WBBSE Class 6 Geography Solutions Chapter 3 Location of a Place on the Earth’s Surface

Detailed explanations in West Bengal Board Class 6 Geography Book Solutions Chapter 3 Location of a Place on the Earth’s Surface offer valuable context and analysis.

WBBSE Class 6 Geography Chapter 3 Question Answer – Location of a Place on the Earth’s Surface

Objective Type Questions :

Question 1.
What is the latitude of equator?
Answer:
0°

Question 2.
What is the latitude of Tropic of Cancer?
Answer:
23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° North

Question 3.
What is the latitude of Arctic Circle ?
Answer:
66 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° North

Question 4.
What is the latitude of Tropic of Capricorn?
Answer:
23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° South

Question 5.
What is the latitude of Antarctic Circle?
Answer:
66 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° South

Question 6.
Which is the longest line of latitude?
Answer:
Equator

Question 7.
Which latitudes are known as low latitudes?
Answer:
0° to 30°

Question 8.
Which latitudes are known as Mid latitudes?
Answer:
30° to 60°

Question 9.
Which latitudes are known as High latitudes?
Answer:
60° to 90°

Question 10.
Which star is located vertically above the North Pole?
Answer:
Pole-Star

Question 11.
How many lines of latitude are there?
Answer:
180 + 1 = 181

Question 12.
How many lines of longitude are there?
Answer:
360 – 1 = 359

Question 13.
What is the location of international date line?
Answer:
180° E – W meridian

Question 14.
Which meridian is called Prime Meridian?
Answer:
0° meridian

Question 15.
What is the value of equator?
Answer:
0° latitude

Question 16.
What is the value of Prime Meridian?
Answer:
0° longitude

Question 17.
What is the approximate distance covered by 1° latitude?
Answer:
111 km

Question 18.
What is the difference of time for 1° of longitude?
Answer:
4 minutes

Question 19.
Name the two basic lines of reference for location of a place on Earth.
Answer:
Prime Meridian and equator

Question 20.
What does the word ‘meridian’ mean?
Answer:
‘Mid-Day’

Question 21.
Into how many time zones, has the world been divided ?
Answer:
24

Question 22.
Where is the place, Greenwich located?
Answer:
On 0° longitude (Britain) near London

Question 23.
Who devised the lines of latitude and longitude?
Answer:
Eratosthenes

Question 24.
Name the two hemispheres of the Earth made by the equator.
Answer:
Northern and Southern Hemisphere

Question 25.
Name the thermal zones of the Earth.
Answer:
Tropical, Temperate and polar.

Question 26.
Which temperature zone receives almost vertical rays of the Sun?
Answer:
Tropical Zone.

Question 27.
Which temperature zone receives slanting rays?
Answer:
Polar Zone.

Question 28.
Which line of longitude is used to fix the world standard time?
Answer:
Prime Meridian – 0°

Question 29.
How can the position of a place be fixed on a map?
Answer:
With the help of latitude and longitude of a place.

Question 30.
What is meant by ‘parallels of latitude’?
Answer:
Lines of latitude

Question 31.
What do you mean by meridians?
Answer:
Lines of Longitude

Question 32.
What is a small circle?
Answer:
A circle which does not bisect the Earth into two equal halves.

Question 33.
What is the relation between Temperature and Latitude of a place?
Answer:
The temperature decreases with latitude.

Question 34.
What is latitude of North Pole and South pole?
Answer:
90° N and 90° S

Question 35.
What name is given to 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° North latitude?
Answer:
Tropic of Cancer

Question 36.
What name is given to 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° South latitude?
Answer:
Tropic of Capricorn

Question 37.
What is latitudinal value of Arctic circle and Antarctic circle ?
Answer:
66 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° N and 66 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° S

Question 38.
Where is the equator situated ?
Answer:
In the middle of the Earth (Between North Pole and South Pole).

Question 39.
What is a grid (Earth Grid) ?
Answer:
It is a network of parallel and meridians on a globle. It is also called geographic grid.

Question 40.
Why are the letters N or S added to latitude values?
Answer:
The latitudes in Northern hemisphere are marked N while the latitude in Southern hemisphere marked S.

