Author:
Monica Porter
Date Of Creation:
21 March 2021
Update Date:
27 June 2024
Content
Longitude and latitude are the points on the globe that help us find a particular place. When writing longitude and latitude, you want to make sure you format correctly and use the correct symbols that others understand. You can identify different longitude and latitude points on the map and write them down. You can record longitude and latitude using longitude and latitude lines. For more specific longitude and latitude points, coordinates can be written as degrees, minutes, seconds and decimals.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Record basic longitude and latitude
Determine the meridian. Meridian lines are vertical lines that run across the globe from the North Pole to the South Pole. The meridian divides the meridians into two halves. That is the zero meridian. When writing meridian, you use the symbol "°" to indicate degrees.
- The meridians stretch from east to west. Each meridian will increase by one degree when shifted east. You use the letter "E" (East) to indicate the meridian east of the Meridian. For example, the meridian might be 30 ° E (30 east longitude).
- As we shift westward, each meridian increases by one degree. When writing the meridian west of the Meridian, you use the symbol "W" to indicate the west. For example, the meridian might be 15 ° W (15 west longitude).
Determine the latitude line. Latitude are the lines that cross the globe. They stretch from north to south, starting at the equator. The equator is the 0 degree latitude. When recording latitude and longitude, you use the "°" notation to indicate degrees.- As we move up the equator, the parallels will increase by one degree until they reach 90 degrees. The 90 degree point is in the North Pole. The parallel lines above the equator are denoted by the letter "N" meaning North. For example, the latitude line could be 15 ° N (15 degrees north latitude).
- As you move below the equator, the distance between each parallel of latitude increases by one degree until the point is 90 degrees. That is the South Pole. You use the symbol "S" for south. For example, the latitude could be 30 ° S (30 degrees south latitude).
Write coordinates. Find a place and determine the intersection of the meridian and latitude. For example, you can find locations along latitude 15 ° N and longitude 30 ° E. When recording longitude and latitude, write latitude first, followed by a comma, and then longitude.- For example, the meridians and latitudes above would be written as "15 ° N, 30 ° E" (15 degrees north latitude, 30 degrees east longitude).
Method 2 of 4: Use degrees, minutes, and seconds
Determine longitude and latitude. Sometimes you need to give a more precise position than the longitude and latitude in general. They can be broken down to minutes and seconds. However, you must decode the meridians and latitude lines. Let's see which latitude and longitude the look for is located.- For example, suppose that the search location is located on latitude 15 ° N and longitude 30 ° East.
Find the number of minutes between each longitude and latitude line. The distance between these lines is divided into one degree.Degrees are further divided into minutes. Imagine having 60 equal minutes dividing each meridian and latitude. You can use an online map to determine the exact number of minutes where your location is within each longitude or latitude line. Single quotes are used to indicate minutes between longitude or latitude lines.
- For example, if you can find that the distance between the parallel lines is 23 minutes, you will write "23 '".
Determine the number of seconds between each minute. The minutes will be further divided into seconds. Each minute has 60 seconds. Online maps also help you pinpoint the exact number of seconds in each minute. Double quotes are used to indicate seconds.
- For example, if the distance between minutes on the meridian is 15 seconds, you would write 15 ".
Record degrees, then minutes and seconds. After finding the exact minute and second coordinates for longitude and latitude, write them down in the correct order. Starting with latitude, write down your measurements, then minutes and finally seconds. Then add north or south direction. Next, mark the comma, then the degrees, minutes, and seconds of the longitude. Add east or west direction.
- For example, you have latitudes of 15 ° N, 24 minutes, and 15 seconds. You have longitude of 30 ° East, 10 minutes, and 3 seconds.
- The above longitude and latitude will be written as: 15 ° 24’15 "North, 30 ° 10’3" East.
Method 3 of 4: Use degrees and minutes measurements in decimal
Determine the coordinates of the meridians and latitudes. You can also use minutes as a decimal number to determine longitude and latitude. However, you have to start over by defining the meridians and latitudes. Find out where the meridian and latitude lines meet to determine your location.
- For example, let's say your location is at 15 ° North latitude, 30 ° west longitude.
Specifies the number of minutes, including the decimal points. Some maps calculate minutes followed by decimal points instead of seconds. Online maps can give you minutes broken down to decimals for each longitude and latitude line. For example, the latitude can be specified at 23,0256 minutes.
Identify negative and positive numbers. When using decimal degrees and minutes, don't use directions such as east, west, south, north. Instead, you use negative and positive numbers to identify locations on the map.
- Remember, the latitude line is above or below the equator. When using decimals for longitude and latitude, positive numbers indicate position above the equator, while negative numbers indicate position below the equator. The number 23,456 is above the equator, while the number -23,456 is below.
- The meridians are located east or west of the Meridian. A positive number indicates a position to the east of the Meridian, while a negative number indicates a position to the west. For example, the number 10,234 is to the east of the prime meridian, while the number -10,234 is to the west of the prime meridian.
Record longitude and latitude. To fully determine the location of a place, start with the latitude line. Next are the coordinates with the number of minutes and the decimal point. Add a comma and then the meridian with the number of minutes and the point of the body. Remember to use positive and negative numbers to determine coordinate positions. You do not use degree notation for this format.
- For example, a line lies in the range of 15 ° north latitude, 30 ° west longitude. Determine the number of minutes and decimal points, and write down the coordinates.
- The above example could be written as: "15 10,234, 30 -23,456".
Method 4 of 4: Use the unit of measurement of decimal degrees
Find meridian and latitude. The number of degrees of latitude and longitude is usually broken down into the decimal point. Instead of using minutes and seconds, lines showing a degree are divided into decimal points for precise positioning. First, you find the number of degrees of latitude and longitude.
- For example, let's say your location is at 15 ° North latitude, 30 ° west longitude.
Calculate the number of decimal points. Online maps can subdivide longitude and latitude longitude using the decimal point. Typically, the decimal point is made up of five digits.
- For example, your location coordinates might be 15,23456 north latitude and 30,67890 longitude west.
Identify negative and positive numbers. Instead of using words like: east, west, south, north to indicate direction, you use negative and positive numbers. For the latitude, the lines above the equator are represented by positive numbers and those below the equator are represented by negative numbers. For the meridian, the line to the east of the Meridian has the positive sign while the line to the west of the Meridian has the negative sign.
- For example, latitude 15,23456 will be above the equator, while latitude -15,23456 will be below the equator.
- Longitude 30,67890 would be east of the base meridian, while longitude -30,67890 would be on the west.
Record the longitude and latitude with the decimal point. Using decimal degrees is very simple. You just need to write the latitude with the decimal point, followed by the longitude with the decimal point. Use positive and negative signs to determine direction.
- For example, suppose we have the coordinates of 15 ° north latitude, 30 ° west longitude. Using the decimal system, you can write: "15,23456, -30,67890".
