You can determine the geographic coordinates of a given point, that is, its latitude and longitude, using a map. On any geographic map there is a degree network, with its help geographic coordinates are determined.
It is customary to determine and record coordinates in the following order: first latitude, then longitude.
To find geographic latitude on a map, we need parallels. Let's find the most important parallel - the equator. If it is not labeled on the world map, then it corresponds to the value 0°. Please note that all parallels on the map have numerical values that can range from 0 to 90 degrees. Note that 90° is the maximum value of geographic latitude, and it corresponds to the poles of the planet. But the Earth has two poles: North and South, they need to be distinguished. The equator we found divides the earth into two hemispheres, all points south of the equator have southern latitude, all points north have northern latitude. It turns out that the latitude of the North Pole is 90° north latitude, and the South Pole is 90° south. In geography, a short notation is accepted: instead of the words “northern latitude” it is customary to write northern latitude, and instead of “southern latitude”: southern latitude. It remains to figure out what to do with the equator, because its latitude is 0°. Just as in mathematics zero is neither a positive nor a negative number, so in geography, if a point is on the equator, then its latitude is 0° latitude or 0° latitude. (neither northern nor southern).
But what if the point does not lie directly on the parallel and is located somewhere between them on the map?
A parallel can be drawn through any point on the map, because there are an infinite number of them. Just for convenience, only a few are depicted on the map, otherwise they will shade the entire map. And the remaining parallels have to be completed mentally.
Let's try to find the latitude of the source of the Missouri River. This point is located in North America, which is located north of the equator, that is, the latitude of our point is northern.
On the map we see that the source is located between the 40th and 60th parallels. This means that its latitude is greater than 40 but less than 60 degrees. Be especially careful in this place; note that in the Southern Hemisphere, the calculation of parallels on the world map goes in the opposite direction from the Northern Hemisphere! Always carefully determine more and less than what value the latitude of your point should be - between which parallels it lies. Next, since latitude is usually defined to the degree, you need to mentally divide the distance between our parallels (40 and 60) by the number of degrees between them (in our case there are 19 parallels between them - from 41 to 59) and measure which of them is approximately lies our point. Here we need to simplify our work: we see that the source of the Missouri is much closer to the 40th parallel. Let's mentally draw a parallel of 50°. It is more convenient to do this along neighboring meridians of the degree network. Now it is clearly visible that the point lies almost in the middle between the 40th and 50th parallels. This means its latitude is 45° N. We also note that absolutely accurate measurements are usually not required in tasks to find coordinates. According to school atlases, the measurement error is allowed within the division of the degree network; on a world map it is usually 2°.
Now that we have learned to find latitude, we can find geographic longitude in a similar way. It's not much more complicated. Additional complexity arises due to the fact that the earth is divided into the Northern and Southern hemispheres by one equator, and into the Western and Eastern hemispheres by two meridians: the zero and one hundred and eightieth. On the world map we will have to find both of them. All points east of the zero meridian but west of the 180 meridian have eastern longitude, and all points west of the zero meridian but east of 180 have western longitude. The prime meridian is also commonly called the prime meridian or Greenwich (Greenwich Observatory in London). It is also customary to abbreviate the recording of longitude. Eastern longitude is written as E, and western longitude as W.
What if the point lies on the 0 or 180 meridian? Most likely, you already guessed that their longitude will simply be 0° longitude. or 180°d. - neither Western nor Eastern.
And the last nuance is the longitude of the planet’s poles. We have established that their latitude is 90°, but all meridians converge at the poles. That is why the longitude of the pole cannot be determined; the North and South Pole have no longitude.
Of course, most of the points on the map for which we are looking for coordinates also lie between the meridians. This means that we will have to do the same as when we were looking for latitude - mentally draw the missing meridians. Let's try this again for the source of the Missouri. We see that it is located in the middle between the 100 and 120 meridian west longitude. They lie west of the 0 meridian and east of 180. This means that the longitude of our point is western. The longitude of a point is greater than 100° but less than 120°. It is located almost in the middle, which means its longitude is approximately 110° west. (Actually 111°, but we repeat that it is difficult to measure coordinates perfectly on such a small-scale map - be guided by an error of no more than 2° for a world map).
So, we got the approximate coordinates of the source of the Missouri: 45° N. and 110° W.
As a result - the plan "How to look for latitude and longitude"
1) Determine whether a point is located north or south of the equator:
- If to the north - the latitude is northern;
- If to the south - the latitude is south;
- If at the equator - latitude 0°
2) Determine between which parallels the point on the map is depicted.