Question 41.
What is the importance of Tropic of Cancer?
Answer:
It marks the Northern Limit of Tropical Zone.

Question 42.
What is the importance of Tropic of Capricorn?
Answer:
It marks the Southern Limit of tropical zone.

Question 43.
Name the two reference lines with respect to which the distances of various places on the Earth’s surface are measured?
Answer:
Prime Meridian and Equator.

Question 44.
How is the latitude of a place found zone?
Answer:
With the help of Pole Star.

Question 45.
What are the limits of the tropical zone?
Answer:
23\(\frac{1}{2}\)° N and 23\(\frac{1}{2}\)° S

Question 46.
What is the North Temperate Zone?
Answer:
The Zone between 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° N – 66 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° N

Question 47.
What is the South Temperate Zone?
Answer:
The Zone between 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° S – 666 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° S.

Question 48.
By how many lines is the equator intersected?
Answer:
359

Question 49.
Why are letters E or W added to longitude values?
Answer:
The longitudes in the Eastern hemisphere are marked E while the longitudes in the Western hemisphere are marked W.

Question 50.
What are holes on the Earth?
Answer:
The Pole pointing towards Pole Star is called North pole while the opposite pole is called South Pole.

Define the following briefly : 2 marks each

Question 1.
What do you mean by latitude?
Answer:
Latitude is the angular distance of a place North or South of plane of equator.

Question 2.
What do you mean by longitude?
Answer:
Longitude is the angular distance of a place East or West of the Prime Meridian.

Question 3.
What is Graticule ?
Answer:
The network of parallels and meridians is called graticule.

Question 4.
What is Equator?
Answer:
Equator is an imaginary circle bisecting the Earth into two equal halves.

Question 5.
Define ‘Latitude’ and ‘Longitude’ of a place.
Answer:
Latitude is the angular distance of a place North or South of the equator. Longitude is angular distance of a place East of West of Prime Meridian.

Question 6.
What are the uses of lines of latitude?
Answer:

1. We can find out the average temperature of a place with the help of latitude.
2. We can find out the distance of a place from the equator ( 1 % latitude = 111 km )
3. We can determine the location of a place.

Question 7.
What is the main function of longitude in Mathematical Geography?
Answer:
Longitude’s main function is to determine local time of a place in relation to
Greenwich mean time or world time. It is useful in determining the location of a place on the Earth.

Question 8.
(a) What do you mean by ‘Grid’ ?
(b) Which lines from the grid ?
(c) What is the use of this grid ?
Answer:
The lines of latitude and the lines of longitude intersect to form a geographic Grid System. This grid is located on a globe. It helps to find the exact location of places on Earth.

Question 9.
What is meant by ‘Graticule’ or ‘Earth Grid’ ?
Answer:
Lines of longitude and lines of latitude are drawn to determine the location of a place on the Earth. This complete network of parallels and meridians is called ‘graticule’ or ‘Earth Grid’. The term Grid is used for a network of crossing lines.

Question 10.
How will you find the latitude of a place with the help of Pole Star?
Answer:
Pole Star always points towards the North Pole. The altitude of the Pole Star is same as the latitude of a place in the northern hemisphere.

Question 11.
How will you determine the latitude of a place with the help of the Sun ?
Answer:
The latitude of a place can be determined by measuring the altitude of the Sun at mid-day. The mid-day altitude of the Sun is subtracted from 90°. It gives Zenith distance (i.e., the angle of the Sun with the Zenith of a place). The latitude of a place can be determined with the help of the following rule :
Latitude of a place = Zenith distance pm Declinaion of the Sun.

Answer the following questions : 5 marks each

Question 1.
Mention the properties of parallels of latitude.
Answer:
Important Properties of Parallels :

1. A latitude is the angular distance of a place north or south of equator.
2. The maximum value of latitude is 90°.
3. The total number of latitudes including equator are 89 + 1 + 89 = 179
4. Parallels are always parallel to one-another.
5. Being parallel to each other the parallels never intersect each other
6. Parallels except North Pole and South Pole are circular lines but not of the same size.
7. As the latitude increases, the circumference of the parallel decreases.
8. The parallels of latitude run in the east-west direction.
9. The distance between any two consecutive parallels remains almost same and it is about 111 k.
10. All parallels except North Pole and South Pole intersect meridians at right angles.
11. All parallels except the equator are small circles.
12. Every point on the earth lies on parallel of latitude.
13. The place lying on the same parallel receive almost the same heat but local time differs from place to place.

