Tropic of Capricorn

The Tropic of Capricorn is one of five circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. All five circles are based on the spin of the Earth and its relationship to the sun. The Tropic of Capricorn is at approximately 23.5 degrees latitude south, and is the farthest south latitude at which the sun reaches directly overhead. In the temperate zone, just south of this line, the sun is never directly overhead. North of this line are the tropics. This line is called the Tropic of Capricorn because, when the sun reaches this latitude precisely at the winter solstice, around December 21, it is entering the zodiac sign of Capricorn.

The other four circles are:

• the Equator
• the Tropic of Cancer
• the Arctic Circle
• the Antarctic Circle