Important Parallels of latitudes

1. The North Pole (90ºN) & the South Pole (90ºS) are important Latitudes, since the location of the Equator is obtained from these two fixed points.
2. The Equator (0º) divides the Earth into two hemispheres, the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere, All the lines of latitude are calculated from it.

3. The Tropic of Cancer (23¹/₂ºN₎ & The Tropic of Capricorn (23¹/₂ºS) mark the limits of the apparent northward and southward movements of the Sun in course of a year. All the places lying between the tropics receive the direct or nearly direct rays of the Sun throughout the year and get overhead Sun twice a year. On the other hand, places lying beyond the tropics right up to the Poles never receive the direct rays of the Sun and always receive the slanting rays.

4. The Arctic Circle (66¹/₂ºN) & The Antarctic Circle (66¹/₂ºS) mark the limits of the Polar Regions. In both the hemispheres, places lying between the Poles and these latitudes, experience 24 hours of daylight in summer and 24 hours of darkness in winter. There are some places within these belts, which enjoy continuous daylight for 6 months and continuous darkness for the remaining part of the year. Since the Poles are the extreme points marking the northern and southern extremes of the Earth, it is only possible to travel southwards from the North Pole and Northwards from the South Pole.