Which countries and which continents are in the Northern Hemisphere, and which ones are in the Southern Hemisphere.

Our planet is conventionally divided into four hemispheres. How are the boundaries between them defined? What features do the Earth's hemispheres have?

Equator and meridian

It has the shape of a slightly flattened ball at the poles - a spheroid. In scientific circles, its shape is usually called a geoid, that is, “like the Earth.” The surface of the geoid is perpendicular to the direction of gravity at any point.

For convenience, the characteristics of the planet use conditional, or imaginary, lines. One of them is the axis. It passes through the center of the Earth, connecting the upper and lower parts, called the North and South Pole.

Between the poles, at an equal distance from them, there is the following imaginary line, which is called the equator. It is horizontal and is a separator into the Southern (everything below the line) and Northern (everything above the line) hemispheres of the Earth. is a little more than 40 thousand kilometers.

Another conventional line is Greenwich, or This is a vertical line passing through the observatory in Greenwich. The meridian divides the planet into the Western and Eastern hemispheres, and is also the starting point for measuring geographic longitude.

Difference between the Southern and Northern Hemispheres

The equator line horizontally divides the planet in half, crossing several continents. Africa, Eurasia and South America are partially located in two hemispheres. The remaining continents are located within one. Thus, Australia and Antarctica are entirely in the southern part, and North America- in the north.

The Earth's hemispheres also have other differences. Thanks to Arctic Ocean climate at the pole Northern Hemisphere generally softer than the South, where the land is Antarctica. The seasons in the hemispheres are opposite: winter in the northern part of the planet comes simultaneously with summer in the south.

The difference is observed in the movement of air and water. North of the equator, river flows and sea currents deviate to the right (river banks are usually steeper on the right), anticyclones rotate clockwise, and cyclones rotate counterclockwise. To the south of the equator, everything happens exactly the opposite.

Even the starry sky above is different. The pattern in each hemisphere is different. The main landmark for the northern part of the Earth is the North Star, and the Southern Cross serves as a reference point. Above the equator, land prevails, which is why the majority of people live here. Below the equator total number The population is 10%, since the oceanic part predominates.

Western and Eastern Hemispheres

To the east of the prime meridian is the Earth's Eastern Hemisphere. Within its borders are Australia, most of Africa, Eurasia, and part of Antarctica. Approximately 82% of the world's population lives here. In a geopolitical and cultural sense, it is called the Old World, as opposed to the New World of the American continents. In the eastern part there is a deep trench and the most high mountain on our planet.

The earth is located west of the Greenwich meridian. It covers Northern and South America, part of Africa and Eurasia. It completely includes the Atlantic Ocean and most of the Pacific. Here is the longest mountain range in the world, largest volcano, the driest desert, the highest mountain lake and deep river. Only 18% of the world's inhabitants live in the western part of the world.

Date line

As already mentioned, the Western and Eastern hemispheres of the Earth are separated by the Greenwich meridian. Its continuation is the 180th meridian, which outlines the border on the other side. It is the date line, where today turns into tomorrow.

Different calendar days are recorded on both sides of the meridian. This is due to the peculiarities of the planet’s rotation. The International Date Line mostly runs along the ocean, but also crosses some islands (Vanua Levu, Taviuni, etc.). In these places, for convenience, the line is shifted along the land boundary, otherwise the inhabitants of one island would exist on different dates.

In Antarctica. The word "hemisphere" means half a sphere, and since our planet is a sphere oblate at the poles (an ellipsoid), it is divided into two hemispheres.

Geography and climate of the Southern Hemisphere

Map of continents located in the Southern Hemisphere of the Earth

Due to the large amount of water in the Southern Hemisphere, the climate here is milder than in the Northern Hemisphere. In general, water warms and cools more slowly than land, so water near any landmass tends to have a moderating effect on the climate.

