“The equator runs through London.”
Usage Entry 1493 / 1605 60-second read
Equator vs. Prime meridian
The 0° latitude line (horizontal) versus the 0° longitude line (vertical).
The comparisoni
“The PRIME MERIDIAN runs through Greenwich (London). The EQUATOR is at 0° latitude — the horizontal line dividing north and south hemispheres.”
The ruleii
¶
EQUATOR = latitude 0. MERIDIAN = longitude 0.
EQUATOR: 0° latitude — the horizontal line equidistant from the poles. PRIME MERIDIAN: 0° longitude — the vertical line, by international convention through Greenwich, England (set in 1884). Both define the global coordinate system.
Memory aidiii
Remember it like this
Equator horizontal; meridian vertical.