Dwg: Article written and Venn diagram created.

2025-12-21T09:56:04Z

Article written and Venn diagram created.

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== Latitude vs. Longitude ==
Latitude and longitude are the two coordinates of a geographic coordinate system that specify the position of a point on the Earth's surface.<ref name="ref1" /> Both are angular measurements, expressed in degrees, that are used together to locate any place.<ref name="ref2" /> Latitude specifies a point's north-south position, while longitude specifies its east-west position.<ref name="ref3" />

=== Comparison table ===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Feature !! Latitude !! Longitude
|-
| Name of Lines || Parallels<ref name="ref4" /> || Meridians
|-
| Direction || Lines run east-west, but measure north-south distance.<ref name="ref4" /> || Lines run north-south, but measure east-west distance.
|-
| Reference Line || Equator (0°) || Prime Meridian (0°)
|-
| Measurement Range || 0° to 90° North and 90° South || 0<ref name="ref3" />° to 180° East and 180° West
|-
| Parallelism || Lines are parallel to one another and never intersect. || Lines<ref name="ref4" /> are not parallel; they converge at the North and South Poles.
|-
| Length<ref name="ref5" /> of Lines || Unequal; the Equator is the longest, and lines shorten toward the poles. || Equal;<ref name="ref5" /> all meridians are the same length, passing from pole to pole.
|-
| Primary Use || Helps determine climate zones. || Helps determine time zones.
|}

[[File:Venn_diagram_Differences_between_Latitude_versus_Longitude_comparison.png|thumb|center|800px|alt=Venn diagram for Differences between Latitude and Longitude|Venn diagram comparing Differences between Latitude and Longitude]]

=== Latitude ===
Lines of latitude, also called parallels, are imaginary circles that run east and west, parallel to the Equator. Latitude<ref name="ref1" /> is the measurement of distance north or south of the Equator, which is the starting line at 0° latitude. This measurement<ref name="ref4" /> is an angle ranging from 0° at the Equator to 90° North at the North Pole and 90° South at the South Pole. Because parallels<ref name="ref3" /> are always equidistant from each other, the distance between each degree of latitude remains relatively constant, at approximately 111 kilometers (69 miles).

=== Longitude<ref name="ref2" /> ===
Lines of longitude, also called meridians, are imaginary semi-circles that run from the North Pole to the South Pole. Longitude is the measurement of distance east or west of the Prime Meridian, an arbitrary line that is set at 0° longitude. The Prime Meridian runs through Greenwich, London, in the United Kingdom. Measurements of longitude range from 0° to 180° east and 180° west of the Prime Meridian. Unlike parallels of latitude, meridians of longitude are not parallel to each other. They are farthest apart at the Equator and converge until they meet at the poles. Because the Earth<ref name="ref2" /> rotates 360 degrees in a 24-hour period, longitude is closely linked to the measurement of time, with a difference of 15 degrees of longitude corresponding to a one-hour difference in local time.

== References ==
<references>
<ref name="ref1">[https://www.britannica.com/science/latitude "britannica.com"]. Retrieved December 21, 2025.</ref>
<ref name="ref2">[https://www.thoughtco.com/degree-of-latitude-and-longitude-distance-4070616 "thoughtco.com"]. Retrieved December 21, 2025.</ref>
<ref name="ref3">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latitude "wikipedia.org"]. Retrieved December 21, 2025.</ref>
<ref name="ref4">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Longitude "wikipedia.org"]. Retrieved December 21, 2025.</ref>
<ref name="ref5">[https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/latitude.html "noaa.gov"]. Retrieved December 21, 2025.</ref>
</references>

[[Category:Comparisons]]

Differences between Latitude and Longitude - Revision history

Dwg: Article written and Venn diagram created.