The Southern Hemisphere, like the Northern Hemisphere, is also divided into several different regions based on climate. The most widespread is the South Temperate Zone, which runs from the Tropic of Capricorn to the beginning of the Arctic Circle at 66.5° south latitude. The area has a temperate climate characterized by big amount precipitation, cold winters and warm summers. Some countries located in southern zone temperate climates include most of Chile, Uruguay, South Africa, all of New Zealand and southern regions of Australia.

The area immediately north of south temperate zone, located between the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn known as the tropics, has high temperatures And a large number of precipitation throughout the year.

South of the Arctic Circle is the Antarctic continent. Antarctica, unlike the rest of the Southern Hemisphere, is not heated by the large presence of water because it is such a large landmass. In addition, it is much colder here than in the Arctic in the Northern Hemisphere for the same reason.

Summer in the Southern Hemisphere lasts from December 21 or 22 until the autumn equinox on March 20. Winter lasts from June 20 or 21 until the vernal equinox on September 22 or 23. These dates are determined by the tilt of the Earth's axis, which in the period from December 21 (22) to March 20, in the Southern Hemisphere, is inclined towards the Sun, while during the period from 20 ( June 21 to September 22 (23), it is tilted away from the Sun.

Coriolis effect in the Southern Hemisphere

An important component of physics in the Southern Hemisphere is the Coriolis force and the specific direction in which objects are deflected in the southern half of the Earth. In the Southern Hemisphere, any object moving above or on the surface of the Earth is deflected to the left.

Because of this, any large air or water masses south of the equator spin counterclockwise. For example, large ocean currents in the Southern Hemisphere turn counterclockwise. In the northern hemisphere, these directions change in the opposite side, since all objects deviate to the right.

In addition, leftward deflection of objects affects air flow. For example, high atmospheric pressure(anticyclones) in the Southern Hemisphere move counterclockwise due to the Coriolis Effect. On the other hand, low pressure systems (cyclones) move clockwise.

Population of the Southern Hemisphere

Map of the distribution of the Earth's population

Because the Southern Hemisphere has a smaller land area than the Northern Hemisphere, it has a much smaller population (about 800 million people). The majority of the Earth's population (about 90%) and its largest cities are in the Northern Hemisphere, although there are big cities and in the South, such as Lima (Peru), Cape Town (South Africa), Santiago (Chile) and Auckland ( New Zealand).

Antarctica is the largest landmass in the Southern Hemisphere, and the largest on the planet. Despite her large area, the continent is practically undeveloped by people due to the extremely harsh climate. All people in Antarctica are workers at research stations, most of whom work only in summer time of the year.

Despite its small population, the Southern Hemisphere is incredibly biologically diverse, as most tropical forests are located in this half of the Earth. For example, the Amazon rainforest is located almost entirely in the Southern Hemisphere, as are other biodiverse places such as Madagascar and New Zealand. Antarctica also has a significant diversity of species adapted to its harsh climate, such as emperor penguins, seals, whales, and different kinds plants and algae.

Ever wondered why the sun moves from left to right in the sky?
We are in the Northern Hemisphere, and it, like the hemisphere of the Earth, rotates counterclockwise towards us, while the Southern Hemisphere is mirrored - that is, clockwise...

For those who don't quite understand yet, here are some drawings:

Long exposure photo of the starry sky.

Panoramic animated shooting.

The polar star is located exactly above the Earth's rotation axis, so all other stars revolve around it, describing circles different diameters, corresponding to their angular distance from the North Star.

I found practically no materials that in the Southern Hemisphere the movement will be the opposite - clockwise.

The Southern Hemisphere is the part of the Earth located south of the equator.

Summer in the southern hemisphere lasts from December to February, and winter from June to August. Cyclones in the southern hemisphere, unlike the northern hemisphere, rotate clockwise, and anticyclones rotate counterclockwise.