This means finding out what greater and less than what value its latitude will be.
3) Mentally draw the missing parallels and determine the latitude to the nearest degree.
4) Determine whether a point is located west or east of the 0 meridian.
- If it is west of 0, but east of 180 - the longitude is western;
- If east is 0, but west is 180 - the longitude is east;
- If on the 0 meridian - 0°d., if on the 180th meridian - 180°d;
- If the latitude is 90°, then there is no longitude.
5) Determine between which meridians the point on the map is located.
Find out within what limits we are looking for the value of longitude;
6) Mentally draw the missing meridians and determine the longitude to the degree.
Instructions
First you must determine geographic longitude. This value is the deviation of an object from the prime meridian, from 0° to 180°. If the desired point is east of Greenwich, the value is called east longitude, if it is west of Greenwich, it is called longitude. One degree is equal to 1/360 part.
Pay attention to the fact that in one hour the Earth rotates by 15° of longitude, and in four minutes it moves by 1°. Your watch must show accurate time. To find geographic longitude, you need to set the time to noon.
Find a straight stick 1-1.5 meters long. Stick it vertically into the ground. As soon as the shadow from the stick falls from south to north, and the sundial “shows” 12 o’clock, note the time. This is local noon. Convert the received data to Greenwich Time.
Subtract 12 from the result obtained. Convert this difference to degrees. This method does not give 100% results, and the longitude from your calculations may differ from the true geographic longitude of your location by 0°-4°.
Remember, if local noon occurs earlier than noon GMT, this is longitude; if later, it is . Now you have to set the geographic latitude. This value shows the deviation of an object from the equator to the north (north latitude) or south (latitude) side, from 0° to 90°.
Please note that the length of one geographic degree is approximately 111.12 km. To determine the geographic latitude, you need to wait until nightfall. Prepare a protractor and point its lower part (base) at the polar star.
Place the protractor upside down, but so that the zero degree is opposite the polar star. Look at what degree the hole in the middle of the protractor is opposite. This will be the geographic latitude.
Sources:
- Determining latitude and longitude
- how to determine location coordinates
With the development of interregional labor relations, as well as for personal interests, the need arises to move from city to city, other populated areas, or to places where you have never been before. There are now many ways to determine coordinates desired destination.
Instructions
Start installing the downloaded file by clicking the “install” button and wait for the program to download.
Select a starting location and check the box.
Also define coordinates You can use Bing.com.
Enter the area you are interested in in the fields opposite the logo and click search.
Right-click on Directions from here and a window will appear on the left side. Indicate your destination area. Red flag is the starting area, green flag is the destination area. There on the left side, select how you would like to get there.
Find the elevation angle using the set screw and Vernier scale.
Globes and maps have their own coordinate system. Thanks to this, you can apply and find any object on our planet. Geographic coordinates are longitude and latitude; these angular values are measured in degrees. With their help, you can determine the position of an object on the surface of our planet relative to the prime meridian and equator.
Instructions
Having determined local noon, note the clock readings. Then make an adjustment to the resulting difference. The fact is that the angular speed of movement is not constant and depends on the time of year. So add (or subtract) an amendment to the result obtained.
Let's look at an example. Let's say today is May 2. The clocks are set according to Moscow. In summer, Moscow summer time differs from world time by 4 hours. At local noon, as determined by the sundial, the clock showed 18:36. Thus, world time is currently 14:35. Subtract 12 hours from this time and get 02:36. The amendment for May 2 is 3 minutes (this time should be added). Converting the obtained result into an angular measure, we obtain 39 degrees west longitude. The described method allows us to determine it with an accuracy of up to three degrees. Considering that in an emergency you will not have a table of the equation of time at hand to make adjustments to the calculations, the result may differ from the true one.
To determine geographic latitude, you will need a protractor and a plumb line. Make a homemade protractor from two rectangular strips, fastening them in the form of a compass.
Attach a thread with a weight in the center of the protractor (it will act as a plumb line). Point the base of the protractor at the North Star.
Subtract 90 degrees from the angle between the base of the protractor and the plumb line. We got the angle between the polar star and the horizon. Since it has a deviation from the pole axis of only one degree, the angle between the direction to the star and the horizon will be the desired latitude of the area in which you are located.
