Which one of the following is the longest parallel of latitude?
- A.Tropic of Cancer
- B.Tropic of Capricorn
- C.Arctic Circle
- D.Equator
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is D, the Equator. Parallels of latitude are circles drawn parallel to the equator, and they grow shorter as one moves towards the poles, until a pole is a point with no length at all. The equator, at zero degrees, is therefore the longest parallel, a great circle about 40,075 km round, and it alone divides the earth into two equal halves, the Northern and the Southern Hemisphere. Option A, the Tropic of Cancer at 23 degrees 30 minutes north, is shorter than the equator, although it is the parallel that matters most for India, passing through eight of its states. Option B, the Tropic of Capricorn at 23 degrees 30 minutes south, is of the same length as the Tropic of Cancer and so also shorter. Option C, the Arctic Circle at 66 degrees 30 minutes north, lies far nearer the pole and is much shorter still.
Read the full article: Location and Extent of India: Extreme Points and PYQs
Practice Questions
View allWhat is the approximate time lag (in hours) from Gujarat to Arunachal Pradesh?
- A.1
- B.1.5
- C.2
- D.2.5
Show answer
The mainland of India extends from about 68 degrees 7 minutes east to about 97 degrees 25 minutes east, a longitudinal spread of roughly 29 degrees.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following water bodies separates the Andaman Islands from the Nicobar Islands?
- A.Gulf of Mannar
- B.Ten Degree Channel
- C.Eleven Degree Channel
- D.Palk Strait
Show answer
The correct answer is B, the Ten Degree Channel, which lies roughly along the parallel of ten degrees north and separates the Andaman group in the north from the Nicobar group in the south; Little Andaman lies to its north and Car Nicobar to its south.
Read the full explanation →The southernmost point of the Indian mainland is
- A.Indira Point
- B.Kanyakumari
- C.Rameswaram
- D.Dhanushkodi
Show answer
The correct answer is B, Kanyakumari, also called Cape Comorin, in Tamil Nadu, which stands at about 8 degrees 4 minutes north and is the southern tip of the Indian mainland, where the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean are said to meet.
Read the full explanation →Indira Point, the southernmost point of India, is situated in which island?
- A.Little Andaman
- B.Car Nicobar
- C.Great Nicobar
- D.Minicoy
Show answer
Indira Point lies at the southern end of Great Nicobar, the largest island of the Nicobar group, at about 6 degrees 45 minutes north, and is the southernmost point of the territory of India; it was known as Pygmalion Point before being renamed.
Read the full explanation →Which meridian of longitude is taken as the standard meridian of India?
- A.Zero degrees
- B.75 degrees 30 minutes east
- C.82 degrees 30 minutes east
- D.90 degrees east
Show answer
This meridian, which passes near Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh, runs roughly through the middle of the country and was adopted as the standard meridian so that the whole of India could keep one time.
Read the full explanation →