Earth as a Planet: Shape of the earth. Earth as the home of humankind and the conditions that exist. earth was the centre of the universe and all the heavenly bodies. of. the unix en at aadag However, today it is an accepted fact thatthé“earth is one of the eight planets that move around the sun. ~~ It is the only planet which supports life. From space, the earth looks blue because 70 per cent of its total area is covered by water. “Hence, it is also called the watery planet. The "family of the sun is called the Solar System. The _ members of the solar system are at a certain distance from the sun. The chief members of the solar system are the planets, the satellites that revolve around the planets and other celestial bodies called asteroids, comets and meteorites. The planets in order of their distance from the sun are: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter; _ Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. THE SHAPE OF THE EARTH ‘The earth is not a perfect sphere. It bulges ightly at the centre and is fiattened at the poles. lithe days, the earth was considered to be "a flat disc with steep edges. Aryabhatta, the Sth century Indian astronomer and mathematician, believed in the round shape of the earth. He said that the earth was spherical in shape and rotated on its axis. In the 6th century, Greek Ue SST TT) CHAPTER ONE. Earth As a Planet [Tene [hand 2 Sen Brow philosopher Pythagoras said the same thing. ‘Today, we have convincing evidence to prove that the earth is: spherical in shape. Proof that the Earth is Spherical in shape (i) The Bedford Level Experiment: An experiment was carried oyf in the Bedford Level canal area in nan tee ple of eal length were fixed at intérwals of 5 km. It was enSured that the poles Sethe height above the water in the canal/When the poles were viewed from one end ofthe canal, the middle pole looked slightly higher) {t could not have happened if the earth had a Hat surface) (Fig. 1.1). A similar experiment was repeat at different places with the same result. This experiment demonstrated that the surface of the earth was curved. ‘Sphetical Earth Fig. 1.1. Bedford level experiment —__ ee? © scanned with OKEN Scanner(ii) Sighting of a ship: While standing at .ching ship, we first seash¢ in a nly it chee eh, a it comes closer, we only it ‘ on te the deck in the and finally the hull com: can happen only when curved (Fig-1.2). If the ea ship would have been visibl middle, then its funnel, es into full view. This the earth’s surface is arth were fiat, the entire le at once. Flat Earth ‘Spherical Earth Fig. 1.2. Sighting of a ship (iii) Pole Star: The Pole star can be seen at an angle of 90° at the North Pole. It lies in line with the axis of the earth, and its angle decreases towards the Equator, At the Equator, the angle is 0°. This can happen only in an arc of a circle. (Fig. 1.3). If the earth were would have the same height flat, the Pole Star for all latitudes, Light from Pole Star Ugh tom Pole Siar bale a er Fig. 1.4. A satellite picture of the Earth, The conclusive evidence for the proof th earth’s spherical shape is obtained from th photographs taken from’ space. (v) Lunar Eclipse: The shadow of earth on th surface of the moon is clearly visible from eart during lunar eclipse. It appears as an are of circle. Since the earth is bigger than the moon, it is rarely oriented in the same position as the moon but the shadow is always circular, Fig. 1.5(a). Spherical Earth: The higher the altitude, the wider the circular horizon. The circular horizon AB widens to CD as you move up from ¥ to X. Fig, 1.5(b). Flat Earth: Irrespective of the altitu® the visible horizon is the same. © scanned with OKEN ScannerFlat Earth ie Fig. 1.6. Sunrise and Sunset occurs at different times at different places (vi) Circular Horizon:(The view of the carth’s surface as seen from a height is circular. With increase in altitude the circular horizon also widens, Had the earth’s surface been flat the horizon would have been the same irrespective of altitude. ) o7* In modern days, all radio waves that travel 1 the earth’s surface, can be heard only shape of the earth. (vii) Sunrise and Sunset: The sun rises from the east and sets in the west. Sunrise and sunset occurs at different times at different places. /fhis is because. the earth-rotates-from west to east and therefore, people in the east: can see the sun earlier tian those in the west Had the earth been fiat, the sunrise and sufiset would have occurred at the same time all over the world. (Fig. 1.6) (viii) Circumnavigation: Magellan’s ship Victoria completed a round-the-world voyage in 1522. His ship returned to the same place from where it had started (Spain). It proved beyond doubt that the earth’s surface is round (Fig. 1.7). (ix) The Earth as a Heavenly Body: The earth belongs to the Solar system. All planets in this system are spherical in shape. It is because of their continuous rotation. So the earth being the member of the Solar system cannot be an exception. THE EARTH AS A PLANET Earth, as a planet, is a spherical object in space that moves around the Sun (a star) and receives light from it. The planets do not have light of their own. They move around their stars in fixed paths called orbits. Earth an Oblate Spheroid ‘The earth is said to be spherical; but it is not a perfect sphere. Its diameter varies at the Equator and at the Poles. It diameter at the Equator is 12,756 km while its Polar diameter is 12,714 km. This difference in diameter is due to the centrifiigal force of earth’s rotation at a great speed which forms a bulge at the Equator anda compression at the Polés. Thus, the earth is sdid-to be an-Oblate Spheroid. The shape of the earth is also described as Geoid, which means earth shaped. Fig. 1.7. Circumnavigation—the route taken by Magellan. © scanned with OKEN ScannerEARTH AS THE HOME OF HUMANKIND Our Earth is the only planet that supports Te. Unlike other planets, it is covered with green vegetation, enormous blue-green ocean’ containing over a million islands, @ large Sumber of streams and rivers, huge land masses called continents with mountains, 10° caps and deserts. Some form of life thrives virtually in every part of the earth — from the coldest part of the Poles to the warmest part of the Equator. Earth has certain features that make it habitable and thus, 2 unique planet. ‘Some of these feature are given