Maps, Latitude and Longitude GK Questions for Kids (with Answers)
Maps and globes help children see where they are in the world. These 30 GK questions cover the globe, directions, the Equator and the tropics, the Prime Meridian, hemispheres, time zones and how Indian Standard Time is set.
30 questions · answers included · free to print and share
Easy maps, latitude and longitude GK questions (ages 5–7)
1.What is a globe?
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Answer: A round model of the Earth
A globe shows the true shapes of countries and oceans, which a flat map can never do perfectly.
2.What is the imaginary line around the middle of the Earth called?
- The Equator
- The Prime Meridian
- The Tropic of Cancer
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Answer: The Equator
Places near the Equator are usually hot all year round because they get strong sunlight.
3.What are the four main directions on a map?
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Answer: North, South, East and West
These are called the cardinal directions, and most maps show north at the top.
4.Which direction does the needle of a compass point to?
- North
- South
- East
- West
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Answer: North
A compass works because its magnetic needle lines up with the Earth’s magnetism.
5.What is a book of maps called?
- An atlas
- A dictionary
- A calendar
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Answer: An atlas
The name comes from Atlas, a giant in Greek myths who was said to hold up the sky.
6.What is the northernmost point on the Earth called?
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Answer: The North Pole
The North Pole is in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, on floating sea ice.
7.What is the southernmost point on the Earth called?
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Answer: The South Pole
The South Pole lies on the icy continent of Antarctica.
8.What do we call one half of the Earth?
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Answer: A hemisphere
“Hemi” means half, and “sphere” means a ball.
9.In which direction does the Sun rise?
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Answer: East
The Sun seems to rise in the east because the Earth spins from west to east.
10.What does the key, or legend, on a map tell us?
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Answer: What the symbols and colours mean
On many maps, blue shows water and green shows forests or low land.
Medium maps, latitude and longitude GK questions (ages 8–10)
11.What is the latitude of the Equator?
- 0°
- 23.5°
- 90°
- 180°
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Answer: 0°
The Equator divides the Earth into the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere.
12.What is the latitude of the North Pole?
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Answer: 90° North
Latitudes go from 0° at the Equator to 90° at each pole.
13.What is the Prime Meridian?
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Answer: The 0° line of longitude
It passes through Greenwich in London and divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres.
14.What are lines of latitude also called?
- Parallels
- Meridians
- Tropics
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Answer: Parallels
They are called parallels because they run side by side and never meet.
15.What are lines of longitude also called?
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Answer: Meridians
All meridians meet at the North Pole and the South Pole.
16.Which important line of latitude passes through the middle of India?
- The Equator
- The Tropic of Cancer
- The Tropic of Capricorn
- The Arctic Circle
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Answer: The Tropic of Cancer
The Tropic of Cancer passes through eight Indian states, from Gujarat in the west to Mizoram in the east.
17.At about what latitude is the Tropic of Cancer?
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Answer: 23.5° North
The Tropic of Capricorn lies the same distance south of the Equator, at about 23.5° South.
18.In which two hemispheres does India lie?
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Answer: Northern and Eastern
India is north of the Equator and east of the Prime Meridian.
19.Does the Equator pass through India?
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Answer: No
Even Indira Point in the Nicobar Islands, India’s southernmost point, is north of the Equator.
20.How many degrees does the Earth turn in one hour?
- 1°
- 15°
- 30°
- 90°
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Answer: 15°
The Earth turns 360° in about 24 hours, and 360 divided by 24 is 15.
21.Which hemisphere, Northern or Southern, has more land?
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Answer: Northern Hemisphere
Most of the world’s people also live in the Northern Hemisphere.
22.What is the single time used across the whole of India called?
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Answer: Indian Standard Time (IST)
All of India uses one time, even though the Sun rises about two hours earlier in Arunachal Pradesh than in Gujarat.
Hard maps, latitude and longitude GK questions (ages 11–13)
23.Which line of longitude is used to set Indian Standard Time?
- 0°
- 75° East
- 82.5° East
- 90° East
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Answer: 82.5° East
This line of longitude passes near Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh.
24.How far ahead of Greenwich Mean Time is Indian Standard Time?
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Answer: 5 hours 30 minutes
82.5° divided by 15° per hour gives 5.5 hours, which is how the gap is worked out.
25.How many minutes does the Earth take to turn through 1° of longitude?
- 1 minute
- 4 minutes
- 15 minutes
- 60 minutes
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Answer: 4 minutes
That is why two places 1° of longitude apart have a time difference of 4 minutes.
26.What is the line near 180° longitude, where the date changes, called?
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Answer: The International Date Line
The line zigzags around some island countries so that each country keeps the same date across its land.
27.What is the hot zone between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn called?
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Answer: The Torrid Zone
Everywhere in the Torrid Zone, the Sun is directly overhead at noon at least once a year.
28.At about what latitude is the Arctic Circle?
- 23.5° North
- 45° North
- 66.5° North
- 90° North
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Answer: 66.5° North
North of the Arctic Circle, there is at least one summer day when the Sun does not set at all.
29.If it is 12 noon at Greenwich, what time is it in India?
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Answer: 5:30 pm
Places east of Greenwich are ahead in time because the Earth’s spin brings them into sunlight earlier.
30.By about how many degrees is the Earth’s axis tilted?
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Answer: About 23.5°
This tilt gives us the seasons, and it is why the tropics lie at about 23.5° north and south of the Equator.
Keep learning maps, latitude and longitude
The questions go from easy (ages 5–7) to medium (ages 8–10) to hard (ages 11–13), and every answer has a short fun fact. Keep a globe or an atlas nearby so your child can point to each line as you go.
How to use these questions at home
- Use a globe or a ball with lines drawn on it, and ask your child to trace the Equator, the tropics and the Prime Meridian as they answer.
- Practise time zones with real life: work out the time in London or Dubai when a relative calls from there.
- Find your own city on a map and look up its latitude and longitude together; children love having their own “address” on the globe.