Southern hemisphere
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The Southern Hemisphere is the half of a planet's surface (or celestial sphere) that is south of the equator (the word hemisphere literally means 'half ball').
On Earth it contains five continents (Antarctica, Australia, most of South America, parts of Africa and Asia) as well as four oceans (South Atlantic, Indian, Pacific and Southern). Summer is from December to February and winter from June to August.
The Southern Hemisphere is significantly less polluted than the Northern Hemisphere due to lower overall population densities, lower levels of industrialisation and smaller land masses (air currents run mostly west–east so pollution does not easily spread north or south). The southern temperate zone is in fact nearly all water, the only large countries it contains are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, New Zealand, South Africa and Uruguay.
Climates in the Southern Hemisphere tend to be slightly milder than in the Northern Hemisphere. This is because the Southern Hemisphere has significantly less land and more ocean. The water heats up and cools down more slowly than land.
In the Southern Hemisphere the sun passes from East to West through the North. This causes sun-cast shadows to turn anticlockwise through the day. Hurricanes and tropical storms spin clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere (as opposed to counter-clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere) due to the Coriolis effect.
The South Pole is oriented towards the galactic centre and this, combined with clearer skies makes for excellent viewing of the night sky from the Southern Hemisphere, with brighter and more numerous stars.
Continents and countries on Earth's Southern Hemisphere
Continents in the southern hemisphere:- Antarctica
- Australia
- most of South America, south of the Amazon river mouth in the east and Quito in the west
- about 1/3 of Africa, south of Libreville in Gabon in the west to south of the southern tip of Somalia in the east
Other countries and
- American Samoa
- Antarctic and sub-antarctic islands
- Chagos Archipelago
- Comoros
- Easter Island
- Falkland Islands
- French Polynesia
- Galápagos Islands
- Jarvis Island
- Juan Fernández Islands
- Kerguelen Islands
- Kermadec Islands
- Madagascar, Republic of
- Mauritius, Republic of
- Mayotte
- New Caledonia
- New Zealand sub-antarctic islands
- Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
- Réunion
- Saint Helena
- Saint Paul and Amsterdam
- Seychelles, Republic of
- South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
- Swains Island
- Tristan da Cunha
- Wallis and Futuna
See also
- Seasons
- Solstice
- Equinox
- Tropic of Capricorn
- Crux (or Southern Cross)
Other countries and
- American Samoa
- Antarctic and sub-antarctic islands
- Chagos Archipelago
- Comoros
- Easter Island
- Falkland Islands
- French Polynesia
- Galápagos Islands
- Jarvis Island
- Juan Fernández Islands
- Kerguelen Islands
- Kermadec Islands
- Madagascar, Republic of
- Mauritius, Republic of
- Mayotte
- New Caledonia
- New Zealand sub-antarctic islands
- Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
- Réunion
- Saint Helena
- Saint Paul and Amsterdam
- Seychelles, Republic of
- South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
- Swains Island
- Tristan da Cunha
- Wallis and Futuna
See also
- Seasons
- Solstice
- Equinox
- Tropic of Capricorn
- Crux (or Southern Cross)
Other countries and
- American Samoa
- Antarctic and sub-antarctic islands
- Chagos Archipelago
- Comoros
- Easter Island
- Falkland Islands
- French Polynesia
- Galápagos Islands
- Jarvis Island
- Juan Fernández Islands
- Kerguelen Islands
- Kermadec Islands
- Madagascar, Republic of
- Mauritius, Republic of
- Mayotte
- New Caledonia
- New Zealand sub-antarctic islands
- Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
- Réunion
- Saint Helena
- Saint Paul and Amsterdam
- Seychelles, Republic of
- South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
- Swains Island
- Tristan da Cunha
- Wallis and Futuna
See also
- Seasons
- Solstice
- Equinox
- Tropic of Capricorn
- Crux (or Southern Cross)
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