How to describe the position of a country
To describe where a country lies we use four simple ideas:
- Hemisphere: north or south of the equator, east or west of the prime meridian.
- Latitude: the distance north or south of the equator, in degrees. It decides how warm a place is.
- Longitude: the distance east or west of the prime meridian (0°), in degrees. It decides the local time.
- Neighbours: seas, oceans, mountains and other countries around it.
On the globe: latitude, belts and size
Russia lies wholly in the northern hemisphere. Its mainland stretches from about 41° N in the south (the Caucasus) to about 77° N in the north (Cape Chelyuskin). Islands go even further, to about 81° N. About one-fifth of the country lies north of the Arctic Circle (66.5° N).
Most of it lies in the temperate belt, so winters are long and cold. Because the sun is always low in the north, the land gets less heat. Russia is the largest country in the world, about 17 million km².
Longitude and time zones
The Earth turns 360° in 24 hours, so 15° each hour. Russia stretches from about 19° E in the west to about 170° W in the far east. That is about 170° of longitude, so the time difference between its two ends is about 11 hours. Russia uses 11 time zones. Time difference = longitude difference ÷ 15.
Seas and physical features around it
The north is washed by the Arctic Ocean seas (Barents, Kara, Laptev and others) which are covered by ice for most of the year. The east is washed by the Pacific Ocean seas (Bering, Okhotsk, Japan). In the west and south-west there are seas of the Atlantic basin, the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea, plus the Sea of Azov and the inland Caspian Sea.
The Ural mountains are a low old range that runs north to south and is the usual line between Europe and Asia. West of it is the East European (Russian) Plain; east of it, the West Siberian Plain and then the high plateaus and mountains of the east.
The long coastline gives access to the oceans, but the Arctic ice and the great distances make trade and travel hard.
Key formulas and definitions
- Time difference (hours) = longitude difference (degrees) ÷ 15
- Noon sun angle at equinox = 90° − latitude
- Belts: tropical 0°-23.5°, temperate 23.5°-66.5°, polar 66.5°-90°
- Russia (mainland): about 41° N to 77° N, about 19° E to 170° W
Worked examples
1. Longitude 60° E and 150° E: find the time difference.
150 − 60 = 90°. 90 ÷ 15 = 6 hours. The eastern place is 6 hours ahead.
2. A town is at 55° N. In which belt does it lie and what is the noon sun angle at an equinox?
55° is between 23.5° and 66.5°, so it is in the temperate belt. Noon sun angle = 90° − 55° = 35°.
3. How many degrees of latitude does the mainland cover, from 41° N to 77° N?
77 − 41 = 36 degrees.
4. The country spans about 170° of longitude. About how many time zones would that need at 15° each?
170 ÷ 15 ≈ 11.3, so about 11 zones.
Common mistakes
- Thinking longitude decides the climate. Latitude decides it; longitude decides time.
- Dividing by 24 instead of 15. The Earth turns 15° each hour.
- Calling the Ural mountains very high. They are old and low (the highest peak is about 1,900 m).
- Reading the pink box as a border. It only shows the latitude and longitude range.