Longitude and latitude are the types of measurements that can be used to locate specific places on Earth. By using precise measurements of latitude and longitude, people can pinpoint where he is. These two related concepts were very useful for early navigators, and are even used until now for navigating the sea and land.

The values of longitude and latitude are both expressed in degrees, which are also called hours sometimes. These hours are subdivided into minutes and seconds in order to come up with more precise coordinates. In writing coordinates, the latitude should be written before the longitude. The correct way to read coordinates is from left to right, beginning with the degrees, then the minutes, and finally the seconds. Single apostrophes are used for marking minutes, while double apostrophes are used when writing seconds. At the end of the set of coordinates, a letter is usually written in order to show that the coordinates are in the North or South part, or the East or West regions.

Latitude was first to be established than the longitude. The latitude simply refers to the measurement that indicates how far a location is from the equator. When the latitude is at 0 degrees, the location is on the equator. As the person moves farther from the equator towards the North or the South, the value of the latitude coordinate gets larger.

On the other hand, the longitude measures how far a location is from the Prime Meridian. The longitude coordinate is used to indicate whether a specific place is in the West or the East. In some countries, a positive sign in front of a coordinate that represents the longitude shows that it is in the East, while a negative sign beside a coordinate indicates that it is located in the West. However, to avoid confusion, most people just use E for East or W for West.