Question 2.
What are the importance or uses of parallels of latitudes?
Answer:
Importance of uses of Parallels of Latitude :

1. Parallels help us to guess what type of climate would prevail in a particular place.
2. To find out the exact position of a place on the earth’s surface we need both the lines of latitude and longitude.
3. The parallels of latitude enable us to know the distance of a place from the equator and they can be used to determine the scale of a map.

Question 3.
What are the properties of Meridians ?
Answer:
Important Properties of Meridians :

1. Longitude is the angular distance of a place east or west of the Prime Meridians
2. There are 360 meridians of longitude.
3. The meridians are not parallel. They converge at the two poles.
4. The meridians are semi-circles.
5. All meridians are of equal length
6. The distance between any two merdians are of equal. They get closer from the equator to the poles.
7. All meridians run in a true north-south direction.
8. All places on the same meridian have sunrise, noon or sunset at the same time.
9. Each meridian cuts the equator at right angle.

Question 4.
Distinguish between the Parallels of Latitude and meridians of Longitude.
Answer:
Difference between latitude and longitude

Points of differnece	Parallels of latitude	Meridians of longitude
1. Orientation	Parallels are extended in eastwest direction	Meridians are extended in north-south direction.
2. Extent	Parallels are extended in eastwest direction	Meridians are extended in north-south direction.
3. Types	They are parallel to each other.	They are not parallel.
4. Highest	The highest possible latitude is 90°.	The highest possible longitude is 180°
5. Total No.	There are 89 parallels in both the hemisphere at an interval of 1°. The total is 179.	There are 180 meridians in both the hemisphere. The total in 360.
6. Length	From the equator towards the poles the parallels are getting smaller in length.	Meridians remain uniform in length.
7. Climate	Parallels are related to climatic belts.	Meridians are related to local time.
8. Angle	Total angular measurement is 360°.	Total angular measurement is 180°.

Question 5.
Distinguish bewteen Great Circle and Small Circle.
Answer:

Great Circle	Small Circle
1. A great circle is a circle which bisects the Earth into two equal hemispheres.	1. A small circle is a circle which does not bisect the Earth into two equal hemispheres.
2. It passes through the centre of the Earth.	2. It does not pass through the centre of the Earth.
3. It has circumference of 2 πR.	3. It has a circumference less than 2π R.
4. All meridians and Equator are great circles.	4. All parallels except Equator are small circles.
5. Ships follow great circle as it is the shortest distance between two points.	5. Ships do not follow small circle routes.

Question 6.
Distinguish between latitude and longitude of a place.
Answer:

Latitude	Longitude
1. Latitude is the angular distance of a place North or South of the Equator.	1. Longitude is the angular distance of a place East or West of Prime Meridian.
2. The latitude value-increases in NorthSouth directions from the Equator.	2. The longtidue value increases in EastWest directions from Meridian.
3. Its value ranges between 0° to 90° N, 0° to 90° S.	3. Its value ranges between 0° to 180° E, 0° to 180° W

Question 7.
Distinguish between Equator and Prime Meridian.
Answer:

Equator	Prime Meridian
1. Equator is a circle around the Earth bisecting it into two equal parts.	1. The prime meridian is a semicircle joining north pole and south pole.
2. It is 0° latitude.	2. It is 0° longitude.
3. It passes through the centre of the Earth.	3. It passes through the Greenwich (London).
4. It divides the Earth into northern and southern hemispheres.	4. It divides the Earth into eastern and western hemispheres.

Question 8.
Distinguish between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn.
Answer:

Tropic of Cancer	Tropic of Capricorn
1. 23 1/2° N Latitude is known as Tropic of Cancer.	1. 23 1/2° S Latitude is known as Tropic of Capricorn.
2. It lies in the northern hemisphere.	2. It lies in the Southern hemisphere.
3. The Sun shines vertical on it on 21 st June.	3. The Sun shines vertical on it on 22 nd December.
4. It is the northern limit of tropical region.	4. It is the southern limit of tropical region.