below. Distance from the Sun © The earth is at an optimus distance from the sun. Hence, it is Bethe too hot nor too cold. © The distance between the earth and the sun makes life possible on the earth. If it was closer to the sun, any life present would get burnt from too much heat of the sun. If it was farther from the sun life would freeze because of lack of heat. ‘Temperature ¢ (‘The earth is the third planet from the sun. “Tt has an average temperat 7°C which is suitable for life to exist. J, 5-2 © If the average temperature on the earth’s surface changes by only a few degrees, many species would perish due to extreme heat or cold. © The other two terrestrial planets, Mercury and Venus are very hot with maximum. temperatures of more than 400°C. The remaining planets in the Solar system are very cold with surface temperature below 0°C. © Venus is the second planet from the sun but it is hotter than Mercury. This is because the atmosphere around Venus is mainly composed of carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide produces Fig. 1.8, Greenhouse effect on the surface of Vp, Thus, the temperature on its gy, ty, remains very high. The earth’s atmos contains a very small quantity of dioxide. ha are Atmosphere @ Atmosphere is the layer of air around thy & earth. It is a mixture of gases like nitroger (78%), oxygen (21%), carbon dioxide, hein, and argon (less than 1%). © The atmosphere receives heat from the guy | by solar radiation and loses heat by earth’, radiation. In this way a balance is maintained, © The earth's atmosphere is made up of life supporting gases like nitrogen, oxygen and carbon dioxide, Other gases include Helium and Argon. © Ozone present in the earth’s atmosphere absorbs the harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun. © The atmosphere also prevents loss of heat from the earth’s surface and helps to keep the earth warm. Water . (eon is a watery planet with 70 per cent of e earth's surface being covered by water” © Distribution of water is responsible for moderating the climate and surface condition of the earth. Condensation hol 08 LLG 41 {Transpiration from Plants ' Evaporation from fateybodjes Watercycle — the movement of jovernent of water betweer re Hydrosphere and Lithosphere ns SP © scanned with OKEN Scanner age “( oy .e /the self-regulatin; (ies ceceeclatng and slt-uataining biosphere is called the Ecosysteng This gystem depends upon the sun forieonan A pond, a lake, desert, grassland, meander, forests are common examples of ecosystems, There is an exchange of materials and energy within the ecosystem as well a between adjoining ecosystems. They are all interconnected and hence, interrelated, ‘Th vast network of all interconnected ecosystems constitute the biosphere, Thus, biosphere is that part of the earth's terrestrial system — including air, land and water — in which life develops and where life processes in turn get transformed. It is the life zone of the earth. ¢ Water from seas, rivers and lakes evaporates into the atmosphere where it condenses and falls back as precipitation, Most of the water on land fiows back to the oceans Thus, water moves in a continuous cycle — the hydrological cycle, as shown in Fig. 1.8. There is a proper balance between evaporation, condensation and precipitation without which life would not be possible. Water can absorb enormous amount of Fig. 1.9. (a) Biosphere plant life. Soil also provides various nutrients: necessary for the growth of plants, which in turn support all forms of animal life directly or indirectly. Bipsphere Ons ST e/ Biosphere is the narrow realm of contact and interaction between the atmosphere, heat without causing much change in its temperature. During the day, waterbodies rapidly absorb enormous amount of heat: thus, the earth remains fairly cool. At night the waterbodies release vast amounts of heat that they absorbed during the day, which along with other atmospheric effects, keep most of the surface from freezing at night. But for the tremendous amount of water on the earth, far greater day and night temperature variations would exist. Solid Crust (Lithosphere) Earth has a solid crust (Lithosphere). Due to the weathering of the rocks, the surface of the earth has been formed, which provides soil layer essential for supporting Birds inthe air Fig. 1.9. (b) Biosphere: The Life Zone lithosphere and hydrospheré © Biosphere provides all the neGessities for all the species living on earth, i.e., light, heat, water, food and habitats. ‘Atmosphere Weal one in the ground EY Cenc Nees eran ete ry © scanned with OKEN Scanner‘e Biosphere is a thin layer of approximately 5 kom from the deepest ocean trench 1 7 highest mountain peak, At the ground Nor jrextends to a depth of just 3m below eX in ocean waters about 200 m deep, whe! marine and freshwater life is found. ; Within the biosphere, life is found chiefly in ine plant kingdom and the animal oe Ne sek, we Life-Giving Cycles Various life-giving cycles operate in nature, balancing the factors necessary for life. Nutrition Cycle: The nutrition cycle represents fa relationship between living and non-living things in our environment (Fig. 1.10). It shows the interdependence of all living things on earth. It operates through the food chain and other processes like photosynthesis, transpiration, respiration etc. The living things are divided into producers, consumers and decomposers. Plants ; are the producers of food through a process of photosynthesis, Energy has its origin from here. Then there are categories of consumers (herbivores and carnivores) who live on the producers. At the top of all is man who can modify his own environment and create changes at the bottom or in the middle level of the food chain, All living beings undergo decomposition by the action of saprotrophs or decomposers. e-. ha ‘esate \ a Fig. 1.10. Nutrition Cycle Carbon dioxide | (Atmosphere) _=«Nitr * resel onygen decay O, Op Fig. 1.11. Carbon Cycle cashes Cycle: Carbon is the basic raw material of all life (Fig. 1.11). All living things contain carbon. Atmospheric carbon dioxide is used by plants in the presence of sunlight and chlorophyll to make their own food by the process of photosynthesis. During this process CO, is fixed as starch by plants. From the plants, carbon moves along the food chain through consumers at different levels. After the death of plants and animals, the carbon present in their