For example, a cyclone in the Northern Hemisphere:

At astronomical noon, the Sun in the southern hemisphere is exactly north, while in the northern hemisphere it is exactly south. The apparent path of the Sun across the sky during the day passes from right to left(if you face his position at noon), and not from left to right, as in the northern. Residents of the southern hemisphere see the Moon “upside down.” Accordingly, it increases on the left and decreases on the right, whereas in the northern hemisphere the opposite is true.

The “inverted” part of the Earth rotates clockwise - imagine we are standing on this shell and looking at the sun, which is still towards the equator. For us, the sun will move across the sky from right to left.

Ever thought about this?

When writing the article, Wikipedia materials and image searches were used.

The southern hemisphere has always had a smaller population compared to the northern. It is believed that in the 21st century only about 11% of general population peace.

Despite this, you will find some of the most crowded cities on our planet. Some of them are so big that it is sometimes difficult to imagine.

An interesting fact is that five of the ten largest cities in the southern hemisphere are in, two are in, two are also in, and most surprisingly, only one is in, which is actually the continent with the largest population.

1. Sao Paulo / Brazil. Sao Paulo is now the largest city south of the equator. It is often called the New York of South America. The metropolis is home to 17,900,000 inhabitants. The city is extremely dynamic, and its streets never calm down.

The busiest arteries of São Paulo are full of cars and pedestrians even at small hours of the night.

5. Kinshasa / Democratic Republic of the Congo. More than 9 million people now live in the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kinshasa.

The city has its own beauty and characteristics, but on the other hand it is an example of what happens when the population grows faster than the ability to build the necessary infrastructure.

Today, large parts of Kinshasa have little developed infrastructure and poor living conditions.

8. Sydney, Australia. The population is 4.5 million inhabitants. It is not only the largest Australian city, but also the largest in the whole of Australia.

10. Johannesburg /. With a population of 3.9 million, Johannesburg is the last of the ten largest metropolitan areas in the southern hemisphere. Named local residents“The City of Eternal Spring”, Johannesburg is dynamic, exciting and beautiful, but also the most dangerous city.

Similar to most major cities in the world, crime is high here and many places are advisable to avoid.

In geography, there is a conventional division of the Earth into hemispheres. In accordance with their location in relation to the equator (dividing line), they are called Northern and Southern. Each hemisphere has its own characteristics.

Hemispheres on the map

The Equator encircles the Earth, crossing Eurasia, Africa, and South America. Each of the remaining continents is located entirely in one of the hemispheres: North America - in the Northern, Australia and Antarctica - in the Southern.

Comparison

Let's look point by point at what is the difference between the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere.

1. Temperature at the poles. Despite its name, the North Pole is less severe than the South Pole. What explains this? The fact that the North Pole zone is the ocean, and the South Pole zone is Antarctica. Water is lower in level and conducts heat, unlike the solid, rising continent.
2. Movement of air masses. In the Southern Hemisphere, emerging cyclones rotate clockwise, and anticyclones rotate in the opposite direction. Air flows in the other hemisphere rotate in the opposite direction.
3. Seasons. While the Northern Hemisphere continues to experience warm weather summer season, in the South people have to survive the winter. And the winter months that are familiar to us are summer on the other half of the globe.
4. Fauna. Each hemisphere has its own unique animals. In Severny you can meet a walrus, polar bear, polar fox. In the South - kangaroos, hummingbirds.
5. Distribution of land and water. The Northern Hemisphere contains vast land masses. This is the majority of the planet's landmass. A significant proportion of the other hemisphere is water.
6. Population size. What is the difference between the Northern and Southern Hemisphere? The fact is that there are immeasurably more inhabitants of the Northern Hemisphere. Only 10% of the world's population lives in Yuzhny.
7. Starry sky. In the field of view of people staying in the Northern Hemisphere, there is a set of stars and constellations that is different from the one that is visible to southerners. In particular, in the Northern Hemisphere there is an important landmark, the North Star, and in the opposite hemisphere the Southern Cross has the same significance.