Question 9.
Distinguish between the Arctic circle and Antarctic circle.
Answer:

Arctic circle	Antarctic circle
1. 66 1/2° N parallel is known as Arctic circle.	1. 66 1/2° S parallel is known as Antarctic circle.
2. Beyond this lies the northern polar region.	2. Beyond this lies the southern polar region.
3. Beyond Arctic circle the length of day is more than 24 hours in summer.	3. Beyond Antarctic circle the length of night is more than 24 hours in writer.
4. Arctic ocean lies in north of it.	4. Antarctica lies in south of it.

Identify the correct answers : 1 mark each

Question 1.
Lines of latitude are :
(a) circles of varying radii
(b) semicircles of equal length
(c) staright lines of varying length
(d) circles of same radius.
Answer:
(a) circles of varying radii

Question 2.
The zone between 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° N and 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)° S is called the
(a) Temperate zone
(b) Torrid zone
(c) Polar zone
(d) Equatorial zone
Answer:
(b) Torrid zone

Question 3.
The Tropic of cancer refers to the line of latitude
(a) 0°
(b) 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\) S°
(c) 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)N°
(d) 30° N.
Answer:
(c) 23 \(\frac{1}{2}\)N°

Question 4.
Latitude of a point is the angular distance of that point measured from
(a) North Pole
(b) Equator
(c) Prime Meridian
(d) South Pole
Answer:
(b) Equator

Question 5.
Lines of Latitudes are
(a) of equal length
(b) parallel to one another
(c) north to south lines
(d) coverage at the equator.
Answer:
(b) parallel to one another

Question 6.
The end points on the surface of the earth are called
(a) points
(b) dots
(c) poles
(d) tops
Answer:
(c) poles

Question 7.
Meridians are lines
(a) which coverage at the two poles
(b) which are of unequal length
(c) which are parallel
(d) which coverage at the equator
Answer:
(a) which coverage at the two poles

Question 8.
The parallels of latitude are
(a) triangular
(b) circular
(c) oval
(d) rectangular lines
Answer:
(b) circular

Question 9.
The parallel which is called the ‘Great Circle’
(a) 23° 30’N circle
(b) 0° circle
(c) 66° 30’N circle
(d) 90° circle
Answer:
(b) 0° circle

Question 10.
The Arctic circle is
(a) 23° 30’E
(b) 66° 30° N
(c) 66° 30° S
(d) 90° W
Answer:
(b) 66° 30° N

Fill in the blanks with correct words : 1 mark each

1. The _____ divides the earth into Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere.
Answer:
Equator

2. The distance between any two parallels of latitude is always _____.
Answer:
Equal

3. The _____ is also known as Zero Meridian.
Answer:
Prime meridian

4. The word ‘Meridian’ is derived from the Latin word Meridianus meaning _____.
Answer:
Mid-day

5. The parallel ____ degree south is called the Tropic of Capricorn.
Answer:
23 \(\frac{1}{2}\) S

6. The parallel ____ degree north is called the Arctic Circle.
Answer:
23 \(\frac{1}{2}\) N

If the sentence is true, write ‘T’ and if false write ‘F’ against the following : 1 mark each