Sources:
- Determining latitude and longitude
Knowing the latitude where your home is located can be very helpful. Despite the fact that today the exact location can be easily determined using compact navigators, navigating the terrain using the “old” methods is still relevant and very interesting.
You will need
- Minimum knowledge of the starry sky, as well as:
- - two slats,
- - bolt with nut,
- - protractor
Instructions
To determine geographic latitude places, you need to make a simple protractor.
Take two rectangular wooden planks one and a half to two meters long and hinge their ends together using the principle of a compass. Stick one leg of the compass into the ground and set it vertically and plumb. The second should move quite tightly on the hinge. A bolt with can be used as a hinge.
These preliminary works must be done during the day, before dusk. Naturally, the weather must be cloudless enough to allow you to observe the starry sky.
At dusk, go out into the yard and look for the North Star in the sky.
To determine the location, find the Big Dipper. To do this, turn your face to the north and try to see the seven that form the outline of a large bucket. Usually this constellation is easy to find.
Now mentally draw a line between the two outer stars of the bucket towards the bell and measure five segments on it equal to the distance between these stars.
You will find yourself on a fairly bright star, which will be Polaris. Make sure you are not mistaken: the star found should be the end of the small dipper - the constellation Ursa Minor.
Point the movable leg of the compass strictly at the North Star. To do this, you will have to turn the device a little and again align the vertical rail in a plumb line. Now, as it were, “aim” at the star - as surveyors do - and fix the position of the device by tightening the nut on the hinge.
Now, using a protractor, measure the angle between the direction towards the star and the vertical post. This can be done in the light by moving the device indoors.
Subtract 90 from the result obtained - this will be the latitude of your place.
Video on the topic
To ensure that some object can always be found on a map or terrain, an international coordinate system was created, including latitude and longitude. Sometimes the ability to determine your coordinates can even save your life, for example, if you are lost in the forest and want to convey information about your location to rescuers. Latitude determines the angle formed by a plumb line from the equator and the desired point. If the place is located north of the equator (higher), then the latitude will be north, if south (lower) it will be south.
You will need
- - protractor and plumb line;
- - watch;
- - nomogram;
- - map;
- - a computer connected to the Internet.
Instructions
Latitude determines the angle formed by a plumb line from the desired point. If the place is located north of the equator (higher), then the latitude will be, if south (lower) - southern. To find out latitude in the field, using improvised means, take a protractor and a plumb line. If you don't have a protractor, make one from two rectangular strips, fastening them in the form of a compass so that you can change the angle between them. Attach a thread with a weight in the center; it will act as a plumb line. Point the base of the protractor at polar. Then subtract 90? from the angle between the plumb line and the protractor. Since the angular angle from the axis of the celestial pole at the polar star is only 1?, then the angle between the horizon and the polar star will be equal to space, so feel free to calculate this angle and, thus, latitude.
If you have a watch, note the length of the day between sunrise and sunset. Take the nomogram, put the resulting length of day on the left side, and mark the date on the right side. Connect the obtained values and determine the point of intersection with the part. This will be the latitude of your location.
To determine latitude according to, use horizontal lines - parallels. Look at the value on the right and left of each line. If the location you are looking for lies directly on the line, the latitude will be equal to this value. If you are looking for latitude place located between two lines, calculate approximately at what distance it is located from the nearest parallel. For example, the point is located approximately 1/3 of the parallel 30? and 2/3 of 45?. This means that approximately its latitude will be equal to 35?.
Video on the topic
Helpful advice
You can find out both the latitude and longitude of your location using a satellite navigation system, so when traveling into uncharted wilderness, be sure to take this essential item with you.
Any point on the ground has its own geographical coordinates. With the advent of GPS navigators, determining the exact location has ceased to be a problem, but the ability to understand the map - in particular, determine and longitude, is still quite relevant.
You will need
- - Globe or world map.
Instructions
The equator divides the globe into two halves: the upper, or northern, and the lower, southern. Pay attention to the parallels - ring lines encircling the globe parallel to the equator. These are the lines that define latitude. At this point it is equal to zero, and as it moves towards the poles it increases to 90°.
Find it on the globe or map your point - let's say it's Moscow. Look at what parallel it is located, you should get 55°. This means that Moscow is located at 55° latitude. Northern because it lies north of the equator. If you, for example, were looking for the coordinates of Sydney, it would be at 33° south latitude - because it lies south of the equator.