bodies is decomposed and absorbed as food by saprophytic bacteria and fungi. When plants die and get buried in the soil, they undergo slow degradation and compaction. This results in the formation of fossil fuels containing huge amounts of carbon. During respiration, plants, animals and humans, use atmospheric oxygen and release _ carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere. The burning of carbon containing fuels also results in the release of CO, in the atmosphere. ‘Thus, carbon from CO, taken by green plants from the environment through photosynthesis is returned to the environment through respiration, decomposition and through burning of fuels. This cyclic movement of carbot from the atmosphere to the organisms and from organisms to the atmosphere is know? as carbon cycle. The carbon cycle helps i" maintaining carbon balance in nature. Any imbalance of carbon in the atmosphe® heats up the earth and leads to Global Warmin Excessive use of gases that produce undue heat and global warming has to be avoided ! maintain a healthy atmosphere. HY: Se i © scanned with OKEN Scannertrogen Cycle: Atmosphere is the largest roximately) of free nitrogen. ants take nitroge: nitrates from energy from the food they eat. Oxygen is also in the form of ni used together with carbon, hydrogen and e soil and it moves through the weretes £ nitrogen to build new molecules in their bodies. imals. Nitrogen is returned to the a aaa Oxygen is released back into the atmosphere manure, excreta and earthh ly remains of plants PY gt€en plants during photosynthesis and by organisms. plants and animals as part of carbon dioxide. Oxygen Cycle: Living things take in oxygen These cycles are nature's mechanism to om the atmosphere. They use it to release maintain balance in the ecosystem. A Lithosphere The layer of rocks on the surface of the earth. Satellite : A body that revolves around a planet. : Circumnavigation : Navigation around the globe. © Atmosphere : The blanket of air surrounding the earth. Photosynthesis : The process by which green plants make their own food using si carbon dioxide and water. ‘ Greenhouse Effect @ scanned with OKEN Scanneries Geographic Grid: Latitudes and Longitudes (e) Concept of latitudes: main latitudes, their location with degrees, parallels of latitude and their uses. (b) Concept of longitudes — Prime Meridian, time (local, standard and time zones, Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and International Date Line (IDL). Eastern and Western hemisphere. (@) Using latitudes and longitudes to find location. Calculation of time. (a) Great Circles and their use. The carth’s surface is so vast that unless a ‘mathematical method is used, it is impossible to Jocate a place on it. For this reason, imaginary lines are drawn on the globe. The lines running ‘east to west, parallel to the Equator, are called lines of latitude. The lines running north to south passing through the poles are called lines of longitude. The intersection of latitudes and longitudes pinpoint a place on the earth’s surface. These criss-crossing lines form a framework known as the Geographic Grid. Eratosthenes, the Greek philosopher, who hhad for the first time calculated the circumference of the earth, had devised lines of latitude and longitude to locate places on the earth. This grid on the globe or the map serves the same purpose as the system of coordinates on the x-axis and y-axis on a graph paper. In this case the x-axis is represented by lines of latitude (horizontal) and y-axis, by lines of longitude (vertical). LINES OF LATITUDE © Lines of Latitude are the imaginary lines joining all places having the same latitude towards north or south of the Equator. e (A latitude is the angular distance of a place north or south of the Equator. ) A latitude is marked in degrees, ‘with Equator being 0 degrees. © Latitudes are calculated according to the angle a place makes with the centre of the earth. Since the lines of latitude are parallel_to the Equator and each other, they are called parallels of latitude. Each parallel of latitude is a full circle. However, only the Equator is a Great Circle. - Oblode 5 Fig. 2.1. The Geographic Grid C Scanned with OKEN ScannerA (a) Latitude degrees are measured from the me ‘Equator to its north or south © The lines of latitude are not of equal length and become smaller as we move towards the poles. At 60° latitude, in each hemisphere the length of the circle is half the length of the Equator. At the poles these lines are just points or dots. Main Latitudes ‘There are 181 parallels of latitude at 1° interval. © Equator is the longest line of latitude. It represents 0° latitude. © The North Pole (90° N) is located at an angular distance of 90° north of the Equator. * The South Pole is located at an angular distance of 90° south of the Equator. © The Tropic of Cancer (23%4*N) is a line of latitude located 23%4° north of the Equator. © The Tropic of Capricorn (23%4°S) is a line of latitude located (2314*8) south of the Equator. * The Arctic Circle represents 6614°N latitude. ‘The Arctic Circle marks the limit of the north . Polar region surrounding the North Pole, © The Antarctic Circle represents 664/* latitude. The Antarctic Circle marks the limit of the south polar region around th South Pole. . . Northern and Southern Hemisphere The Equator that runs midw, the poles divides: the earth inte twee oa hemispheres known as the Norther Hemisphe and the Southem Hemisphere, coe, The Poles—North Pole and Sout x ith, opposite to each other at the eatittne cage Fig. 2.2. (b) Longitude degrees are measured from tig Prime meridian to its east or west the sphere. They are each located at 90° angule: distance north or south of the Equator, ‘The length of the Equator is equal to the circumference of the earth or 40,075 km. Since the circumference of a circle is equal to 360°, the 1° angular distance is roughly equal to 111 km, Uses of Latitudes ‘The lines of latitude form one of the coordinates of the grid system. The lines of latitude have the following uses: To find the location of a Place: Latitudes give us the location of a place north or south of the Equator. Such a location is known as an absolute location. To measure the distance of a Place: Distances are calculated with reference to the Equator at right angle to the place. We can therefore, measure the distance of any place from the Equator based on