Chapter -2

Parallels and meridians

Back exercise questions

Question 1: What is a parallel? Write three features of parallels.

Answer 1: A Parallels is an imaginary line drawn on the surface of a globe. It runs from east to west.

1. All parallels are complete circles except for the North Pole and the South Pole, which are points.

2. All parallels are located at an equal distance from each other.

3. Parallels neither touch nor cross each other.

Question 2: How do we number parallels on a globe?

Answer 2: we start from the Equator and mark it as 0°.

The other parallels are marked from 0° to 90°. Apart from their value, the parallels are also marked N (North) or S (South), according to their location. The North Pole and the South Pole are written as 90° N and 90°S respectively.

Question 3: What is a meridian? Write three features of meridians.

Answer 3: Imaginary lines on a globe, running from north to south, are called meridians.

These lines are drawn from pole to pole.

1. All meridians are of the same length.

2. The maximum distance between any two meridians is at the Equator.

3. The distance between any two meridians decreases as we move away from the Equator towards the poles.

4. Meridians cut the parallels at right angles (90°).

5. Meridians are used to measure distances in the east- west direction.

6. 
   

Question 4: How can we locate a place on a globe?

Answer 4: To locate a place, we must know the values of its parallels or latitude and it’s meridian or longitude. The point at which the parallel and meridian cross each other is the location of that place.

Think and answer

Question: The length of a parallel increases as we move away from the poles towards the equator. Why?

Answer: The Earth is shaped like a sphere. The Arctic Circle which is near to North Pole is smaller in size than the Equator. Thus, the length of the parallels increases as one moves from the Poles to the Equator.

1. Write all the 7 important parallels.

1. Equator- 0°

2. The tropic of cancer – 23 ½ °N

3. The Artic circle – 66 ½°N

4. The tropic of Capricorn – 23 ½°S

5. The Antarctic circle – 66 ½ °S

6. North pole -90°N

7. South pole – 90°S

2. Name the two main imaginary lines on the Earth.

1. Equator

2. Prime meridian

3. Explain the term Grid.

Answer. A grid is a network of parallels and meridians.

4. How many lines does parallels and meridians have.

Answer: Parallels are 181 lines ( 90 In northern hemisphere

,90 in southern hemisphere and 1 is equator).

Meridians are 360 lines ( 180 east and 180 west ).

5. Explain the term Axis.

Answer: An imaginary line passing through two extreme points on a sphere around which it spins.