Where is the western hemisphere located on the map. Eastern hemisphere

Most of the continents are located in the Eastern Hemisphere of the Earth: Eurasia (with the exception of a small part of Chukotka), most of Africa, Australia and part of Antarctica.

Eurasia

Most of Eurasia is located north of the equator. Eurasia is the largest of the Earth's continents. Its area is 36% of the entire earth's land area - 53.593 million km². This is not only the largest, but also the most populated continent, ¾ of humanity lives here.

The coastline is heavily indented, there are many bays and peninsulas, the largest of which are Hindustan and the Arabian Peninsula. In contrast to other continents, the mountains in Eurasia are located mainly in the central part, and the plains in the coastal regions.

Eurasia is the only one in which all the climatic zones of the Earth are represented: equatorial, tropical, subtropical, temperate, subarctic and arctic.

Eurasia is washed by all four oceans: the Arctic in the north, the Indian in the south, the Pacific in the east and the Atlantic in the west.

Africa

The second place in terms of area among the continents is occupied by Africa - 29 million km², and about 1 billion people live here.
The equator divides Africa in half, and the location makes it the hottest continent. In the central part of the continent the climate is equatorial, to the south and north - tropical and subtropical. In the Sahara - the largest desert not only in Africa, but also on Earth - the highest temperature on the planet was recorded: +58 degrees.

The coastline is slightly indented, there are no large bays and peninsulas.

The relief of Africa is represented mainly by high plains, cut in some places by deep river valleys.
The coast of Africa is washed by the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, as well as the Mediterranean and Red Seas.

Australia

Australia is located much south of the equator. Because of this geographical position, Europeans discovered it later than other continents - 100 years after the discovery of America.

Australia is the smallest continent on Earth, its area is only 7,659,861 km². For this reason, geographers for some time considered Australia an island, but at present it is classified as a continent, since Australia is located on a separate tectonic plate.

Most of the mainland is semi-desert and desert, but the climate of the southwestern part of the continent is reminiscent of the Mediterranean. The most interesting feature of Australia's climate, associated with its location south of the equator, is the "reverse" seasons: the warmest month is January, the coldest is June.

The fauna of Australia is unique. This continent separated from the others before marsupials were replaced by placentals, and became a true "natural reserve" of these animals.

Australia is washed by the Indian Ocean in the north and east, the Pacific - in the south and west.

There are six continents on planet Earth. Each of them is special and in some way unique. Some are realms of ice, others are summer. Some continents are huge in area, while others are quite small, but also unique and unrepeatable.

The smallest continent on planet Earth is Australia. Its area is only 8.9 million square kilometers. Australia is located in the southern hemisphere of the planet and is washed by the Pacific and Indian. The relief is mostly low compared to other continents, if you do not take into account Antarctica. The entire territory of the mainland is occupied by the state of Australia. Because of its size, it was called a large island.

This continent differs from all currently existing in its plant and animal diversity. Australia is an amazing place with many wonderful animals and plants. It is here that the koala, platypus and echidna live. In Australia, there are about 30 species of marsupials. The largest tree on the planet, the eucalyptus, has taken root here.

It is worth noting that Australia is the driest continent on our planet. Huge sandy deserts spread on its territory. Precipitation for the whole year is negligible, even the African mainland cannot be compared with Australia in this indicator.

The capital of Australia is Canberra, and one of the largest cities is Sydney. Sydney with its opera house, which is easily recognizable in any corner of the earth, and the role of this city in the history of world sports cannot be overestimated, since it was in Sydney that the Summer Olympic Games were held in 2000.

There are only six continents on planet Earth. The continent is a mass of the earth's crust, rising above the level of the oceans. The smallest continent on our planet is Australia.

Continents of the globe

The continents also include the shallow coastal zones of the seas (shelves) and the islands located near them. Once upon a time, all parts of the world formed one continent - Pangea.

And today there are six that are separated by oceans: Eurasia has the largest territory of the planet, its area is 55 million km2. sq., South America - 18 million km. sq., Africa - 30 million km. sq., Antarctica - 14 million km. sq., North America - 20 million km. sq., Australia is the smallest continent, its area is 8.5 million km2. sq.

Australia is the smallest continent on the planet

The area of Australia, including the islands, is about 8.9 million km2. sq. Australia is bordered by the Indian and Pacific oceans. Almost in the middle of Australia is the southern tropic. At the base of the relief of this continent is the Australian platform. Its western part is raised. The Western Australian Plateau is located here, its height is 400-600 m, crystalline rocks come out on its surface.

