Coordinate Formats

Showplaces accepts coordinates in three notations. They all describe the same point — they just slice the degrees up differently.

Decimal Degrees

Decimal degrees (DD) expresses latitude and longitude as decimal fractions of a degree. It is the notation used by most geographic information systems, web mapping tools such as OpenStreetMap, and GPS devices.

Positive latitudes are north of the equator and negative latitudes are south of it. Positive longitudes are east of the Prime Meridian and negative longitudes are west of it. Latitude is conventionally written first.

Mount Everest in DD: 27.986065, 86.922623

Degrees Minutes Seconds

Traditionally, positions are given in degrees, minutes, and seconds (DMS) of angle: one measurement for latitude, the angle north or south of the equator, and one for longitude, the angle east or west of the Prime Meridian.

Degrees, minutes, and seconds are written with the symbols °, ′, and ″. So 10° 33′ 19″ is an angle of 10 degrees, 33 minutes, and 19 seconds. A degree divides into 60 minutes of arc, and each minute divides again into 60 seconds of arc.

Mount Everest in DMS: 27° 59′ 9.834″ N, 86° 55′ 21.4428″ E

Degrees Decimal Minutes

Degrees decimal minutes (DDM) is the format most commonly used with electronic navigation equipment. It is close to DMS, but uses a decimal for the minutes rather than dividing again into seconds.

Mount Everest in DDM: N 27° 59.27208′, E 86° 55.48986′