Which statement is true about the Tropics?

Which statement is true about the Tropics?

• A. They are lines of longitude
• B. They mark the northern and southern boundaries of the Tropics
• C. They pass through London
• D. They are equidistant from the Prime Meridian

Answer: (B)

Think of the Tropics as a belt around the equator that is bounded by two lines of latitude: the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the south, about 23.5 degrees north and south of the equator. These two lines mark the northern and southern edges of the tropical zone, where the Sun can be directly overhead at some point during the year. That makes the statement about marking the northern and southern boundaries the correct one. The other ideas don’t fit because they describe features of longitude, not latitude. The Tropics are not defined by longitudinal lines, so they aren’t lines of longitude. London sits well outside this belt, since it lies around 51.5°N, far north of the Tropics. And being equidistant from the Prime Meridian would again refer to longitude positions, not the latitudinal boundaries that define the Tropics.

Think of the Tropics as a belt around the equator that is bounded by two lines of latitude: the Tropic of Cancer in the north and the Tropic of Capricorn in the south, about 23.5 degrees north and south of the equator. These two lines mark the northern and southern edges of the tropical zone, where the Sun can be directly overhead at some point during the year. That makes the statement about marking the northern and southern boundaries the correct one.

The other ideas don’t fit because they describe features of longitude, not latitude. The Tropics are not defined by longitudinal lines, so they aren’t lines of longitude. London sits well outside this belt, since it lies around 51.5°N, far north of the Tropics. And being equidistant from the Prime Meridian would again refer to longitude positions, not the latitudinal boundaries that define the Tropics.