Southern Hemisphere

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').

Related Topics:
Celestial sphere - South - Equator - Hemisphere

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On Earth it contains four continents (part of Africa, Australia, most of South America, and Antarctica) and four oceans (South Atlantic, Indian, Pacific and Southern). Summer occurs from December to February and winter from June to August.

Related Topics:
Earth - Continents - Africa - Australia - South America - Antarctica - Ocean - Atlantic - Indian - Pacific - Southern - Summer - December - February - Winter - June - August

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This region has historically been seen as less developed and poorer than the Northern Hemisphere. However, the Southern Hemisphere is also 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 east-west, so pollution doesn't easily spread north or south). The southern temperate zone in fact is nearly all water; the only countries it contains are Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, South Africa, the southern portion of Australia, and New Zealand. Only about 10% of the Earth's population lives in the Southern Hemisphere, with the most populous countries being Brazil and Indonesia (which are both partly in the Northern Hemisphere, but have most of their population in the Southern Hemisphere).

Related Topics:
Northern Hemisphere - Population - Industrialisation - Land mass - Temperate zone - Argentina - Chile - Uruguay - South Africa - Australia - New Zealand - Brazil - Indonesia

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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, and water heats up and cools off more slowly than land.

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In the Southern Hemisphere the sun passes from East to West in the North. This generally causes sun-cast shadows to turn anticlockwise through the day.

Related Topics:
East - West - North - Anticlockwise

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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.

Related Topics:
South Pole - Galactic centre

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