Why The Prime Meridian Isn’t At 0º
Prime Meridian Facts & Information
A meridian is an imaginary line around the Globe that connects points of equal longitude (a coordinate that specifies the east/west position of a location on the Earth’s surface). The prime meridian is a line of geographical longitude that is defined at 0°. See the fact file below for more information on the prime meridian:
- The Prime Meridian divides the Earth into East/West from the North Pole to the South Pole with an imaginary line along the longitude line of 0°.
- The Antimeridian, at 180° longitude, connects with the Prime Meridian to form a 3D giant circle all around the Globe, dividing it into Eastern and Western hemispheres.
- The first person to consistently use the notion of longitude and meridian was the Greek geographer Ptolemy.
- Ptolemy originally used the time of the lunar eclipse in different places to work out where the meridian line was. Ptolemy’s prime meridian was about 20°W of where it is today.
- Between the 1400s and 1800s many geographers and navigators (including Christopher Columbus) tried to use different methods to establish longitude whilst at sea.
- Between 1765 and 1811, the Greenwich Royal Observatory meridian in London was frequently used as the universal reference point.
- In 1884 the Greenwich meridian became the recognized prime meridian for the whole world. It’s also the meridian that was used to set the time.
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