Science

• Coordinate system


  A system that uses coordinates to establish positions
• Latitude


  Horizontal lines from north or south of the equator (0°)
• Longitude


  Vertical lines from east or west of the prime meridian
• The Philippines has coordinates of 13°0'0"N; 122°0'0"E
• The equator separates the Northern Hemisphere and Southern Hemisphere
• The maximum latitude degree is only 90° above and below the equator
• The maximum longitude degree is 180° west and 180° east of the prime meridian
• Hemisphere


  Half of a sphere, globe, or celestial body
• Hemispheres


  • Northern Hemisphere
  • Southern Hemisphere
  • Eastern Hemisphere
  • Western Hemisphere
• Prime meridian


  The line of 0° longitude that stretches from North Pole to South Pole and passes through Greenwich, England
• International Date Line

  The meridian at 180° longitude
• The Philippines is located in Zone 51 North, 120°E to 126°E longitude, with a central meridian of 123°E longitude
• UTM (Universal Transverse Mercator)


  A global projection that divides the earth into 60 zones, 6 degrees for each zone
• Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)


  The time zone located at the Greenwich meridian
• Universal Coordinated Time (UTC)


  The Greenwich meridian time zone, 5.5 degrees east and 0.5 degrees west of 0 degrees longitude
• Global Positioning System (GPS)


  A network of orbiting satellites that send precise details of their position in space back to Earth
• GPS is well-known for its military uses and was first developed by the US
• Continent


  One of Earth's main divisions of landmass
• Continents

  • Asia
  • Africa
  • North America
  • South America
  • Antarctica
  • Europe
  • Australia
• Together, the continents add up to about 148 million square kilometers of land
• A very small portion of the total land area is made up of islands not considered physical parts of continents
• Microcontinents


  Land areas like New Zealand, French Polynesia, and the Hawaiian Islands
• The Philippines


  • Located in Southeastern Asia
  • Archipelago (large group of islands) made up of 7,641 islands
  • Part of a Western Pacific arc system characterized by active volcanoes
• Philippine archipelago


  • Elongated shape
  • Total land area of 300,000 square kilometers
  • 94% covered by 11 largest islands
  • Largest island is Luzon with 109,965 sq km
• The second largest island is Mindanao with 97,530 sq km
• The Philippines' neighboring countries are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Malaysia, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Vietnam, and China
• Continents make up most but not all of Earth's land surface
• Examples of land areas considered microcontinents


  • New Zealand
  • French Polynesia
  • The Hawaiian Islands
• The Philippines


  • Located in Southeastern Asia
  • Archipelago (Target group of islands made up of 7,641 islands)
  • Part of a Western Pacific arc system that is characterized by active volcanoes
• The Philippine archipelago


  • Elongated shape
  • Archipelago
• The Philippine archipelago has a total land area of 300,000 square kilometers, of which 94% is covered by the 11 largest islands</b>
• The biggest island is Luzon with a land area of 109,965 sq km
• Mindanao is the next largest island with a land area of 97,530 sq km
• The Visayas, with a land area of 71,503 sq km, is the group of islands in the central Philippines
• The Philippines' Asian Neighbors

  • Brunei
  • Cambodia
  • Indonesia
  • Laos
  • Myanmar
  • Malaysia
  • Singapore
  • Thailand
  • Timor-Leste
  • Vietnam
  • China
• The Philippines is bounded by the South China Sea to the west, the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Celebes Sea and Sulu Sea to the south, and the Luzon Strait to the north
• The Philippine Trench, also called Philippine Deep, Mindanao Trench, or Mindanao Deep is off the coast of eastern Mindanao, which descends to a depth of 10,540 meters
• The Philippines is part of a western Pacific arc system characterized by active volcanoes
• The Philippines contains several physical features including mountains, coastal plains, valleys, springs, and volcanoes
• Natural hazards like tidal waves and flooding are among the effects of being on an active plate fault