection of the terrestrial sphere with an imaginary plane perpendicular to the Earth’s axis of rotation. These parallels are part, together with the meridians of the calls Geographical coordinates, a reference system that, among other things, allows us to locate a specific place on the globe based on latitude and longitude. These geographical coordinates have been during the History of Humanity, essential for aspects such as navigation. If we are not very clear what are the main parallels of the earth, today we talk a little more about them.
Steps to follow:
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We can say that there are five most important parallels. The first of them is him Arctic Circle (latitude 66 ° 33 ‘N = 90 ° – 23 ° 27’). This arctic circle delimits the southern end of the polar day of the summer solstice and the night of the winter solstice. Also, it is interesting to know that on the day of the summer solstice, the sun does not set for 24 hours, while during the winter solstice, the sun does not rise for 24 hours.
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The parallel known as the Tropic of Cancer, is the tropic of the northern hemisphere. It is the parallel that is located north of the Equator, at an exact latitude of 23 ° 26’16 “. At this point, it should be noted that this parallel moves southward half a second per year. Likewise, it is also interesting to know that This parallel delimits the northernmost points where the sun shines from the zenith, something that occurs during the June solstice.
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The Ecuador It is the parallel that divides the surface of the Earth into two parts, the one known as the northern hemisphere and the southern hemisphere. Therefore, its latitude is exactly 0º. The sun reaches its zenith on the spring and autumn equinox.
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The Tropic of Capricorn It is the parallel located at latitude 23º 26 ’16 “. It is the one that is located further south and delimits the southernmost points where the sun can occupy the zenith at noon.
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Finally we have the Antarctic polar circle, the parallel of latitude 57 ° 90 ‘3 “located south of the equator. In the entire area south of the Antarctic polar circle there is at least one day in which the sun is visible for 24 hours. Likewise, there is also a day in the one that the sun is not visible for 24 hours.
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