North vs South: Difference and Comparison

The Earth is divided into two halves by the Equator. The Earth may seem flat to the ancestors and round in perspective developed over the years.

But the fact that it is divided into four halves is valid. The four halves are the East, West, North and South which are divided by Prime Meridian and the Equator, respectively.

Key Takeaways

1. North is colder and has a shorter summer, while the South has a warmer and longer summer.
2. North is more industrialized, while the South is more agricultural.
3. North is more populated, while the South has a lower population density.

North vs South 

The difference between the North and South is that they both lie on different hemispheres and have different geographical locations. The North is said to lie above the Equator and consists of the Tropic of Cancer along with the Arctic Circle, whereas the South is below the Equator and has the Tropic of Capricorn and Antarctic Circle. 

North is the region that lies above the imaginary line, namely the Equator. The northern region ends at almost ninety degrees latitude, and the endpoint is known as the North Pole.

The Northern Hemisphere contains most of the continents like Asia, Europe, part of Africa and South America, as well as North America. 

South is referred to as the Southern Hemisphere, located below the Equator and is mostly made up of water. There are a few pieces of land like Australia, South America, parts of Africa and Antarctica.

It also ends at a latitude of minus ninety degrees, where minus represents the opposite of North and the ending is commonly said to be the South Pole. 

Comparison Table

Parameters of Comparison	North	South
Definition	North is a direction to which the needle of a compass point.	South is the direction that is 180 degrees to the North and can be easily spotted with a compass.
Position	In absence of a compass, the North can be spotted by standing in the direction of the Sun and the right side is the North.	South is toward the left side if we face towards the movement of the Sun.
Geography	According to the Earth, the North lies above the Equator and is up to 90 degrees latitude.	South lies below the equator and it is also till 90 degrees just in the opposite direction.
Land-water percentage	The Northern hemisphere has less difference in the ratio that is 39.3 to 60.7	The Southern hemisphere has a large part of the water that is more than 80 per cent with a huge difference in the ratio.
Seasons	The North experiences the winter season in the December to March month and the Summers start in May	The South experiences the winter season in May and the summer season in December.

What is North? 

North is a direction used to navigate through the Earth’s surface. The Earth is round, rotates around an imaginary axis, and has a magnetic axis. When a magnet is suspended, it aligns with the magnetic North of the Earth.

So the North can be defined as the direction to which a compass needle points. According to the position of the Sun, the North lies to the right if we face the Sun. 

According to geography, the North is the region above the Equator that splits the Earth into two halves. The region is called the Northern Hemisphere and contains the Tropic of Cancer and the Arctic Circle.

The region ends at ninety degrees of latitude, and the end is known as the North Pole. The seasons of the Northern Hemisphere also vary. They have the winters in December and the summers in May.

The Northern Hemisphere has most of the continents like Asia, Europe, North America and parts of Africa and South America. It contains more water, but the ratio of land is not also less, and it is the home for 90% of the population of the Earth. 

The rising and setting of the Sun are the same, but the shadows move clockwise in the North, and the pollution level is also high. It is also observed that there is a change in the Moon’s position and the Galaxy’s visibility. 

What is South? 

South is also a direction that is used for making travelling easy and efficient. The South is located 180 degrees from the North. In other words, the South is the direction that is aligned to the South of the magnet and the magnetic axis.

To pinpoint the Sun without the help of a compass, the technique is to stand in the direction of the Sunrise and the left side is the South. 

In geography, the South lies below the imaginary line dividing the Earth, the Equator. The region is bounded by the 90 degrees latitude in the South or the South Pole, and the Equator is known as the Southern Hemisphere.

The Southern Hemisphere contains the Tropic of Capricorn along with the Antarctic Circle. The seasons take a turn in the Southern Hemisphere.

They have their winters in May and the summers in December because of the Earth’s revolution. The Southern Hemisphere has the continents like Antarctica, parts of Africa, most of South America and Australia.

It has less land, which is less than 35%, and has more than 80% water which makes it unsuitable for living, so it has only 10% population of the Earth. 

Due to this, the pollution is less. The rising and setting of the Sun remain the same but the rotation of the shadow changes anti-clockwise. The position of the Moon and the stars that can be seen from the hemisphere is different from the North. 

Main Differences Between North and South

1. North is the direction to which the needle of the compass points, whereas South is the direction that is 180 degrees to the North and can be easily spotted with a compass.
2. In the absence of a compass, the North can be spotted by standing in the direction of the Sun, and the right side is the North. In comparison to this, the South is toward the left side if we face towards the movement of the Sun. 
3. According to the Earth, the North lies above the Equator and is up to 90 degrees latitude, whereas the South lies below the equator, and it is also till 90 degrees just in the opposite direction. 
4. The Northern hemisphere has less difference in the ratio, 39.3 to 60.7, whereas the Southern hemisphere has a large part of the water that is more than 80 per cent with a huge difference in the ratio. 
5. The North experiences the winter season from December to March, and the Summers start in May, wherein the South experiences the winter season in May and the summer season in December. 

References

1. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.4324/9781315070766/varieties-environmentalism-ramachandra-guha-joan-mart%C3%ADnez-alier
2. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=JthCAAAAIAAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA71&dq=north+and+south&ots=zIKWEsy5WF&sig=GVgEgoUHG8DUX0fg1psUdMic0Y