Now search for map England and its capital - London. Please note that it is through this one that one of the meridians passes - the lines stretching between the poles. The Greenwich Observatory is located near London; it is from this place that longitude is usually measured. Therefore, on which the observatory itself lies is equal to 0°. Everything that is west of Greenwich up to 180° is considered western. That which is to the east and up to 180° is to eastern longitude.
Based on the above, you can determine longitude Moscow - it is equal to 37°. In practice, to accurately indicate the location of a populated area, they determine not only , but also minutes, and sometimes . Therefore, the exact geographical coordinates of Moscow are as follows: 55 degrees 45 minutes north latitude (55°45?) and 37 degrees 37 minutes east longitude (37°38?). The geographical coordinates of the above-mentioned Sydney, which lies in the Southern Hemisphere, are 33° 52" south latitude and 151° 12" east longitude.
Because cyclamen is a rare “guest” in the garden, many gardeners are sure that it is exclusively a flower. However, cyclamen feels great in a personal plot if you give it a place in the partial shade of fruit trees or evergreen shrubs, protecting it from drafts and direct sunlight. Cyclamen is good for arranging an alpine hill. The choice of this arrangement of the flower is explained by its location in the wild, where it is found both in the forest and among the rocks.
Distribution area of cyclamens in the wild
Cyclamen is a heat-loving plant that prefers moderate humidity and shade. Therefore, most species grow in thickets of forests or bushes, as well as in rock crevices. In the territory of the former Soviet Union, cyclamens are found in Ukraine, Crimea, the southwest of the Caucasus, the south of Azerbaijan, and the Krasnodar region. Among the countries of Central Europe, France, Germany, Poland, and Bulgaria can boast of cyclamen habitat, where plants are mainly found in the south and southeast.
Species from these regions, or “natives” from northern Turkey, are quite suitable for cultivation in the garden conditions of the European part of Russia, especially since the eastern Mediterranean is a real cyclamen: Turkey, Iran, Syria, Cyprus, Greece, Israel. In the western Mediterranean, Italy and Spain, cyclamens also grow. On a hill near the Italian Lake Castel Kaldorf, you can observe their friendly flowering, which rarely happens in nature. After all, most wild species are on the verge of extinction. Northern Tunisia and Algeria are rich in cyclamen.
Varieties of wild cyclamens
It must be said that depending on their habitat, cyclamen have different endurance. For example, the ivy-leaved cyclamen or Neapolitan, common in central Europe, can easily overwinter in the snowy Russian winter with a temperature of -20°C. European cyclamen (purple) stands out from the general range of heat-loving species. It is characterized by a silvery leaf pattern and flowering not in the fall, like most cyclamen, but starting in June.
Sometimes they treat cyclamens growing in the territories of Abkhazia, Azerbaijan, and Adjara extremely unfairly, calling all species “Caucasian”. After all, here they distinguish such varieties as Circassian, Abkhazian, Colchian (Pontic), spring, graceful, Kosian. The latter is quite well known in Iran, Turkey, Syria, Israel and Bulgaria. Prefers to grow among coniferous vegetation. Its flowers are larger the further to the east. The largest flowers are considered to be cyclamen Kos on the shores of the Caspian Sea, in Azerbaijan.
In the south of France and the mountainous regions of Spain, a small species of cyclamen is common - Balearic, which belongs to the spring-flowering species. African cyclamen is considered the most heat-loving, its distinctive features are bright green large leaves that appear on the surface after the flowers. You can guess the habitat of many types of cyclamen by their name: African cyclamen, Cypriot cyclamen, Grecum, Persian. Persian, like African, does not tolerate even mild frosts.
The Russian name for rowan comes from the word “ripple”. Most likely, this is due to the fact that its clusters are bright and noticeable even from afar. But this name refers only to trees with red and yellow fruits. The widespread black rowan has a completely different scientific name - chokeberry, although it also belongs to the Rosaceae family.
Rowan is a unique tree that has an extensive root system, which allows it to grow in a variety of latitudes, even in permafrost conditions, and withstand frosts down to -50 degrees Celsius. As a rule, the height of rowan is about 4–5 m, but in mild climates there are specimens reaching 15 m in height. In cold and harsh areas it does not grow higher than 50 cm.
Rowan belongs to fruit trees, but its fruits are not berries at all, as is commonly believed, but so-called false drupes. They have an oval-round shape and a core with seeds, so their structure is similar to an apple, only much smaller in size. Rowan begins to bear fruit when it reaches the age of 7 - 8 years, and is often long-lived - some trees live up to 200 years. Rowan, growing for more than 20 years, can produce a harvest of over 100 kg per year.