In the east of the mainland from the northern peninsula of Cape York to southern Tasmania is a folded region - the Great Dividing Range.

In the old days, Australia was called "Terra incognito", today this land for us remains full of surprises and mysteries. Australia surprises with its diversity. There are endless ocean beaches, beautiful roads. This is the land of coral reefs and wild mustangs. Australia has no rivals in the number of unique animals and plants. The whole country, in fact, is a world-class reserve, while 80% of the animals are endemic, since they are found only here.

This continent, which turned out to be the smallest in the whole world, was first discovered by the Dutch. A significant amount of information was provided by the expedition led by Abel Tasman. He explored the northwestern and northern coasts of Australia in 1642-1643, at the same time he discovered the island of Tasmania. And James Cook became the discoverer of the east coast in the 18th century. From the end of the 18th century, the development of Australia began.

Country Australia

Australia is the sixth largest country in terms of area. This is the only state that occupies an entire continent.

The capital of Australia is Canberra. Its area is 7682 thousand km. sq. Its share of the planet's land area is 5%. The population is about 19.73 million people. Of the entire world population, this proportion is 0.3%. The highest point is Mount Kosciuszko (2228 meters above sea level), the lowest point is Lake. Air (16 meters below sea level). The southernmost point is Cape Southeast, the northernmost point is Cape York. The westernmost is Cape Steep Point, the easternmost is Cape Byron. The length of the coastline is 36,700 km (together with Tasmania).

Administrative division: 2 territories and 6 states. The national anthem of the country: "Go, beautiful Australia!" The holiday is Australia Day.

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To begin with, let's figure out how it turned out that the maps have east and west, north and south. With east and west, everything is quite simple - people have always been guided by the movement of the sun. It rose on one side of the earth and set on the other. North and south appeared as the simplest coordinate system on a plane: a perpendicular line was drawn to an already existing direction. In this coordinate system, it was possible to draw up geographical maps, which was done by ancient people: Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Slavs. Everyone drew his own piece of land, taking his home or city as a starting point.

Even the ancient Greeks had a tradition to designate the north at the top of the map. Perhaps this was due to the line of the coast. A well-known coastline was drawn at the bottom of the map, because it was not necessary to depict the sea, but at the top they drew the lands that needed to be explored and which were located north of the ecumene. For the Chinese, on the maps of the same period, the south was at the top, and on the maps of the Arabs, the east. At the beginning of the Middle Ages, it was customary in Christian monasteries to draw Jerusalem in the center of the map, and on its top to indicate the east, from where the Savior should come. The principle of map making, familiar to the Greeks, returned after the colorful atlas of Ptolemy was published in Europe in the 15th century: in it, the north was still located at the top. The tradition was fixed by a compass, which showed strictly to the north and entered the everyday life of sailors.

But the usual coordinate system was no longer enough when sailors began to sail across the ocean and discovered that the Earth was round. To break a ball (circle) into 360 degrees - even the ancient Greeks and Sumerians could do it, what can we say about the enlightened sailors of the era of geographical discoveries. It is another matter to decide: from where to count, through which point to draw the zero meridian?

In ancient times, the Greeks led him through the Pillars of Hercules, St. Martin of Tire from the Roman Empire - through the mythical Happy Isles, Ptolemy - through Alexandria.Geographers and sailors of the Middle Ages placed a reference line on the Cape Verde Islands, in Toledo, on the island of Ferro. Later she was in Königsberg, Uraniborg, Longomontan. The French king Louis XIII placed the zero meridian in Paris by special decree, and in the local church of Saint-Sulpice it is still symbolized by a bronze strip on the floor. The prime meridian in Russia passed through the Pulkovo observatory near St. Petersburg.

This made it difficult for sailors of the merchant fleets of different countries to interact: it was impossible to use partner cards, there was a risk of confusing longitude and running into rocks or passing by the island. Moreover, each country had its own time, and this also complicated navigation calculations.

The first step towards unification was taken in 1884 in Washington, at a meeting of the International Commission, which decided to fix the zero meridian and determine time zones for the entire Earth. The discussion dragged on for a whole month, the delegates then dispersed, then gathered again. There were ideas to lay a meridian through Jerusalem, through the Bering Strait, through the top of the pyramid of Cheops and even along the island of Tenerife. Great Britain won, which at that time was one of the greatest empires in the world and had authority in the field of geography: the Greenwich Observatory was famous for its precise instruments and a long history of observations.

