PRIMARY SIX

GEOGRAPHY ILBC

Longitudes and Time

By means of longitude we are able to divide the world into different
time zones. There are 360 degrees of longitude in all, 180 degrees east
and 180 degrees west. The Earth takes 24 hours, or 1440 minutes,
to make one complete revolution. Now, if we divide 1440 by 360 the
answer is 4 minutes, which is equal to one degree of longitude, and
15 degrees is therefore equal to one hour. From this fact, providing
we know the respective meridians, we are able to calculate the time
at different places on the Earth’s surface. For example, if it is noon
at Greenwich in London, the time at Rio de Janeiro, which is 45
degrees West of London, must be 3 hours (45 x 4 minutes ) behind
London time because it lies to the west: that is, it must be 9.a.m .
At Calcutta, which is approximately 90 degrees East of London and
therefore ahead in time, it would be 6.p.m. (90x4 minutes = 6 hours).
Calculate the time at points A; B; C; D; E; and F in Figure 7.1. All
places on the same line of longitude have the same time because at
noon the sun is at its zenith at any point along that one meridian.
We have seen that for every degree of longitude there is a
difference of 4 minutes, but it would be inconvenient to try to make
this small adjustment of time throughout the world, and so only
hourly differences are taken into account. The time zone of the world
are, therefore, based upon every 15 degrees of longitude, that is , for
every 15 degrees there is a difference of one hour between places.
West Noon East
90 75 60 45 30 15 0 15 30 45 60 75 90

A B C D E F

Fig 4.1

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In small countries such as Britain time is the same all over the
country; but in large countries such as Canada and the United States
there are different time zones, for North America extends over 105
degrees of longitude and the continent has been divided into ��=
time zones. They are known as Atlantic Time , Eastern Time, Central
Time, Mountain Time and ���� Time. Within each zone the time is
known as Standard Time.

Fig 4.2 Main time zones of North America

In Europe each country has its own Standard Time, which may
correspond with the Standard Times of neighbouring countries. In
the British Isles, during the period of British Summer Time, clocks
are advanced one hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (G.M.T) in
order to take full advantage of the daylight of the long summer days.
Local Time is the real time at any place relative to the noon
position of the sun. As an example, let us consider the case of a town
situated 10 degrees to the west of the city on which the Standard
Time of that zone is based. Now, although 10 degrees is a difference
of 40 minutes in times, the clocks in both town and city will show the
same Standard Time. Thus, when the sun is exactly over the town’s
meridian, which would be its real noon, its clocks will show the times
as 12:40 p.m.

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GEOGRAPHY ILBC

Longitudes and Time Zones

Exercise
1. If Yangon longitude is 96°E, how many hours ahead or behind is
Tokyo (135°E)?
2. How many hours ahead or behind from Yangon is New York
(74°W)?
3. How many hours ahead or behind is Sydney (150°E) from
Madagascar (45°E)?
4. How many hours ahead or behind is Beijing (116°E) from Mexico
City (99°W)?
5. How many hours ahead or behind is Cairo (31°E) from Cambodia
(105°E)?
6. If Yangon (96°E) is 6.a.m, what is the time in London (0°)?
7. If Los-Angeles (119°W) is 5.p.m, what is the time in New York
(74°W)?
8. If Kuala Lumpur (100°E) is 9.a.m, what is the time in London (0°)?
9. If Ukraine (30°E) is 4.a.m, what is the time in Cuba (80°W)?
10. If Hong Kong (115°E) is 10.p.m, what is the time in Brasilia
(50°W)?
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ILBC GEOGRAPHY

International date line

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