Places of distribution
Various varieties and hybrids of rowan are widespread throughout Europe, Asia, and North America. The most common species in our latitudes is the mountain ash (Sorbus aucuparia), which grows in abundance in gardens and forests almost throughout Russia and does not require any special care. Its most popular forms are considered to be Nevezhin rowan and yellow-fruited rowan. In the southern, southwestern, and less often in the middle regions of Russia, Crimean large-fruited rowan (Sorbus domestica), which is also called domestic, is bred. The peculiarity of this species is its large pear-shaped fruits, reaching 3.5 cm in diameter and 20 g in weight, which have a particularly pleasant taste due to their high sugar content (about 14%).Rowan grows everywhere throughout the forest and forest-steppe zone of the European part of Russia (with the exception, perhaps, of the Far North), in the wooded regions of the Crimea and the Caucasus. It can often be found in coniferous and mixed coniferous-deciduous forests, along the banks of lakes and rivers, in fields and along roads. It does not like shady places and mainly grows not in deep forests, but on the edges and clearings of forests. Rowan is often a decoration of city parks, alleys and squares.
Video on the topic
Every place on earth can be identified by a global coordinate system of latitude and longitude. Knowing these parameters, it is easy to find any location on the planet. A coordinate system has been helping people with this for several centuries in a row.
Historical background for the emergence of geographic coordinates
When people began to travel long distances across deserts and seas, they needed a way to fix their position and know in which direction to move so as not to get lost. Before latitude and longitude appeared on maps, the Phoenicians (600 BC) and Polynesians (400 AD) used the starry sky to calculate latitude.
Over the centuries, quite complex devices were developed, such as the quadrant, astrolabe, gnomon and Arabic kamal. All of them were used to measure the height of the sun and stars above the horizon and thereby measure latitude. And if a gnomon is just a vertical stick that casts a shadow from the sun, then the kamal is a very unique device.
It consisted of a rectangular wooden plank measuring 5.1 by 2.5 cm, to which a rope with several equally spaced knots was attached through a hole in the middle.
These instruments were used to determine latitude even after their invention until a reliable method was invented to determine latitude and longitude on a map.
Navigators for hundreds of years did not have an accurate idea of location due to the lack of a concept of longitude. There was no precise time device in the world, such as a chronometer, so calculating longitude was simply impossible. Not surprisingly, early navigation was problematic and often resulted in shipwrecks.
Without a doubt, the pioneer of revolutionary navigation was Captain James Cook, who navigated the expanses of the Pacific Ocean thanks to the technical genius Henry Thomas Harrison. In 1759, Harrison developed the first navigational clock. By maintaining accurate Greenwich Mean Time, Harrison's clock allowed sailors to determine what time it was at a point and location, after which it became possible to determine longitude from east to west.
Geographic coordinate system
A geographic coordinate system defines two-dimensional coordinates based on the Earth's surface. It has an angular unit, a prime meridian and an equator with zero latitude. The globe is conventionally divided into 180 degrees of latitude and 360 degrees of longitude. Latitude lines are placed parallel to the equator and are horizontal on the map. Lines of longitude connect the North and South Poles and are vertical on the map. As a result of the overlay, geographic coordinates are formed on the map - latitude and longitude, with which you can determine the position on the surface of the Earth.
This geographic grid gives a unique latitude and longitude for every position on Earth. To increase the accuracy of measurements, they are further subdivided into 60 minutes, and each minute into 60 seconds.
The equator is located at right angles to the Earth's axis, approximately midway between the North and South Poles. At an angle of 0 degrees, it is used in the geographic coordinate system as the starting point for calculating latitude and longitude on a map.
Latitude is defined as the angle between the equatorial line of the Earth's center and the location of its center. The North and South Pole have a width angle of 90. To distinguish locations in the Northern Hemisphere from the Southern Hemisphere, the width is additionally provided in the traditional spelling with N for north or S for south.
The Earth is tilted at about 23.4 degrees, so to find the latitude at the summer solstice, you need to add 23.4 degrees to the angle you are measuring.
How to determine latitude and longitude on a map during the winter solstice? To do this, you need to subtract 23.4 degrees from the angle that is being measured. And at any other time, you need to determine the angle, knowing that it changes by 23.4 degrees every six months and, therefore, about 0.13 degrees per day.
