Editing Longitude

[[Category: Astronomy]]
== Explanation ==
The longitude is an arbitrary line used along with the [[latitude]] in a geographical coordinate system to specify a location of a point on the surface of the [[Earth]]. For a point on the surface of the Earth, the longitude is the line that runs from north pole to the south pole through it. Longitude also specifies the west to east [[angular displacement]] of the point of interest on a latitude relative to the reference longitude called the [[prime meridian]]. The prime meridian on Earth passes through the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England and is defined at 0°. The longitude is then measured +180° towards the east and -180° towards the west from there. The longitude meridians are separated at 1° intervals, which correspond to 60 [[minute]]s. For precision, these 60 minutes are further divided into 60 [[second]]s. These intervals can be observed practically in the world as [[time zone]]s.

== Frequently Asked Questions ==
=== How to calculate the longitude of a location? ===
The longitude of a location can be found by finding the difference between the local mean time and the Greenwich mean time. Without a local reference of time or a clock in your location, finding the longitude is quite impossible. There was even a system of rewards by the British government known as the Longitude rewards, for the people who could accurately measure the longitude of a ship at sea. To know how to find latitude, read [[Latitude#How_to_find_the_latitude_of_my_position_without_a_map_or_GPS.3F|this]] answer.