Asked By administrator @ 26/01/2020 12:15 AM. The Equator appears on maps and globes. In spatial (3D) geometry, as applied in astronomy, the equator of a rotating spheroid (such as a planet) is the parallel (circle of latitude) at which latitude is defined to be 0°. This geographic, or terrestrial, Equator divides the Earth into the Northern and Southern hemispheres and forms the imaginary reference line on the Earth’s surface from which latitude is reckoned; in other words, it is the line with 0° latitude. There is a widespread maritime tradition of holding ceremonies to mark a sailor's first crossing of the equator. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. [citation needed]. Most locations on the Equator experience consistently high temperatures throughout the year. Hereof, what is the name for the imaginary lines that run from east to west? The Equator was discovered and mapped out by a French geodesic expedition team that was led by an explorer named Charles-Marie de La Comdamine in the year 1736. However, its island of Annobón is 155 km (96 mi) south of the equator, and the rest of the country lies to the north. A. the tropics B. the doldrums C. the Arctic Circle D. the Bermuda Triangle. Why is the Equator called the Equator? Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, This article was most recently revised and updated by, Social Studies for Kids - The Equator and the Prime Meridian, National Geographic Society - Encyclopedic Entry - Equator, Equator - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Equator - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). In Africa, the equator runs for almost 2,500 miles/ 4,020 kilometers through seven West , Central and East African countries just south of the Sahara Desert. [3], The precise location of the equator is not truly fixed; the true equatorial plane is perpendicular to the Earth's rotation axis, which drifts about 9 metres (30 ft) during a year. This makes the equator 0.16% longer than a meridian (a great circle passing through the two poles). The nautical mile was historically defined as a minute of arc along a longitude (not the equator) meridian of the Earth. [6] It is also the equatorial radius used for the IERS 2003 ellipsoid. A circle that divides a sphere or other surface into congruent parts. The equator is one of the five notable circles of latitude on Earth; the other four are both polar circles (the Arctic Circle and the Antarctic Circle) and both tropical circles (the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn). . The Earth's equator is an imaginary planetary line that is about 40,075 km (24,901 mi) long in circumference. To a person on Earth, the Sun appears to travel above the equator (or along the celestial equator) at these times. The word, equator, comes from the same place as the word "equal" -- it divides the earth in equal sections. THE EQUATOR PRINCIPLES IMPLEMENTATION NOTE Disclaimer: This document contains selected information and examples to support the understanding of the requirements in, and implementation of, the Equator Principles and does not ... What Are The EPFI Reporting Requirements Related To Submitting Project Name The name "equator" is Latin for "even-maker"; at equator the day and night are exactly the same length around the year. Many naval traditions, from the Sirens and Sea Monsters of the Odyssey to the boatswain's call, date back hundreds and even thousands of years.. Average annual temperatures in equatorial lowlands are around 31 °C (88 °F) during the afternoon and 23 °C (73 °F) around sunrise. The latitude of the Equator is zero degrees. The other four include the Arctic Circle, the Antarctic Circle, the Tropic of Cancer , and the Tropic of Capricorn . Is the sunniest place on Earth at the Equator? There's no special name for that length. This is a difference of less than one millimetre (0.039 in) over the total distance (approximately 1.86 kilometres or 1.16 miles). The highest point on the equator is at the elevation of 4,690 metres (15,387 ft), at 0°0′0″N 77°59′31″W / 0.00000°N 77.99194°W / 0.00000; -77.99194 (highest point on the equator), found on the southern slopes of Volcán Cayambe [summit 5,790 metres (18,996 ft)] in Ecuador. It is one of the lines known as a line of latitude, or circle of latitude. What is the name for the areas of calm winds near the equator? The equator is an imaginary line splitting the globe into two hemispheres. It is the imaginary line on the spheroid, equidistant from its poles, dividing it into northern and southern hemispheres. Its capital city of Quito, lies smack in the middle of the imaginary line. The equator is one of five lines of latitude used to help people navigate the world. The climate at the equator has a special name called the equatorial climate. In astronomy, the celestial equator is the great circle in which the plane of the terrestrial Equator intersects the celestial sphere; it consequently is equidistant from the celestial poles. This also results in a corresponding movement of the equator away from the subsolar point, which is then situated over or near the relevant tropic circle. Small departures from this average orientation are caused by rotation of the tilted dipole magnetic field once per day and by revolution of Earth around the Sun once per year. Updates? equator definition: 1. an imaginary line drawn around the middle of the earth an equal distance from the North Pole and…. The Equator is a massive but imaginary line that runs across the middle of Earth, dividing the planet into northern and southern hemispheres. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Asked By administrator @ 26/01/2020 12:16 AM. Starting at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the equator passes through: Passing just south of Baker Island, and just north of Jarvis Island,  United States Minor Outlying Islands. The Equator runs through several … Throughout the year, the northern and southern hemispheres are alternately turned either toward or away from the sun depending on Earth's position in its orbit. This is defined as any circle drawn on a sphere (or an oblate spheroid) with a center that includes the center of that sphere. Indonesia is the country straddling the greatest length of the equatorial line across both land and sea. On and near the equator sunlight comes from almost directly above every day year-round, and thus the equator has a rather stable daytime temperature the whole year. At the equator, however, the … Noun. Equator, great circle around the Earth that is everywhere equidistant from the geographic poles and lies in a plane perpendicular to the Earth’s axis. Geography. How to use equator in a sentence. Latitude is a system of imaginary east-west lines, called parallels, that circle Earth parallel to the Equator. What is the name of the latitudes labeled on the Analemma A Equator B Tropic of from GEOL 1 at California State University, Sacramento Near the equator, this means the variation in strength of solar radiation is different relative to the time of year than it is at higher latitudes: Maximum solar radiation is received during the equinoxes, when a place at the equator is under the subsolar point at high noon, and the intermediate seasons of spring and autumn occur at higher latitudes, and the minimum occurs during both solstices, when either pole is tilted towards or away from the sun, resulting in either summer or winter in both hemispheres. [citation needed], Intersection of a sphere's surface with the plane perpendicular to the sphere's axis of rotation and midway between the poles, "Moonport: A History of Apollo Launch Facilities and Operations", https://www.discovermagazine.com/environment/millions-of-years-ago-the-poles-moved-and-it-could-have-triggered-an-ice-age, "The IAU 2009 system of astronomical constants: the report of the IAU working group on numerical standards for Fundamental Astronomy", "General definitions and numerical standards", "Memoria Técnica de la Determinación de la Latitud Cero", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Equator&oldid=1016726724, Wikipedia indefinitely move-protected pages, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2017, Articles with unsourced statements from March 2012, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2015, Wikipedia articles with WorldCat-VIAF identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, Passing 4.3 km (2.7 mi) north of the border with, This page was last edited on 8 April 2021, at 19:00. What is the name for the area of calm winds near the equator. Thus, the celestial equator and the ecliptic do not lie on the same plane, but cross each other at an angle of 23.5 degrees. It originated from Old Javanese and literally means " archipelago ". Despite high year-round sea level temperatures, some higher altitudes such as the Andes and Mount Kilimanjaro have glaciers. large portion of the Arctic… The deposits by thermal currents are determined by the axis of the earth, which determines solar coverage of the Earth's surface. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. One international nautical mile = 1,852 meters exactly. Answers: 3 Get Other questions on the subject: Geography. Along the equator, 1 minute of arc is 1,855.33 meters. If it were really circular, the length of the equator would then be exactly 2π times the radius, namely 40,075.0142 km (24,901.4594 mi). Omissions? American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Light rays from the Sun's center are perpendicular to Earth's surface at the point of solar noon on the equator. Geological samples show the equator significantly changed positions between 12 and 48 million years ago, as sediment deposited by ocean thermal currents at the equator have shifted. Parallels are used to measure distances in degrees north or south of the Equator. This effect must be accounted for in detailed geophysical measurements. The added velocity reduces the fuel needed to launch spacecraft eastward (in the direction of Earth's rotation) to orbit, while simultaneously avoiding costly maneuvers to flatten inclination during missions such as the Apollo moon landings. When the Sun lies in its plane, day and night are everywhere of equal length, a twice-per-year occurrence known as equinox. Aviation Week and Space Technology on 9 October 1961 reported that measurements using the Transit IV-A satellite had shown the equatorial diameter from longitude 11° West to 169° East to be 1,000 feet (305 m) greater than its diameter ninety degrees away. For example, by WSG-84, the distance is 1,855.3248 metres (6,087.024 ft), while by IAU-2000, it is 1,855.3257 metres (6,087.027 ft). https://www.answers.com/Q/What_is_another_name_for_the_Equator Nusantara is an Indonesian word for the Indonesian archipelago. Near the equator, there is little temperature change throughout the year, though there may be dramatic differences in rainfall and humidity. The earth is commonly modeled as a sphere flattened 0.336% along its axis. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. The IUGG standard meridian is, to the nearest millimetre, 40,007.862917 kilometres (24,859.733480 mi), one arc-minute of which is 1,852.216 metres (6,076.82 ft), explaining the SI standardization of the nautical mile as 1,852 metres (6,076 ft), more than 3 metres (9.8 ft) less than the geographical mile.