In the northern hemisphere, you can calculate the Earth's tilt and therefore latitude by looking at the angle of the North Star. At the North Pole it will be 90 degrees from the horizon, and at the equator it will be directly ahead of the observer, 0 degrees from the horizon.
Important latitudes:
- Northern and Southern polar circles, each is located at 66 degrees 34 minutes north and, respectively, south latitude. These latitudes limit the areas around the poles where the sun does not set at the summer solstice, so the midnight sun predominates there. On the winter solstice, the sun does not rise here, and the polar night sets in.
- Tropics are located at 23 degrees 26 minutes in northern and southern latitudes. These latitudinal circles mark the solar zenith at the summer solstice of the northern and southern hemispheres.
- Equator lies at latitude 0 degrees. The equatorial plane lies approximately in the middle of the Earth's axis between the north and south poles. The equator is the only circle of latitude corresponding to the circumference of the Earth.
Latitude and longitude on a map are important geographic coordinates. Longitude is much more difficult to calculate than latitude. The Earth rotates 360 degrees per day, or 15 degrees per hour, so there is a direct relationship between longitude and the time the sun rises and falls. The Greenwich meridian is designated by 0 degrees longitude. The sun sets an hour earlier every 15 degrees east of this and an hour later every 15 degrees west. If you know the difference between the sunset time of a location and another famous place, you can understand how far east or west it is from it.
Lines of longitude run from north to south. They converge at the poles. And the longitude coordinates are between -180 and +180 degrees. The Greenwich meridian is the datum line of longitude, which measures the east-west direction in a system of geographic coordinates (such as latitude and longitude on a map). In fact, the zero line passes through the Royal Observatory in Greenwich (England). The Greenwich meridian, as the prime meridian, is the starting point for calculating longitude. Longitude is given as the angle between the center of the prime meridian of the Earth's center and the center of the Earth's center. The Greenwich meridian has an angle of 0, and the opposite longitude, along which the date line runs, has an angle of 180 degrees.
How to find latitude and longitude on a map?
Determining the exact geographic location on a map depends on its scale. To do this, it is enough to have a map with a scale of 1/100000, or better - 1/25000.
First, longitude D is determined using the formula:
D =G1 + (G2 - G1) * L2 / L1,
where G1, G2 - the value of the right and left nearest meridians in degrees;
L1 is the distance between these two meridians;
Longitude calculation, for example, for Moscow:
G1 = 36°,
G2 = 42°,
L1 = 252.5 mm,
L2 = 57.0 mm.
The desired longitude = 36 + (6) * 57.0 / 252.0 = 37° 36".
We determine the latitude L, it is determined by the formula:
L =G1 + (G2 - G1) * L2 / L1,
where G1, G2 - the value of the lower and upper nearest latitude in degrees;
L1 is the distance between these two latitudes, mm;
L2 - distance from the definition point to the nearest left one.
For example, for Moscow:
L1 = 371.0 mm,
L2 = 320.5 mm.
The required width L = 52 "+ (4) * 273.5 / 371.0 = 55 ° 45.
We check the correctness of the calculation; to do this, we need to find the latitude and longitude coordinates on the map using online services on the Internet.
We establish that the geographic coordinates for Moscow correspond to the calculations performed:
- 55° 45" 07" (55° 45" 13) north latitude;
- 37° 36" 59" (37° 36" 93) east longitude.
Determining location coordinates using iPhone
The acceleration of the pace of scientific and technological progress at the present stage has led to revolutionary discoveries of mobile technology, with the help of which a quick and more accurate determination of geographical coordinates has become available.
There are various mobile applications for this. On iPhones this is very easy to do using the Compass app.
Determination order:
- To do this, click “Settings” and then “Privacy”.
- Now click on “Location Services” at the very top.
- Scroll down until you see and tap the compass.
- If you see that it says "When used on the right side", you can start defining.
- If not, tap it and select "While using an app."
- Open the Compass app and you'll see your current location and current GPS coordinates at the bottom of the screen.
Determining coordinates in an Android phone
Unfortunately, Android doesn't have an official built-in way to get GPS coordinates. However, it is possible to get Google Maps coordinates, which requires some additional steps:
- Open Google Maps on your Android device and find the desired location.
- Tap and hold it anywhere on the screen and drag it to Google Maps.
- An informational or detailed map will appear at the bottom.
- Find the Share option on the information map in the upper right corner. This will bring up a menu with a Share option.