1. The highest possible latitude is 360°.
Answer:
False

2. The equator divides the Earth into two equal halves.
Answer:
True

3. The Antarctic circle is the line of longitude as 66 \(\frac{1}{2}\)°N.
Answer:
False

4. The Tropic of capricorn lies in the Northern Hemisphere.
Answer:
False

5. The Prime Meridian is the reference line for locating places in an east-west direction.
Answer:
True

6. Latitude lines are of equal length.
Answer:
False

7. Longitude lines are also called meridiAnswer:
Answer:
True

8. Latitude of a place alone give us complete idea about the location of a place of the Earth surface.
Answer:
False

9. All meridians run in a east-west direction.
Answer:
False

10. The Earth axis makes 40° angle with the equatorial plane.
Answer:
False

11. The latitudes are semi-circles.
Answer:
False

12. All meridians are of equal length.
Answer:
True

13. There are two Frigid Zones on the Earth.
Answer:
True

14. Tempera-ture increases as we go away from equator.
Answer:
False

15. The Torrid Zone lies between the Tropic of cancer and Tropic of capricorn.
Answer:
True

Location of a Place on the Earth’s Surface Class 6 WBBSE Notes

Latitude and longitude : Lines of latitude and lines of longitude intersect each other to form a Grid. The Earth Grid helps in determining the location of a place.
Lines of latitude : These join the places of same latitude. These are called parallels of latitude as these are drawn parallel to the equator.
important parallels of latitude : Equator (0°), Tropic of Cancer (23 1/2° N), Tropic of Capricorn (23 1/2° S), Arctic circle (66 1/2° N), Antarctic circle (66 1/2° S) are important parallels of latitude.
Lines of Longitude: These are drawn from pole to pole. These are called meridians also 0° longitudeis called Prime meridian.

Time : Local time is time of the meridian of place i.e., 12 o’clock at noon. Standard time is the time of a central meridian of a country. Indian Standard Time (I.S.T.) is the time of 82 1/2° E Meridian near Allahabad, while G.M.T. is time of Greenwhich (0°. meridian) near London.

Time and longitude : There is a difference of 4 minutes for 1° of longitude. Eastern places are ahead of time. The following rule is used : East-Gain-Add. West-Lose-Subtract.

International Date Line : It is an imaginary line roughly corresponding to 180° meridian while crossing the international date line, ships gain or miss a day.

A globe is a model of the earth. Have you seen a globe in your school or home? It is a model of earth on a small scale. How do we locate places on the Earth ? The earth has no edges or corners which we can take as reference points or lines for measurement. For example, how do you locate your place in the classroom? Your seat may be the third seat in the second row. Here, you have two reference lines, namely the rows from the teacher’s table and number of seat from the entrance to the classroom. Therefore, we need two reference lines for locating places on the Earth.

The Equator and the Prime Meridian –

We know that the Earth is rotating on an imaginary axis.

The Poles : The two end points on the Earth’s surface at the top and at the bottom of the axis are called the poles of the Earth. That pole which points or ends towards the pole star is called the North Pole and the bottom end point is called the South Pole.

What is axis of the Earth?

An imaginary straight line joining the two poles (North and South Pole) passing through the centre of the Earth is called Earth’s axis. This axis is inclined to the plane of the earth’s orbit at an angle of 66 1/2°.

The Equator : If an east-west imaginary circle is drawn through the surface of the earth at an equal distance or midway from both the poles (north pole and south pole), it will divide the Earth’s surface into two almost equal halves. This imaginary line is called the Equator.

Hemispheres: The word hemisphere means half of a sphere i.e., the Earth. The e quat or divides the earth into two equal hemispheres. The northern half of the earth from the equator is known as the Northern Hemisphere and the southern half is known as Southern Hemisphere. So the half of the Earth to the north of the equator is called the Northern Hemisphere and half to the south of the equator is called the Southern Hemisphere.

All parallel circles from the equator upto the poles are called parallels of latitudes. These latitudes are measured in degrees. The equator itself is the largest among these lines (circles). The value of the equator is 0°. The remaining parallels become progressively smaller towards the poles. All the parallels are circular. The value of the north and the south poles of the Earth are 90° N and 90° S respectively.

Parallels of Latitudes: A line of latitude is an imaginary line on the Earth’s surface which joins all places having the same value to the north or south of the equator. The equator is the longest line of latitude. The length of equator is equal to the circumference of the Earth. Other lines of latitude are shorter length. The lengths of the lines of latitude decrease with distance from the equator. For example, 60° latitude is only half the length of the equator.

All lines of latitudes are circles parallel to the equator. Therefore, lines of latitude are called parallels of latitude.

Important parallels of latitudes –

Besides the equator and the two poles, the other important lines of latitude are the

• The parallel 23 1/2° N (North) is called the Tropic of cancer.
• The parallel of 66 1/2° N (North) is called the Arctic circle.
• The parallel 23 1/2° S (South) is called the Tropic of capricorn
• The parallel 66 1/2° S (South) is called the Antarctic circle.