its degree of latitude, For Fig. 2.3. ‘The lines of Latitude are parallel to each othet © scanned with OKEN ScannerJe, the latitude of Mumbai is 199 at f New Delhi is 30, ee mn on f atitude = 111 km. We can say that Mumbai 2109 km (111 * 19°) away from Equator, jmilarly, New Delhi is 3,330 km (111 x 30°) fay from Equator. t Zones: Besides helping us to locate ‘maps and charts, lines of latitude Mie e earth into distinct heat belts. The lines f latitude indicate the general climate of the a by applying the principle of heat zones thermal zones of the earth. Thus, latitudes ble us to divide the whole earth into different limatic zones. ‘The Torrid or Tropical Zone: The area lying between the Tropic of Cancer (23%°N) and Tropic of Capricorn (23%°S) mark the limits of the Torrid (meaning 'very hot) Zone. It is also called the Tropical Zone. It is the hottest zone of the earth. ‘The Temperate Zones: Two other important lines of latitude based on temperature are the Arctic Circle (66%°N) and the Antarctic Circle (664°S). Between the Arctic Circle and the Tropic of Cancer as well as between the Antarctic Circle and the Tropic of Capricorn lie the two Temperate Zones — the North ‘Temperate (231%°N to 66%°N) and the South ‘Temperate zones (23%4°S to 66%"S). In this region, the climate is moderate, i.e., neither too hot nor too cold. ‘The Frigid Zones: Between the Arctic Circle and the North Pole and between the Antarctic Circle and the South Pole are the two Frigid Zones of the earth. These are the polar regions and receive the sun’s slanting rays. In these two zones, very low temperatures are recorded. LINES OF LONGITUDE © A longitude is the angular distance of a place east or west of the Prime Meridian. ‘The Prime Meridian is the line of longitude whose angular distance is defined as 0°. It passes through Greenwich near London. The lines to the west of Greenwich are suffixed with °W’ and those east of Greenwich are suffixed with “E’. For example 60°W and 60°E. Frigid zone ‘Temperate zone Torrid zone Temperate zone Frigid zone Fig. 2.4, Important Parallels of Latitudes ‘There are a total of 360 lines at 1° interval. The lines of longitude are also called Meridians of Longitude. Meridian’ is derived from the Latin word meridianum’ meaning noon. The sun crosses a meridian at noon. All places on a particular meridian will have noon at the same time. All meridians of longitude converge at the poles and are thus of equal length. ‘The Prime Meridian is numbered as 0°. The others are numbered between 0° to 180°E or W. The line 180°E and W refer to the same meridian. It is diametrically opposite to the 0° longitude. Thus 0° and 180° meridian together make a full circle round the earth. Proceeding at 1° interval from both East and West, other full circles will be 1°- 179°, 2 178°, 60°- 120° and so on. Of the two lines Fig. 2.5. Lines of Longitude © scanned with OKEN Scannerin any segment, one will be in the east and the other in the west. The sum total of two lines will always be 180°. Individually all lines of longitude are semicircles. The two diametrically opposite lines make @ full circle also known as the Great Circle ¢ The distance between two lines of longitude is maximum at the Equator (111 km). The distance decreases gradually as one moves towards the poles. LONGITUDE AND TIME The lines of longitude, as stated earlier, are also known as the ‘Meridians’. At a particular moment of time, if it is 12 Noon at a given longitude, it must be 12 Noon at all places on this longitude. The Earth makes a complete circle on its axis—it covers 360° longitudes in 24 hours. That is to say, it covers every 15° longitudes in one hour or 1° longitude every 4 minutes. Thus, if it is 12 Noon at 0° longitude, it must be 4 minutes past 12 Noon towards the east at the next 1°E longitude or at 15°E longitude it must be 1 p.m. Towards the west, it will be 1 hour less because the Earth rotates from West . A latitude is the angular distance of a place north or south of the Equator. Difference between Lines of Latitude and Lines of Longitude to East as the sun first rises in the Bag the purpose of memorising, EGA-WLS fom used. EGA stands for Bast-Gain-Add ang means West-Lose-Subtract. This in other 4 means that for each 1° longitude towargy Fast, 4 minutes are to be added and longitude towards the West, 4 minutes are ta subtracted. Eastern and Western Hemisphere The Prime Meridian, together with the 1g9 longitude usually divides the earth into ty Eastern and Western Hemispheres. This divisng holds good practically for all purposes. However any two diametrically opposite lines can alg, divide the earth into two equal hemispheres LOCAL TIME The local time of any place is obtained ty the overhead sun at noon. For each degree o} longitude, the local time varies by 4 minutes, Fot example, the longitude of Mumbai is 73°E and that of New Delhi is 77°E. If it is 12 Noon at Mumbai (73°E) it must be 16 minutes past 12 Noon at New Delhi at the same time (77°E - 73°E = 4° longitude difference. 1° longitude = 4 minutes 4° longitude = 16 minutes which is Peete 1. A longitude is the angular distance of east or west of the Prime Meridian. . Lines of Latitude are parallel to the Equator and each other. 2. All meridians of longitude converge poles. . Each parallel of latitude is a full circle. The lines of latitude are not of equal length and ‘become smaller on moving towards the poles. . Latitude degrees are measured from the Equator to its north or south. . The distance between two lines of latitude is approximately 111 km, 3. Individually all lines of longitude semicircles and of equal length. 