LatitudinalLongitudinal

Latitudinal and longitudinal are terms used to describe the measurement of positions on the Earth's surface. Latitude refers to the angular distance of a point north or south of the Earth's equator. It is measured in degrees, with the equator being 0 degrees and the poles being 90 degrees north or south. Latitude lines, or parallels, run horizontally across the globe and are used to determine a location's distance from the equator.

Longitude, on the other hand, measures the angular distance of a point east or west of the prime meridian, which runs through Greenwich, England. Longitude is also measured in degrees, with the prime meridian being 0 degrees and the antimeridian being 180 degrees. Longitude lines, or meridians, run vertically from the North Pole to the South Pole and are used to determine a location's distance from the prime meridian.

Together, latitude and longitude form a coordinate system that allows for the precise location of any point on the Earth's surface. This system is known as the geographic coordinate system and is widely used in navigation, cartography, and geographic information systems. The combination of latitude and longitude is often expressed as a pair of numbers, with latitude first and longitude second, separated by a comma. For example, the coordinates for the Eiffel Tower in Paris are approximately 48.8584 degrees north latitude and 2.2945 degrees east longitude.