The Globe

Hemispheres
The earth is divided into the
northern and southern
hemispheres.It’s divided along the
Greenwich Meridian ( 0 degree
line of longitude) and the 180
degree line of longitude into the
eastern and western hemispheres.
The 180 degree line of longitude is
on the opposite side of the world
to the Greenwich Meridian.
Earth’s rotation on its axis
Earth’s axis- An imaginary line between the north
and south pole around which Earh rotates.
Rotation- Turning around a fixed point.
Earth rotates/spins around its axis.We can’t feel Earth
rotating because it’s so big.The sun’s rays can only
shine at one side of Earth because the Earth is
round.The round shape indicates that one half of the
world experiences night, while the other half
experiences day.Earth takes 24h to complete one
rotation.
As Earth rotates, different parts of Earth’s
surface move in and out of the sun’s rays.
Earth’s rotation is the cause of day and
night.
Earth rotates from west to east.
World time, time zones and
the International Date Line
Time zone- One of the 24
divisions of Earth which have the
same time.
We measure time against the
position of the sun.When it’s
midday in South Africa, it’s
already midnight in New
Zealand.The rotation of Earth
means that time changes by one
hour by every 15 degrees of
The world’s time zones should change by one
hour of every 15 degrees of
longitude.Governments of countries adjust time
zones to fit into the borders of their
country.Time zones are adjusted to fit around
internal borders like states.The United States and
Australia have several time zones.China should
have four time zones but the government of
China says that China should have one time
zone.
The International Date Line
The International Date Line- The 180 degree line of
longitude opposite the Greenwich Meridian where
times change by one day between the eastern and
western hemispheres.
The International Date Line is on the opposite side of
the world to the Greenwich Meridian.Most of its length
follows the 180 degree line of longitude.The
International Date Line is adjusted to go around certain
islands and countries.It divides the world into the
eastern and western hemispheres on the Pacific
Ocean.Places in the eastern hemisphere are a day
earlier than places in the western hemisphere.
Tonga and American Samoa have the same
time but are one day apart because American
Samoa is in the western hemisphere, on the
opposite side of the International Date Line
from Tonga.
South African Standard Time
South African Standard Time- The time every
place in South Africa uses.
South Africa should have two time zones because
both the 15 and 30 degree lines of longitude pass
through the country.The South African government
decided to adjust the time zones to fit its
borders.South Africa is two hours ahead on the
time of the Greenwich Meridian.Places to the east
of the Greenwich Meridian are ahead by one hour
for every 15 degrees of longitude.
Earth’s revolution around the
sun
Tilts- Inclined at an angle.
Perpendicular- Perfectly vertical, forming a
right angle with the horizontal.
Revolve- Circular movement around an
object.
Revolution- One complete circular
movement around an object.
Earth’s axis tilts at 23 and a half degrees
away from perpendicular.It means that certain
times of the year different parts of Earth tilt
towards or away from the sun.The tilt of
Earth’s axis affects the length of day and
night and is responsible for the seasons.It
takes 365 and quarter days for Earth to
complete one revolution around the sun.
Equinox, solstice and change
in the angle of the midday sun
Equinox- When the length of day and night
is the same amount of hours.
Solstice- When one hemisphere has the
longest number of hours of daylight and the
opposite hemisphere has the shortest
number of hours of daylight.
Equinox means equal
night.
• The equinoxes happen on
21 March and 23
September.
• The angle of the Earth’s
axis tilts neither towards
or away from the sun.The
sun is directly above the
equator during the
equinoxes.
• The equinoxes are in the
spring and autumn
seasons.
oSolstices happen on 21
December and 21 June.
oOn 21 June the sun is
directly above the Tropic
of Cancer.
oOn 21 December the sun
is directly above the
Tropic of Capricorn.
oThe solstices are in the
summer and winter
seasons.
The sun reaches its highest point in the sky at
noon.Where the sun is in the sky depends on
where Earth is in relation to the sun.The sun
reaches its highest point in the sky for places
in the northern hemisphere on 21 June and 21
December in the southern hemisphere.The
angle of the sun is 90 degrees or
perpendicular to Earth.
The angle of Earth’s axis affects the amount
of sunlight certain areas of Earth receive at
different times of the year.In June, the parts
of the northern hemisphere furthest from the
equator receive long hours of sunlight.The
southern hemisphere receives less sunlight
and has shorter daylight hours.
The amount of heat Earth receives from the sun is
the reason why Earth has different
temperatures.Places close to the equator receive
similar amounts of heating from the sun in every
season.The temperature of places close to the
equator remains the same throughout the
year.Places closer to the poles have much colder
winter temperatures because they receive less
heating from the sun.Long summer temperatures
helps to keep these places warm.