4, Longitude degrees are measured Prime meridian to its east or west. - Lines of latitude are used to find the locati cation a place, to measure the distance of a place to divide the whole earth i Biiolioaiis acne into different © Scanned with OKEN Scannerto be added because Delhi lies to the east of yfumbai). This means that there will be « huge e difference between Gujarat in the west ae sam in the east. Every place at a different fongitude will have its own local time. ke TIME ZONES AND STANDARD TIME ‘9 overcome the confusion while allowi Bplay of astral farses to pueae tee has been divided into 24 Time Zones’ according jo the number of hours in a day. Each zone overs 15° longitude (360 + 24). ‘The time for ¢ whole zone is determined on the basis of he central meridian of that place. While ountries with smaller east-west extent like India have only one Standard Time Zone, ountries like Russia, Canada, USA have more han one Time Zones. The uniform time based on a central meridian is known as the Standard Time. Standard time must always be divisible by 7%. This allows time to be reckoned by a unit of half-an-hour and not smaller differences. Greenwich Mean Time i Further, while fixing the Time Zones, the time~ at Greenwich (0° longitude) has been selected » as the mean time. Thus, if it is 12 Noon at ¢ Greenwich, at 15°E longitude, the time will be, ¢ 1 pm and at 30°E longitude, the time will be 2pm. The time fixed with reference to Greenwich » is called the Greenwich Mean Time or GMT. Indian Standard Time (IST) 5 In our country, 82°30'E is the central meridian.“S It passes through Mirzapur near Allahabad (Prayagraj). It is known as the Standard Meridian of India. While fixing the Indian Standard Time with respect to the Greenwich Mean Time, we have to add 82°30’ 4 minutes = 330 minutes or 5% hours. This means that India is 5% hours ahead of GMT. Thus if it is 9 AM at London it must be 9 + 5.30 or 14.30 hrs or 2.30 PM in'India. Worked Out Example for calculating the Time at a place Example: It is 5.30 p.m. in India when the = Fig. 2.6, Places on the same longitude have the same time — Places K, O and M have each 40° longitude. If itis 12 noon at kK, it will also be 12 noon at 0 and M Prime Minister's radio broadcast made from ¢,30 Montreal in Canada was heard. What must have been the time at Montreal? x t+ Fe GO Solution 1: After consulting the-Gjlas we find Ev Montreal lies 74°W. yor ipees ‘Time in India = 1730_hS (5:30 PM) abe India is ahead Gf GMT = 5 hrs 30 m Time at Greenwich = 1200 hrs. (noon) ., Montreal Time difference with respect to GMT = 296 min. (74 x 4 min.) = 4 hours 56 minutes Montreal is to the west of GMT, its time = 12 hrs ~ 4 hours 56 min. = 7:04 a.m. Solution 2: Standard Meridian of India = 824° Standard Meridian of Montreal = 74°W Total meridians = 156%4° Meridian = 4 minutes 156% * meridian = 626 minutes (156%4° x4) = 10 hrs 26 minutes zt Montreal is to the west of Delhi, therefore, .e difference will be deducted = 1730 hrs — 1026 hrs = 7.04 a.m, in Montreal. ‘The Prime Minister made his broadcast at 7.04 AM from Montreal which was received at 5.30 p.m. in India. INTERNATIONAL DATE LINE ‘The line of longitude 180° is one and the same for East or West of the Prime Meridian. Since it is diametrically opposite to the Greenwich © scanned with OKEN Scannera Meridian it causes a time difference of a full day on crossing the line. The time difference works out to 12 hours (180° x 4 min) from either side. Thus, on crossing the line, a day is gained or lost. When crossing from the east, time will be 12 hours ahead and while crossing from the west time will be 12 hours behind. If it is 8 PM Monday, 25th December at Greenwich, it will be 8 AM Tuesday, 26th December on crossing the 180° line. But if one were to travel from the west, it will be 12 hours behind or 8 AM Monday, 25th December. When the time lost and gained is computed together, the difference Works out to full 24 hours at 180°E and W. (In the above example, the difference between SAM Monday 25th December and 8 AM Tuesday 26th December is 24 hours.) The International Date Line (IDL) is the 180° line. When crossing this date lin re ¢ from the the time is rossing the ba day is calendar is fixed one tg2 $29 i8 added, oF the ion of having different country, the Date Line dates within the same Fig. 2.7. International Date Line bends and goes zig zag at the Bering Strat between Siberia and Alaska and at Fiji, Tonga) New Zealand and some other Islands | LOCATING PLACES With the help of the grid, we can locate place on the globe or the map, if we know the latitud? and longitude of those places. Worked Out Examples The latitude and longitude of three places given below. Pinpoint these places on the slate ) New York = Latitude 41°N and Lonitud! 7w (i) New Dethi = 30°N and 77° (iti) Mumbai = 19°N and 73°6 First look at the data of New York. Itis#! common practice to write first the lati! id then the longi the above, j © Scanned with OKEN Scanner_GREAT AND SMALL CIRCLES at circle is a circle that is drawn on the Hace of a sphere (such as the earth) that a radius equal to the radius of the sphere, j whose centre is also the sphere’s centre. ¢ Equator is the only latitude that is a great cle. All longitudes are a part of a great Circles which do not pass through the ntre of the earth are the small circles. All the rallels of latitudes other than the Equator e small circles. Arcs of great circles are the jortest route between two points on a sphere. acteristics of a GreatCircle (i) A great circle is a theoretical circle formed by the intersection of the earth’s surface and an imaginary plane that passes through the centre of the earth and divides it into two equal parts. ) All such circles must pass through or touch the centre of the circle. fii) Infinite number of circles that touch the two opposite ends of the sphere can be drawn on a sphere. iv) Intersecting great circles always bisect each other. irespect of characteristic (i) above, the Equator ‘the largest possible circle among lines of the latitude. The Equator and all diametrically opposite longitudes touch the centre of a circle and therefore are Great Circles. Characteristic (iii) excludes all latitudes except the Equator. All the parallels of latitudes are small circles. Uses of Great Circles (i) Navigators use great circles to find the shortest distance between any two points on the earth’s surface. A Great Circle Route’ is the shortest distance between two places on the earth and lies on the arc of a great circle. Using this hypothesis, the shortest route from New York to Moscow would be over the North Pole. Thus, it does not take into account restrictions such as weather or political restrictions imposed by the countries concerned. It also does not take into account, lack of landing and take off facilities for aeroplanes. Great Circle routes are specially important for places that are on opposite sides of the globe. Most globes show great circle routes between distant ports across the Atlantic, the Pacific and the Indian Ocean. (ii) (iii) Great circles are used by meteorologists to determine climate and weather conditions in a region. @ scanned with OKEN Scanner| Sree olt Rotation - direction, | wre (occurrence of day and | in the east and setting in | Rotation ans | speed and its eff night, the sun rising | | the west, Coriolis effect) | Revolution of the earth and its inclined axis | | | — effects: the variation in the length of the | | day and night and seasonal changes with Equinoxes and Solstices. | ‘The earth, like all other planets in the Solar System revolves round the sun in an elliptical orbit and it also rotates on its axis. These two motions of the earth are known as revolution and rotation, respectively. Many phenomena on earth like day and night, seasons, winds and ‘ocean currents depend on these motions. ROTATION OF THE EARTH Rotation is the spinning of the earth pn its isfrom west to east once in 24 Tae The ‘axis is the imaginary line passing through the centre of the earth as it does on the globe. The two end points through which the axis passes are known as the North Pole and the South Pole. ‘The axis is tilted at an angle of 2314” from the vertical. This means that if a line were drawn parallel to the plane of the carth’s orbit, the axis would make an angle of 66%" to this line as shown in Fig. 3.1 2d Characteristics of Rotation 1. Direction: The earth completes one rotation from west to east on its axis in 23 hours, 2 i; CHAPTER THREE lution. KevO 56 minutes, 4.09 seconds (roughly in 24 hours), Inclination of Axis: The earth is always Uited in the same direction (towards the Pole Star) as it moves round the sun The angle th is tilted is known as the ee at which the ear" inclination of the earth’ eaten at the per hour (circumference speed: The speed of earth's Equator is 1670 km of the earth-is 40,075 km, which is covered fn 24 hours). The speed decreases towards the poles. Effects of the Rotation of the Earth 1. Occurrence of Day and Night are caused by the rotation of the earth on its axis. This : i Inclination of the earth’s axis © Scanned with OKEN Scanneris because parts of the earth whi ich sun have day and the parts which do sav tase the sun have night. This happens with precision and progression and not suddenly, ‘The time when the sun begins y in the sky is known adie) oooeashits light as. the sun is seen disappearing in the’ ny. At night, it is completely dark. Duration of the day and night is not equal at all places on the earth because oi axle, The length of days With Fespeetto ‘the seasons as well as latitude, Sunrise and Sunset are Satised by rotation of the earth from west to east. this happens because due to the earth’s rotdtion, every part of the earth’s surface faces the sun at some time or the other. The part of the earth that moves from darkness into the sun's rays, éxperignces_sunrise and when it moves away from the sun's rays, it tmperiences SRE oe Coriolis Effect refers to the force experienced by any object moving over the surface of ig body such as the earth. The Coriolis Effect plays an important role in the movement of air (winds) and water (ocean currents) on the earth. Due to its effect, the winds and ocean currents move clockwise and are deflected to the right in thé Northern Hemisphere and move in the anticlockwise direction and-ate deflected to the left in the Southern Hemisphe! ‘The sun, the moon and the stars seem to move from east to west. This is because the earth spins from west to east. This effect is similar to what one experiences while looking at trees from a moving train. Centrifugal force is an apparent outward force that acts on a rotating object. It is always directed outward, i.e., away from the axis of rotation, The speed of rotation has created a centrifugal Torce resulting in a bulge in the middle portion of the earth and flattened top at the poles. , Rotation causes difference in time over various places on the earth. The difference in time is 4 minutes for each degree of longitude [24 hours (1440 minutes) divided by 360°]. 7. Tho aide of the earth towards the sun constantly gains heat and the side away fromthe sun constantly loses heat by radiating it into outer space, In this respect rotation of the earth in a tilted position on its axis has the following advantages: (i) ‘The short rotational period makes the variation of temperature between day and night moderate, + Rotation in combination with Revolution (carth’s movement round the sun) causes seasons and variations in the lengths of day and night over different places on earth, INCLINATION OF EARTH'S AXIS AND ITS SIGNIFICANCE ‘As we have said rotation is the spinning of the earth on its axis from west to east. The axis is the imaginary line passing through the centre of the earth on, which ‘it rotates; The earth’s axis is not vetfidAl. It makes an angle of 234° with the vertical or 6614" with the plane of the Earth’sorbit. Ai oe Let us imagine that the earth had a vertical axis. Then at all places on the earth, the length of day and night would have been equal as shown in the Fig. 3.2. OLN ST (i) Place L at the Equator would be at position L’ after 12 hours. Distance LO = Distance OL’ C Length of day = Length of sii) Ne, SP. é Hypothetical Vertical 4* © scanned with OKEN Scannerct of the Inclined Axis on the Effet guration of day and night The duration of day and night is not gq, Sree at all places. ‘The time of the day at any place is det ‘ ‘om by the height of the sun in the sky, ‘ane If the axis of the earth was vertical ing, —— of inclined, places on earth would have je _— same temperature throughout the year. If the earth did not revolve around the g even then with its inclined axis there woula be no seasons. Effect of the Inclined Axis on Seasons eee . Ee a Fig. 3.3. Inclined Axis ‘The path of the earth around the sun is know, liptic) It passes through the centre of both 1 ‘Similarly at all places on the earth, the gs pti é (i) saath of day and night would be equal. earth and the sun. The earth’s axis is not i ic of the earth was not inclined.) _pefpadictilarto the plane of the elliptic, but is ee cae Or ane tilted at_an angle of 664° to it. The axis js The effect of the inclined axis on the [Med St eh TAB rangle of 23% fro ge duration of day and night is that their duration pendicular to this plane. As a result of ths, es ag suing Be eS in the course of the earth’s movement around () At the Equator place C would be at tig sun, ‘the North Pole remidinis inelinel } position C’ after 12 hours. , othe sun for a part of the year while the South Distance CO = Distance OC’ Ug poll's Tilted away from it. For the remaining .. Length of day = Length of night. % «part of the year, the situation is reversed, the i i North Pole being tilted away from the sun and of ‘ 7 . 