Nearly all member states of the commission voted for Greenwich, except for France, Brazil and the Dominican Republic. It was decided that the universal earth day begins at the moment when midnight comes on the zero meridian.

As soon as the zero meridian appeared, cartography was unified. Everything that was located 180 degrees east of Greenwich, including Russia, ended up in the Eastern Hemisphere, and everything to the west - in the Western, including the entire American continent. Although, to be precise, not all of Russia is located in the Eastern Hemisphere of the Earth. A fair piece of Chukotka with Cape Dezhnev floats on the Western Hemisphere.

Many countries still publish maps centered on their territories. For example, on a map released in the United States, this country is in the center of the world, and the Eurasian continent is cut in two and is located to the right and left of America.

The map of Australia depicts an inverted world, where north is at the bottom, and the Australian continent proudly crowns the globe. On the map of the small country of South Africa, the center of the world is at the southern tip of Africa, and Antarctica is not at the top. And only maps published in Russia still adhere to the cartographic tradition of the late 19th century, placing the zero meridian in their center. Perhaps this is because Russia is impossible to miss on any map of the world.

The most interesting thing is that the zero meridian, drawn by the British, is one hundred and two meters from the place indicated by the American GPS navigation system. The Americans explain this by the fact that, they say, the British did not have navigators before, and therefore they did not draw the meridian correctly.

Our planet is divided into the Western Hemisphere and the Eastern, and this division is rather conditional. What line divides the Earth into two hemispheres? What continents and countries are in the Western Hemisphere? The answers to all these questions can be found in our fascinating article.

Graticule of the Earth: Eastern and Western Hemisphere

What is a degree grid? This is a network of conditional lines, which is drawn on globes and maps by people for convenience. In particular, these lines are needed by scientists and researchers, travelers and business executives. They are also necessary in order to quickly and accurately determine the location of a particular geographical object on the territory of our planet.

The lines of the degree grid include parallels and meridians, as well as lines of the tropics and polar circles. They are found on almost all geographical maps.

If the division of the Earth by the equator into the Northern one is logical and quite justified, then the Western Hemisphere, as well as the Eastern Hemisphere, were identified, rather, conditionally. How this happened will be discussed later.

Zero and 180th meridians

It is these two meridians that divide our planet into two hemispheres: Western and Eastern.

The zero (or Greenwich) meridian is the reference point for all geographic longitudes of the planet. It is called Greenwich because it passes through the passage instrument of the observatory of the same name, located near London. The latter was established in 1675 by the British King Charles II.

Interestingly, until the end of the 19th century, some states had their own So, in Russia this role was played by the Pulkovo meridian, and in France - the so-called Paris meridian. Only in 1884, at an international conference by countries, it was decided to establish the Greenwich meridian as the zero one. It passes through the territories of such countries as Great Britain, France, Spain, Algeria, Mali, Ghana and Burkina Faso. Tourists often come to the Greenwich Observatory. And each of them is obliged to perform one ritual: to stand with one foot in the eastern hemisphere, and the other in the western.

In turn, the 180th meridian is a conditional line that continues the Greenwich meridian on the other side of the Earth. It also serves as the basis for the so-called date line, which, by the way, has a curved trajectory rather than a flat one. It shifts in those places where the meridian passes through the populated areas.

The 180th meridian has another interesting feature. The fact is that it can be called the line of both eastern and western longitude. This meridian (like any other on the globe) connects the North Pole of the Earth with the South. At the same time, it crosses the following geographical objects: the Chukchi Peninsula, the Chukotka chain of the Aleutian Islands, Fiji, as well as the vast expanses of Antarctica.

Countries and continents of the Western Hemisphere

Which continents are in the Western Hemisphere? If you look at the map, the answer to this question is quite simple. This is North and South America (entirely), as well as part of Europe and Africa.

In geopolitical articles and discussions, one can also very often come across the term western hemisphere, which is used as a synonym for the word "America" (here it means not one of the continents).

The countries of this hemisphere have different sizes. There are giant countries among them (USA, Canada, Brazil) and very tiny states (for example, Dominica or the Bahamas). In 2014, 33 countries of the Western Hemisphere held a summit of the newly created Commonwealth of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC for short). The meeting took place on the island of freedom, in the capital of Cuba - Havana.

Conclusion

The Western Hemisphere is located between the Zero and 180th meridians of the planet. of all objects located in this hemisphere, it is customary to call the coordinates of the western longitude.

The Western Hemisphere contains North and South America (entirely), part of Europe and Africa, Greenland, Chukotka, and several island states of Oceania.

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