Tropic of Capricorn

The Tropic of Capricorn is an imaginary horizontal latitude line, what we know as parallel, which rotates around the Earth at approximately 23.5° south of the Equator. It is the southernmost point on Earth at which the sun's rays can be directly on a person's head at local noon. It is also one of the five main latitude circles that divide the Earth, the other are the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere, the Equator, the Arctic Circle and the Antarctic Circle. This tropic is in charge of pointing out the southern limit of the Intertropical Zone, which is delimited by the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The Tropic of Capricorn is significant for understanding the Earth's geography because it marks the southern boundary of the tropics. This region extends from the Equator southward to the Tropic of Capricorn and northward to the Tropic of Cancer.

Related Topics

Tropic of Cancer

What is the Tropic of Capricorn?

The Tropic of Capricorn is an imaginary horizontal or parallel line that rotates around the Earth at 23.5° South of the Equator. It is the southernmost point on earth and extends from the Tropic of Capricorn to the north of the Tropic of Cancer and is responsible for pointing out the southern boundary of the Intertropical zone.

Tropic of Capricorn’s history

The Tropic of Capricorn was named because the sun was in Capricorn’s constellation during the December solstice. The denomination took place about 2000 years ago and the sun is not in those constellations anymore at that time of year. During the June solstice, the Sun is in Taurus and during the December solstice, the Sun is in Sagittarius. It is called the Tropic of Capricorn because in Classical Antiquity, when the summer solstice occurred in the southern hemisphere, the Sun was located Capricorn constellation. It is currently in Sagittarius constellation, but the tropic name Capricorn continues to be accepted by mere tradition.

Characteristics

• The tropics experience little difference between seasons, so in the Capricorn Tropic life is generally warm and sunny.
• The deserts of Atacama and Kalahari, Rio de Janeiro and the cold peaks of the Andes Mountains lie beneath the Tropic of Capricorn.
• This is where the vast majority of the world’s coffee is grown.
• It is an imaginary line that establishes the southernmost points where the sun can be at midday.
• It is in charge of giving the southern limit of the Intertropical Zone.
• The first place where it starts is the desert coast of Namibia, in Sandwich port.
• The tropics crosses the Limpopo River, the great watercourse that flows through South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique to the Indian Ocean.
• The Tropic of Capricorn touches only the tip of South Africa’s northernmost province but includes the Kruger National Park.

Where it is located?

The Tropic of Capricorn is located with the parallel of Ecuador, in the Southern Hemisphere. It is located at a latitude of 23º 26′ 14″ south of Ecuador.

What countries it crosses?

The Tropic of Capricorn is located from west to east and begins in America. It crosses the following countries:

• Chile, where different instruments have been placed to investigate the tropics.
• Argentina
• Paraguay
• Brazil
• Namibia, specifically its desert. The tropics pass near Rehoboth, the center of the Baster community, and cities built in Bavarian style when Namibia was southwest Africa.
• Botswana and enters the Central Kalahari Game Reserve. The largely undistinguished terrain makes this a particularly good place for detecting big cats.
• South Africa is where the tropics cross Limpopo River, the great watercourse that rises in the Transvaal and flows through South Africa, Botswana and Mozambique to the Indian Ocean.
• Mozambique, where nature has become a landscape.
• Madagascar, where the tropics are divided into two parts.
• Australia, where it covers the west coast between Carnarvon and Exmouth and makes a passage through the little, sandy, dry and little noticeable sand desert.

Why is it called Tropic of Capricorn?

Tropic of Capricorn is so called because, when it was named some 2,000 years ago, the sun was also in the Capricorn constellation direction, it should be noted that Capricorn is in Latin the same as goat horn, in the December solstice. In modern times, the sun appears in Sagittarius’ constellation during this time.