1. Answer the following questions briefly.
(a) What is the true shape of the Earth?
The Earth is not a perfect sphere. It is slightly flattened at the North and South Poles and has a bulging shape around the equator.
(b) What is a globe?
A globe is a scaled-down representation of the Earth in a miniature form.
(c) What is the latitudinal value of the Tropic of Cancer?
The Tropic of Cancer is located at a latitude of approximately 23.5 degrees North.
(d) What are the three heat zones of the Earth?
The Earth has three heat zones:
1. Torrid Zone: Near the equator, hot.
2. Temperate Zone: Between the equator and polar regions, moderate.
3. Frigid Zone: Near the poles, very cold.
(e) What are the parallels of latitude and meridians of longitude?
All circles running parallel to the equator, from the equator up to the poles, are known as parallels of latitude. On the other hand, the lines of reference that run from the North Pole to the South Pole are called meridians of longitude.
(f) Why does the torrid zone receive the maximum amount of heat?
The torrid zone receives the highest amount of heat due to its location between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. Once a year, the sun is directly overhead at least once on all latitudes within this range.
(g) Why is it 5.30 p.m. in India and 12.00 noon in London?
India is situated to the east of the Prime Meridian at a longitude of 82°30’E. India is 5 hours and 30 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). Therefore, when it is 12:00 noon in London, it will be 5:30 p.m. in India.
2. Tick the correct answers.
(a) The value of the prime meridian is
(i) 90°
(ii) 0°
(iii) 60°
Answer: (ii) 0°
(b) The frigid zone lies near
(i) The Poles
(ii) the Equator
(iii) the Tropic of Cancer
Answer: (i) The Poles
(c) The total number of longitudes are
(i) 360
(ii) 180
(iii) 90
Answer:(i) 360
(d) The Antarctic Circle is located in
(i) the Northern Hemisphere
(ii) the Southern Hemisphere
(iii) the Eastern Hemisphere
Answer:(ii) the Southern Hemisphere
(e) Grid is a network of
(i) parallels of latitudes and meridians of longitude
(ii) the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn
(iii) the North Pole and the South Pole
Answer:(i) parallels of latitudes and meridians of longitude
3. Fill in the blanks.
(a) The Tropic of Capricorn is located at 23½° S
(b) The Standard Meridian of India is _82½° E Longitude
(c) The 0° Meridian is also known as Prime Meridian.
(d) The distance between the longitudes decreases towards poles
(e) The Arctic Circle is located in the Northern Hemisphere.
