The equator is a circle of latitude that divides a spheroid, such as Earth, into the northern and southern hemispheres. On Earth, it is an imaginary line located at 0 degrees latitude, about in circumference, halfway between the North and South poles. The term can also be used for any other celestial body that is roughly spherical.
In spatial (3D) geometry, as applied in astronomy, the equator of a rotating spheroid (such as a planet) is the parallel (circle of latitude) at which latitude is defined to be 0°. It is an imaginary line on the spheroid, equidistant from its poles, dividing it into northern and southern hemispheres. In other words, it is the intersection of the spheroid with the plane perpendicular to its axis of rotation and midway between its geographical poles.
On and near the equator (on Earth), noontime sunlight appears almost directly overhead (no more than about 23° from the zenith) every day, year-round. Consequently, the equator has a rather stable daytime temperature throughout the year. On the equinoxes (approximately March 20 and September 23) the subsolar point crosses Earth's equator at a shallow angle, sunlight shines perpendicular to Earth's axis of rotation, and all latitudes have nearly a 12-hour day and 12-hour night.
Etymology
The name is derived from medieval Latin word , in the phrase , meaning 'circle equalizing day and night', from the Latin word 'make equal'.
Overview
The latitude of the Earth's equator is, by definition, 0° (zero degrees) of arc. The equator is one of the five notable circles of latitude on Earth; the other four are the two polar circles (the Arctic Circle and the Antarctic Circle) and the two tropical circles (the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn). The equator is the only line of latitude which is also a great circle—meaning, one whose plane passes through the center of the globe. The plane of Earth's equator, when projected outwards to the celestial sphere, defines the celestial equator.
In the cycle of Earth's seasons, the equatorial plane runs through the Sun twice a year: on the equinoxes in March and September. To a person on Earth, the Sun appears to travel along the equator (or along the celestial equator) at these times.
Locations on the equator experience the shortest sunrises and sunsets because the Sun's daily path is nearly perpendicular to the horizon for most of the year. The length of daylight (sunrise to sunset) is almost constant throughout the year; it is about 14 minutes longer than nighttime due to atmospheric refraction and the fact that sunrise begins (or sunset ends) as the upper limb, not the center, of the Sun's disk contacts the horizon.
Earth bulges slightly at the equator; its average diameter is , but the diameter at the equator is about greater than at the poles.
Sites near the equator, such as the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana, are good locations for spaceports as they have the fastest rotational speed of any latitude, /sec. The added velocity reduces the fuel needed to launch spacecraft eastward (in the direction of Earth's rotation) to orbit, while simultaneously avoiding costly maneuvers to flatten inclination during missions such as the Apollo Moon landings.
Geodesy
Precise location
The precise location of the equator is not truly fixed; the true equatorial plane is perpendicular to the Earth's rotation axis, which drifts about during a year.
Geological samples show that the equator significantly changed positions between 48 and 12 million years ago, as sediment deposited by ocean thermal currents at the equator shifted. The deposits by thermal currents are determined by the axis of the Earth, which determines solar coverage of the Earth's surface. Changes in the Earth's axis can also be observed in the geographic layout of volcanic island chains, which are created by shifting hot spots under the Earth's crust as the axis and crust move. This is consistent with the Indian tectonic plate colliding with the Eurasian tectonic plate, which is causing the Himalayan uplift.