19 Continued from previous page and geodetic coordinates. Those differences are important in this the age of satellite imagery. Lines of longitude are also stated in degrees, minutes and seconds. Longitude is measured in degrees that extend both east and west of the Prime Meridian to a maximum of one hundred and eighty degrees East and West (180° E or W°). The Prime Meridian is zero (0°) degrees. It divides maps of the world into the Eastern and the Western hemisphere. On a map, the lines of Longitude meet at the North and South Poles. At the Equator one degree of Longitude is equivalent to 69 miles but only at the Equator. At forty degrees (40°) North or South the distance is 53 miles. That distance becomes smaller and smaller until the longitude lines meet at the Poles on a map or a globe. Lines of Longitude are known as meridians and not parallels as the lines of Latitude are. It is the intersection of the values for latitude and longitude that give a unique position for a specific location. There are now APPS that give us locations and calculate distances. Locations of storms or hurricanes are given in terms of latitude or longitude for the centre of the system, e.g. seventeen degrees North and sixty degrees West. (17° N 60° W). That information makes it possible to track the movement of the system on a map or follow it on technology-driven schematics and graphics. When you know the location of your country (a CARICAD member state for example) in latitude and longitude you can get the earliest indication of the proximity of your country to likely effects from the Anguilla Antigua & Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize British Virgin Islands Dominica Grenada Guyana Jamaica Montserrat St. Kitts & Nevis Saint Lucia St. Vincent & the Grenadines Suriname Trinidad & Tobago Turks and Caicos Islands storm. Additionally, you will get a clearer picture by examining the predicted, projected path of the system as given in weather reports. Remember that the centre of the hurricane could be anywhere in the “cone of uncertainty’ and there is about a 30 per cent chance that the system will also travel outside the cone. You must be mindful that a hurricane can be hundreds of miles across and hurricane conditions might extend for a hundred miles or more from the centre. We have prepared the table below for your information and convenience. It shows the latitude and longitude of all CARICAD member states. Remember that the precise location within a multi-island state for a particular island in that state or territory could be slightly different from the figures shown. Continues on next page COUNTRY/TERRITORY LATITUDE IN DEGREES NORTH 18. 22 N 17. 06 25. 33 13.19 17.18 18.42 15.41 12.11 04.86 18.10 16.74 17.35 13.90 12.98 3.91 10.69 21.69 LONGITUDE IN DEGREES WEST 63.06 W 61.79 77.39 59.54 88.49 64.64 61.37 61.67 58.93 77.29 62.18 62.78 60.97 61.28 56.02 61.22 71.79
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