what are the 5 major circles of latitude
Antarctic Circle Tropic of Cancer Tropic of Capricorn Equator Arctic Circle
title: Circle of latitude text: latitude in the Southern Hemisphere at which the sun can remain continuously above or below the horizon for 24 hours (at the December and June Solstices respectively). The latitude of the polar circles is equal to 90° less the Earth's axial tilt. The Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn mark the northernmost and southernmost latitudes at which the sun may be seen directly overhead (at the June solstice and December solstice respectively). The latitude of the tropical circles is equal to the Earth's axial tilt. By definition, the positions of the Tropic of Cancer, Tropic of Capricorn, Arctic Circle title: Circle of latitude text: is at 37°N. Roughly half the length of border between the United States and Canada follows 49°N. There are five major circles of latitude, listed below from north to south. The position of the Equator is fixed (90 degrees from Earth's axis of rotation) but the latitudes of the other circles depend on the tilt of this axis relative to the plane of Earth's orbit, and so are not perfectly fixed. The values below are for : These circles of latitude, excluding the Equator, mark the divisions between the five principal geographical zones. The equator is the circle that is title: Equator text: is derived from medieval Latin word "aequator", in the phrase "circulus aequator diei et noctis," meaning ‘circle equalizing day and night’, from the Latin word "aequare" meaning ‘make equal’. The latitude of the Earth's equator is, by definition, 0° (zero degrees) of arc. 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 Equator is the only line of latitude which is also a great circle — that is, title: Circle of latitude text: equidistant from the North Pole and South Pole. It divides the Earth into the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere. Of the parallels or circles of latitude, it is the longest, and the only 'great circle' (a circle on the surface of the Earth, centered on Earth's center). All the other parallels are smaller and centered only on Earth's axis. The Arctic Circle is the southernmost latitude in the Northern Hemisphere at which the sun can remain continuously above or below the horizon for 24 hours (at the June and December solstices respectively). Similarly, the Antarctic Circle marks the northernmost title: Tropic of Capricorn text: Tropic of Capricorn The Tropic of Capricorn (or the Southern Tropic) is the circle of latitude that contains the subsolar point on the December (or southern) solstice. It is thus the southernmost latitude where the Sun can be directly overhead. Its northern equivalent is the Tropic of Cancer. The Tropic of Capricorn is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of Earth. As of , its latitude is south of the Equator, but it is very gradually moving northward, currently at the rate of 0.47 arcseconds, or 15 metres, per year. When this line of latitude