This setup can be done in Google Maps on iOS.
This is a great way to get coordinates that doesn't require you to install any additional applications.
Many of us became familiar with such concepts as longitude and latitude in childhood thanks to the adventure novels of Stevenson and Jules Verne. People have been studying these concepts since ancient times.
In that era when there were no perfect navigation instruments in the world, it was the geographic coordinates on the map that helped sailors determine their location at sea and find their way to the desired areas of land. Today, latitude and longitude are still used in many sciences and make it possible to accurately determine the position of any point on the earth's surface.
What is latitude?
Latitude is used to set the location of an object relative to the poles. The main imaginary line of the globe, the equator, passes at the same distance from and. It has zero latitude, and on both sides of it there are parallels - similar imaginary lines that conventionally intersect the planet at equal intervals. To the north of the equator there are northern latitudes, to the south, respectively, southern latitudes.
The distance between parallels is usually measured not in meters or kilometers, but in degrees, which allows you to more accurately determine the position of the object. There are 360 degrees in total. Latitude is measured north of the equator, that is, points located in the Northern Hemisphere have a positive latitude, and points located in the Southern Hemisphere have a negative latitude. 
For example, the north pole lies at a latitude of +90°, the south pole - -90°. Additionally, each degree is divided into 60 minutes, and minutes into 60 seconds.
What is longitude?
To find out the location of an object, it is not enough to know this place on the globe relative to the south or north. In addition to latitude, longitude is used for the full calculation, establishing the position of a point relative to east and west. If in the case of latitude the equator is taken as a basis, then longitude is calculated from the prime meridian (Greenwich), passing from the North to the South Pole through the London Borough of Greenwich.
On the right and left sides of the Greenwich meridian, ordinary meridians are drawn parallel to it, which meet each other at the poles. Eastern longitude is considered positive, and western longitude is negative. 
Like latitude, longitude has 360 degrees, divided into seconds and minutes. To the east of Greenwich is Eurasia, to the west are South and North America.
What are latitude and longitude used for?
Imagine that you are sailing on a ship lost in the middle of the ocean, or moving through an endless desert, where there are no signs or indicators at all. How could you explain your location to rescuers? It is latitude and longitude that help to find a person or other object anywhere on the globe, no matter where it is.
Geographic coordinates are actively used on search engine maps, in navigation, and on regular geographic maps. They are present in surveying instruments, satellite positioning systems, GPS navigators and other tools needed to determine the location of a point.
How to set geographic coordinates on a map?
To calculate the coordinates of an object on the map, you must first determine in which hemisphere it is located. Next, you need to find out between which parallels the desired point is located and set the exact number of degrees - usually they are written on the sides of the geographical map. After this, you can proceed to determining longitude, first establishing in which hemisphere the object is located relative to Greenwich. 
Determining degrees of longitude is similar to latitude. If you need to find out the location of a point in three-dimensional space, its height relative to sea level is additionally used.
Since the time of man's access to the seas, the need to determine longitude and latitude has been a vital human skill. Epochs changed, and man became able to determine the cardinal directions in any weather. New methods of determining one's position were required.
The captain of a Spanish galleon in the eighteenth century knew exactly where the ship was thanks to the position of the stars in the night sky. A 19th-century traveler could detect deviations from the established route in the forest by natural clues.
Now it’s the twenty-first century and many have lost the knowledge gained from geography lessons. Android or iPhone smartphones can serve as a tool, but they can never replace the knowledge and ability to determine your location.
What is latitude and longitude in geography
Determination of geographical coordinates
Apps that users install on iPhone read location coordinates to provide services or data based on where a person is located. After all, if a subscriber is in Russia, then there is no reason for him to read sites in English. Everything happens in the background.
While the average user will never deal with GPS coordinates, knowing how to obtain and read them can be valuable. In some cases, they can save lives when there is no card nearby.
In any geographical system there are two indicators: latitude and longitude. Geodata from a smartphone shows exactly where the user is located relative to the equator.
How to determine the latitude and longitude of your location
Let's consider two options for determining geographic coordinates:
- Via Android The simplest is the Google Maps application, perhaps the most comprehensive collection of geographic maps in one application. After launching the Google maps application, the location on the road map will be pinpointed so that the user can get the best possible understanding of the surrounding area. The app also offers an extensive list of features, including real-time GPS navigation, traffic conditions and transit information, as well as detailed information about nearby places, including popular food and recreation spots, photos and reviews.
