how do i answer this question... what is the answer in other terms?

Question

describe how the distance of a degree of longtitude varies from the equator to the poles

Answer 1

All meridians of longitude converge at the poles. So at
89 59.9N, a degree of longitude will only be fraction of an inch. At the equator it is about 66 2/3 miles.

That is why, when using a maritime chart, you always plot distance by measuring from the latitude scale. The parallels of latitude are exactly that, parallel at every point on the globe (as near as dammit)

Answer 2

The earth can be regarded as a spherical object, and since we're dealing with a 3-dimensional shape we need coordinates of a different form than the usual x- and y-axes. Though adding an extra z-axes would make sense for submarines, we will most likely be found on the surface of this sphere while using another system of coordinates, parallels of latitude and meridians of longitude.that covers our planet with imaginary lines called meridians and parallels, see figure 1. All these lines together provide the grid which enables us to describe any position in longitudes and latitudes.

The obvious place to divide the Northern and Southern Hemispheres was the equator. But the division of the Eastern and Western hemispheres was the source of much political turmoil. Greenwich (Great Britain) won, placing for example The Netherlands in the Eastern and Ireland in the Western Hemisphere.

It takes the earth 24 hours for a full rotation of 360°. Thus, every hour we rotate 15° longitude, see figure 2.

When it is 12:00 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) - anywhere in the world - it is 12:00 Local Time in Greenwich and 24:00 Local Time at the other side of the planet: 180° E or 180° W: the date line. Crossing this special meridian changes not only the hour but also the date.

prime meridian international date line and time zones The North Pole has a latitude of 90° N and the South Pole 90° S. The meridians cover twice this angle up to 180° W or E.
Meridians converge at the poles, whereas parallels run parallel to each other and never meet. All meridians and the equator - the biggest parallel - form great circles, and the remaining parallels form so-called small circles. A great circle divides the earth in two exact halves.

In figure 3 the position of Boston in the United States is shown using latitude and longitude in degrees, minutes and seconds:
42° 21' 30" N , 71° 03' 37" W

Most sailors will actually notate seconds in metric fractions of minutes:
42° 21',5 N , 71° 03',6 W or
42° 21'.5 N , 71° 03'.6 W

On small scaled charts we want to be accurate within one minute or one nautical mile. On larger scaled charts the accuracy is more likely to be within a tenth of a mile (a cable).

If the earth were a perfect sphere with a circumference of roughly 40000 kilometres all great circles - meridians plus the equator - would have the same length and could be used as a distance unit when divided longitude and latitudeinto 360 degrees, or 360° x 60' = 21600' minutes. In 1929, the international community agreed on the definition of 1 international nautical mile as 1852 metres, which is roughly the average length of one minute of latitude i.e. one minute of arc along a line of longitude (a meridian).
Or to put it shortly: 1 nm = 1'

We are now able to describe any position in latitudes and longitudes. Moreover, we can state the distance between two of those positions using nautical miles or minutes. All we need now is a proper way to define speed. For that, sailors use knots, the number of nautical miles an hour.

Answer 3

Because the lines of longitude run from pole to pole, the distance between the lines is wider at the equator than they are at the poles where they converge.

At the equator, the 360 degrees of longitude covers about 24,000 miles (the circumference of the earth) or about 66.67 miles per degree of longitude. At the poles the lines are converging to a point (or zero distance between the lines)

Answer 4

If I'm understanding your question right, there are 90 longitude degrees from equator to pole. If the earth were a perfect sphere, the distance of each of the 90 degrees would be the same. But, since the earth is not a perfect sphere, there would be some variation. How this is computed I don't know.

Answer 5

Consider the meridians of longitude to be dividing the earth like the sections of an orange, then look at it from either pole like a peeled orange from the ends. The sections are fattest at the equator and taper to a point at the poles. If you want precision on how they taper, you need to introduce some math.

Answer 6

it doesnt. the government is lying to you and making you think that its true, let alone you have to know. THEY"RE ALL OUT TO GET US. RUN WHILE YOU STILL CAN!!!!!!!