The Tropics of cancer and capricorn mark the limits of the Tropical zone. In this zone, the Sun’s rays are overhead at least on one day in a year. The Arctic circle marks the limit of the North Polar Zone. The Antarctic circle marks the limit of the South Polar Zone. The Zone between the Tropic of cancer and the Arctic circle is called the North Temperate Zone. The zone between the Tropic of capricorn and the Antarctic circle is called the South Temperate Zone.

Based on latitude, we also describe different regions of the earth as under –

(a) Low Latitudes : The region between the Equator and 30° N or 30° S.
(b) Mid Latitudes : Between 30° and 60° N or S.
(c) High Latitudes : Between 60° and 90° N or S.

Relation between latitude and climate identification of Heat Zone:

Distance between the parallels of latitude : The circumference of the earth is 40,075 km. The parallels of latitude are all full circles. The circumference is 360°. So the distance between 1° latitude is therefore 40,075 ÷ 360 = 111 . 1 km (approx). Distance between the latitudes are not same always because of the earth’s shape. It is 110.56 km near equator ; 110.8 km at 30° latitude; 11.7 km at 89° latitude ; Average distance between the latitudes are 111 km (69 mile).

A Number of Latitudes : We know that there are 360° in a circle. From pole to pole it is only half a circle or 180°. So the number of parallels of latitude at an interval of 1° is 89 in the northern hemisphere and 89 in the southern hemisphere (as NRS poles are two dots). If we take equator ; then the total no. of parallel are 89 + 89 + 1 = 179.

Characteristics of latitudes or parallels of latitudes :

• All latitudes are full circles.
• The parallels of latitude run in the east west direction
• Parallels are always parallei to each other.
• Among the parallels the equatoi is the largest and knowri as Great Circle.
• As the latitude increases the circumference of the parallel decreases.
• Being parallel to each other they never intersects one another.
• All the parallels except North Pole and South Pole intersect meridians at right angles.
• The place lying on the same parallel receives almost the same heat but local time differs place to place.
• The maximum value of parallel is 90°.
• The total number of the parallels of latitude including equator is 89 + 1 + 89 = 179.

Longitude :

You will find that it is difficult to find the exact location with the help of latitude only. The latitude of New Delhi is 30° N. Then New Delhi can be any where along the latitude of 30° N. You need to know something else to fix its position. The other fixed line of reference is a line running from the North Pole to the Soth Pole, called the Prime Meridian. All other lines running from the North Pole to the South Pole are called meridians of longitude.

Longitude is the angular distance of a place east or west of the Prime Meridian (also called Zero Meridian or Fixed Meridian).

The distance between any two meridians is also measured in degrees. Since each meridian of longitude is a semi-circle running from the North Pole to the South Pole. The zone between the Prime Meridian and 180° E longitude is called the Eastern Hemisphere. The opposite zone (0° to 180° W) is called the Western Hemisphere.

All lines of longitude are semicircles of equal length. The distance or gap between two lines of longitude is maximum at the equator and decreases gradually away from the equator.

Characteristics of the Meridian of longitude :

• Longitude is the angular distance of a place east or west of the Prime Meridian.
• There are 360 meridians of longitude.
• The meridians are not parallel. They converge at the two poles.
• The meridians are semicircles.
• All the meridians are of equal length.
• The distance between any two meridian varies they get closer from the equator to the poles.
• All meridians run in a north south direction.
• All places on the same meridian have sunrise, sunset, noon, at the same times.
• Each meridian cuts the equator at right angle.

Great Circles: A great circle is a circle drawn on the Earth in such a way that the centre of the circle is the centre of the Earth. The radius of the great circle is the same as the radius of the Earth. A great circle is the largest possible circle that can be drawn on the surface of a sphere. Any number of great circles may be drawn on a sphere. All great circles divide the sphere any two equal hemisphere.

The equator is an example of a great circle. The equator divides the earth into two hemispheres. All lines of longitude are great circles. All lines of latitude except the equator are small cirles. The centres of the small circles are points other than the centre of the Earth. The small circles have radii which are smaller than that of the Earth.