Fascinating Facts about the Equator

Posted by Phineas Upham

In the article, “Zero Latitude,” by Jamie Malanowski, the author writes about the equator, the imaginary line around our planet. He starts by giving proof that it really exists, even though we can’t see it, and then goes on to list a few other things that are “there, but not there.” A few of his examples include criminals who are banished on one of the many uninhabited islands in the Maldives on the equator. He writes, “The bad guys are there, but not there.”

Malanowski also writes about how different cultures calculated or miscalculated the equator without actually seeing it. According to the article, the Greeks thought that life on the equator would be impossible. He writes, “In fact, they thought life would be impossible, that the heat from the sun’s rays would be so intense that people would be burned to a cinder and that the seas would boil and that the very air would catch fire.” The entire article is an ode to the equator, covering its every unseen angle and detail, including the fact that it hasn’t been given the respect it deserves. Even though Mark Twain wrote about the equator, the author of the article makes a funny point that, “but the truth of the matter is that once he got across the line, he spent almost all his time in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. In short, he said he was there, but he was not there… much.”

To read the entire article, please visit: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1012026/index.htm