- Via iPhone You won't need any third party app to view latitude and longitude data. The location is determined only with the maps application. To find out the current coordinates, just launch “maps”. Tap the arrow in the upper right corner of the screen, then tap the blue dot - this indicates the location of the phone and the user. Next, we swipe up the screen, and now the user can see the GPS coordinates. Unfortunately, there is no way to copy these coordinates, but you can get similar data.
To copy them you will need another Compass application. It's already installed on your iPhone and you can use it right away.
To view latitude, longitude, and altitude coordinates in the Compass app, simply launch and find the data at the bottom.
Determining the geographical coordinates of Moscow
For this:
- Open maps of the Yandex search engine.
- In the address bar, enter the name of our capital “Moscow”.
- The city center (Kremlin) opens and under the name of the country we find the numbers 55.753215, 37.622504 - these are the coordinates, that is, 55.753215 north latitude and 37.622504 east longitude.
Throughout the world, GPS coordinates are determined by latitude and longitude according to the wgs-84 coordinate system.
In all situations, the latitude coordinate is a point relative to the equator, and the longitude coordinate is a point relative to the meridian of the British Royal Observatory at Greenwich, in the UK. This defines two important parameters of online geography.
Finding the latitude and longitude of St. Petersburg
To consolidate the skill, we will repeat the same algorithm of actions, but for the Northern capital:
- Open Yandex cards.
- We write down the name of the northern capital “St. Petersburg”.
- The result of the request will be a panorama of Palace Square and the required coordinates 59.939095, 30.315868.
Coordinates of Russian cities and world capitals in the table
| Cities of Russia | Latitude | Longitude |
| Moscow | 55.753215 | 37.622504 |
| Saint Petersburg | 59.939095 | 30.315868 |
| Novosibirsk | 55.030199 | 82.920430 |
| Ekaterinburg | 56.838011 | 60.597465 |
| Vladivostok | 43.115536 | 131.885485 |
| Yakutsk | 62.028103 | 129.732663 |
| Chelyabinsk | 55.159897 | 61.402554 |
| Kharkiv | 49.992167 | 36.231202 |
| Smolensk | 54.782640 | 32.045134 |
| Omsk | 54.989342 | 73.368212 |
| Krasnoyarsk | 56.010563 | 92.852572 |
| Rostov | 57.185866 | 39.414526 |
| Bryansk | 53.243325 | 34.363731 |
| Sochi | 43.585525 | 39.723062 |
| Ivanovo | 57.000348 | 40.973921 |
| Capitals of world states | Latitude | Longitude |
| Tokyo | 35.682272 | 139.753137 |
| Brasilia | -15.802118 | -47.889062 |
| Kyiv | 50.450458 | 30.523460 |
| Washington | 38.891896 | -77.033788 |
| Cairo | 30.065993 | 31.266061 |
| Beijing | 39.901698 | 116.391433 |
| Delhi | 28.632909 | 77.220026 |
| Minsk | 53.902496 | 27.561481 |
| Berlin | 52.519405 | 13.406323 |
| Wellington | -41.297278 | 174.776069 |
Reading GPS data or where negative numbers come from
The object's geographic positioning system has changed several times. Now, thanks to it, you can quite accurately determine the distance to the desired object and find out the coordinates.
The ability to show location is a vital necessity during search operations of rescue services. There are different situations with travelers, tourists or extreme sports enthusiasts. It is then that high accuracy is important, when a person is on the verge of life, and minutes count.
Now, dear reader, having such knowledge, you may have questions. There are many of them, but even from the table one of the most interesting emerges - why is the number negative? Let's figure it out.
GPS, when translated into Russian, sounds like this – “global positioning system”. We remember that the distance to the desired geographical object (city, village, village, etc.) is measured according to two landmarks on the globe: the equator and the observatory in London.
At school they talked about latitude and longitude, but in Yandex maps they are replaced with the left and right parts of the code. If the navigator shows positive values, then you are going in a northerly direction. Otherwise, the numbers become negative, indicating southern latitude.
The same goes for longitude. Positive values are eastern longitude, and negative values are western longitude.
For example, the coordinates of the Lenin Library in Moscow: 55°45’08.1″N 37°36’36.9″E. It reads like this: “55 degrees 45 minutes and 08.1 seconds north latitude and 37 degrees 36 minutes and 36.9 seconds east longitude” (data from Google maps).