7 On te Tone of Cancer nace B wl be SS Sant Pole being inclined toms Oa 3 ; earth this gives rise to the changing seasons But distance BX is greater than B’X. and the varying lengths of day and night. Ifthe Days are longer than nights. earth’s axis were perpendicular to the plane of | (iii) On the Arctic Circle place A will be at orbit, there would be equal nights and days al position A’ after 12 hours. AA’ remains places. i ‘the year in continuous light in summer for six 2nd there would also be no seasons. months. Day of 24 hours near the North Pole in summer. (iv) Place D on the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere will be at position D’ after 12 hours. Distance DY (in light) is less th distance DY (in darkness) eel Days are shorter than nights, (®) Place E on the Antarctic Circl i in continuous darkness in winters Night for 24 hours ne, : vight ar Pole in winter for six monthe °* Suh © scanned with OKEN Scannera Fig. 3.4. Revolution of the Earth Tilted axis and revolution of the earth create heat zones which is explained later in this yhapter. REVOLUTION OF THE EARTH The earth revolves round the sun in an elliptical ip This motion; together with rotation, males arth’s environment complex. Ors haracteristics of Revolution 4 (i) The earth moves round the sun in an elliptical orbit at an average speed of 29.8 kilometres per second or about 160,000 Kilome (i) When the earth is closer to the sun, the <2, gravitational pull makes the earth move x (faster than when it is away from the sun. Thus, the(speed of revolution is not *y"> uniform.) G & ‘ (ii) The_period taken by the earth to_make %one complete round of the sun is 365 lays, 5 hours, 48 minutes and 45.51 & : §°. Seconds which is taken as 365 days and @ 6 hours.(The lengtir of one Solar year is "adjusted every 4 years into one complete day an fed to the month of February. When February has 29 days, that year is known ag a leap year having lays. (iv) The earth’s axis is always inclined to its Yorbital plane at an angle of 667". ‘The motion of the earth is from west to east or in the same direction as the rotation. 365 days.)The remaining 6 _hours are Effects of Revolution 1, Seasonal Changes: The amount of heat that a place receives on earth depends on the angle at which the sun's ‘h it. When a place receives verter sun rays the place gets _hot. This is because the amount of heat in the direct vertical rays is concentrated on a smi a, whereas the same amount of heat is spread over a larger area, in the case of the oblique rays. We have already noted that the tilt of the earth’s axis causes the seasons. Revolution causes different seasons i.e., the changing weather conditions due to differences in the heating of the earth. Revolution is an annual cycle; so, the seasons repeat year after year. 2. Inclination of axis and seasonal . changes: Since the earth is tilted, the seasonal changes are not abrupt. qrvot suddon - 3. Perihelion and Aphelion positions: The earth’s orbit is the path along which the earth travels around the sun. ‘This path is elliptical in shape. Due to this elliptical orbit of the earth, the distance between the earth and the sun varies. When the earth is losest to the sun the position is_calle alled perihelion and when it is fart sition cis called aphelion. og LS gpnstion tie ‘distance of the sun is 182 mil ion Ka Wie ates cTosest a pe [é at its closest at perihelion million, km away from the sun. Te, seen £ Owing to the elliptical orbit, the minimum distance of the earth from the sun is reached on or about January 3rd every year. It is winter in the Northern Hemisphere when the axis is tilted away from the sun. While the tilt makes the Northern Hemisphere cool in winter, its 24. March, 23 September Fig. 3.8. Perihelion and Aphelion Positions © scanned with OKEN Scannerto the sun helps to make here warm in ts orbit is closest id to be comparative nearnes Oe Eg the Southern Hesnisp fe ary 3, the earth in i : On Janta time of the earth is.eaid 0 Be ; 4, the earth is farthes' earth is said 10 tothe sun, This time of Perihelionyon about July Fea ioe at this time the be Aphelion 4, Creation of heat zones: J ape of the earth along with its movements around the sun causes the differen the angles at which the oun's rays fall On the earths surface, This eauses diflerence in the distribution of heat on the earth’ surface. As a result the world has been divided into three distinct heat or temperature zones. (a) The Torrid Zone: This zone stretches nd § latitudes and more or vertical rays of the sun. As a he spherical movements between 23° N less receives the sit, this region experiences moderately warm climate throughout the year {b) The Temperate Zone: In between the Torrid and the Frigid between 23%" North and South and 66%" North and South lies the Temperate Zone. In this zone the sun's rays fall obliquely and hence the region experiences a moderate climate. (c) The Frigid Zone: This zone extends from 66%" N to 90° N (or North Pole) and 664° S to 90° S (or the South Pole). Since the sun's rays fall extremely obliquely in this region, the region experiences extremely cold climate. nes i.e Coney 1. Solstice refers to the time when the su: ee its highest or lowest point in the sky at noon, resulting in the si longest days of the year. ee 2. The word Solstice is derived from the Lati words ‘Sol’ meaning ‘sun’ and eee meaning ‘to stand still’, . It happens twice a year on June 2 ummer solstice) and December 29 fetenee eons Difference between Solstice and Equinox Fig. 3.6. Important Parallels of Latitudes SOLSTICES AND EQUINOXES ‘The lighted part of the earth is called the cia of illumination. This circle moves with th apparent movement of the sun so that of the earth faces the sun at any given of tipne. /.. Solstice: On June 21, the earth isin th position where the North Pole is tilted towa the sun. On this day the sun is overhead the Tropic of Cancer. This day is known as the Summer Solstice) The Southern Hemisphere, however is tilted away from the sun a experiences winter. On December 22, the Southern Hemisphere] tilted towards the sun, while the Northem Hemisphere is tilted away from the sun. This day is known as the Winter Solstice. It isly Equinox © scanned with OKEN Scanneris autumn. The position is the Southern Hemisphere. ¢ two equinoxes the sun is at 90° at the one moves away from the Equator, nade of the sun decreases. When the northward movement of the sun up to June 21st (summer solstice), : variations in the ANGLE OF INCIDENCE DURATION OF DAYLIGHT a of incidence of the sun's rays and of daylight at different latitudes is je 3.1 © altimde or the angle of incidence is red in degrees. It is calculated by ¢ the value of the latitude in degrees Table 3.1. Angle of incidence of the sun’s rays from 90°, the maximum reached at the Equator. For example in the above table at 66°30'N latitude, the angle of incidence would be / 90° - 66°30’ N = 23°30’. Similarly if a latitude of a station were only 60°, the angle of incidence would be 90°- 60° = 30° | The table also shows that hours of daylight) are always 12 hours at the Equator and they/ go on increasing or decreasing towards the Poles. Seasonal contrasts are maximum at mid, latitudes than at the Equator or the Poles. CYCLE OF SEASONS ‘The Equinoxes and the Solstices are the positions of the earth with respect to the sun on the given fixed dates(They help us to understand how seasons occur and how they are reversed in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. When it is summer in the Northern Hemisphere, it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere-From Table 3.1 of variations in the altitude of the sun during equinoxes and solstices in different latitudes, it is observed that the duration of day and night varies according to the seasons. As a result of these *hationst seasons are not the same in all parts of the earth)In general, there are for Seasons Le. spring, summer, autumn and winter corresponding to the dates of solstice and equinox (Fig. 3.4). and duration of daylight 63°30° | 7h 42m 16°30" 13h 27m 90° 10h 33m, 4° Fa hows | 66°30° | i2hours | 63°30" 10h 33m 43° 13h 27m 90° 16h 18m_| 63°30" 24 hours: —<—$—<—$—— & scanned with OKEN Sc ] ‘annerPosition on 21st June: It is summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere<‘The rays of the sun fall vertically on the Tropic of Cancer. ‘The duration of sunlight or day time increases from 12 hours_at the Equator to13 hours and 27 minutes at 23° N and further to 24 hrs at 66%4° N (See Table 3.1). Beyond the Arctic Circle, the regions experience 24 hours daylight. This phenomena is termed as ‘midnight sun’. Norway is called land of midnight sun and many tourists flock to Norway to witness this phenomena. The sun is visible only at very low height, just above the horizon. This continues for almost three months up to autumn equinox. In the southern hemisphere it is winter. After June 21st, the hours of sunlight in Northern Hemisphere begin to decrease from 12hours at the equator to all nights and no days beyond the Arctic Circle. This position can also be observed in Table 3.1. The maximum position is reached on December 21st. Position on 23rd September! On 23rd September, the sun is vertically overhead at the Equator and the days and nights are equal. It is autumn in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere. On September 23rd, the duration of re is 12 hours on all the places on earth. Position on 22nd“December: On 22nd December, the Southern Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun. It experiences summer. Areas beyond the Antarctic Circle experience 24 hours daylight. Being a water Hemisphere, the spectacle of the Midnight Sun, though more interesting, is confined to navigators only, The South Polar region has 24 hours of sunlight continuously for many days. It is summer in the Southern Hemisphere and winter in the Northern. Hemisphere. Position on 21st March: After 22nd December, the sun again begins to move towards the Equator and on March 21st, the sun’s rays fall vertically over the Equator, On this day, all places on the earth have equal days and nights. It is a repeat of the position on 230d September only in reference to the duration of day and night but not in reference to seavone or weather. During this period it is spring in mn in the Northern Hemisphere and auty Southern Hemisphere. TWILIGHT IN LOW anp f HIGH LATITUDES Itis clear that there are generally great contrasts as one moves from the Bayan” the Poles. The variations in the amount gf, & received at different parts of the earth qi’ the year depend on the inclination of the rays. The difference though is best explained! vertical and slanting rays of the sun, we shou also remember that no place on earth has abr change from vertical to slanting rays or yt versa. During sunrise and sunset though the an is below the horizon, we experience a difuss light. Much of this light is a reflection by clougy and dust particles present in the atmosphere This period of diffused light between sunse and complete darkness is called dusk or tuilig and that between sunrise and full daylight i called dawn, This phenomena of dawn and dusk is experienced more in temperate regions. Duration of twilight has considerable influence on seasons. The duration of twilight is large beyond 50° latitude and in polar regions twilight lasts for as much as seven weeks at a stretch The twilight continues as long as sun is 18° below the horizon. Its duration is 1 hour and 12 minutes at the Equator, It goes on increasing towards the Poles. At the poles the duration is 50 days long during the 3 months of altemating period of day and night./This is because the period during which the reftacted light is received Seago, Path of the rising sun Fig. 3.7, Twilight oS © scanned with OKEN Scanner4: the Equator is short as the sun rises and sets a vertical path there. On the other hand, in perate latitudes the period of refracted light Terms to Remember : Imaginary central line about which a body rotates. : The spinning of the earth or a planet on its axis. are equal throughout the globe. : The brief period between sunset and complete darkness. EXERCISES is longer as the sun rises and sets in an oblique path. It is much longer at the poles, that is why the winter darkness there is only twilight. : The journey of a planet round the sun. Either of the two days, summer solstice (June 21) and winter solstice (December — 22) when the sun is at its greatest distance from the Equator. : Either of the two days (March 21 and September 23) in a year when days and nights @ scanned with OKEN Scanner