The altitude doesn't depend much on whether the night is clear.If you live in the northern hemisphere, the altitude of Polaris above the horizon will APPROXIMATELY be equal to your latitude. If you live in the southern hemisphere, Polaris will be BELOW the horizon, as many degrees as you are south of the equator.
If there were a way to see the south celestial pole, and it was 40 degrees above the horizon, then you would be somewhere along the line of 40 degrees south latitude. Unfortunately, there is no star at or near the south celestial pole, so there is no way for you to see the south celestial pole and observe its elevation.
At the Tropic of Capricorn (approximately 23.5 degrees south latitude), Polaris, the North Star, is not visible and is located below the horizon. Polaris can only be seen in the Northern Hemisphere and its altitude above the horizon increases the further north you go.
37 degrees north latitude
The angle of Polaris above the horizon is equal to the latitude of the observer. This means that at the North Pole (90 degrees latitude), Polaris would be directly overhead (90 degrees above the horizon), and at the Equator (0 degrees latitude), Polaris would be on the horizon (0 degrees above the horizon).
The altitude of Polaris is roughly equal to your north latitude. Your longitude has no effect on it.At 35 degrees south latitude, the altituide of Polaris is negative 35 degrees. In other words,it's 35 degrees below the point on the horizon due north of you, and you can't see it.
The altitude doesn't depend much on whether the night is clear.If you live in the northern hemisphere, the altitude of Polaris above the horizon will APPROXIMATELY be equal to your latitude. If you live in the southern hemisphere, Polaris will be BELOW the horizon, as many degrees as you are south of the equator.
If there were a way to see the south celestial pole, and it was 40 degrees above the horizon, then you would be somewhere along the line of 40 degrees south latitude. Unfortunately, there is no star at or near the south celestial pole, so there is no way for you to see the south celestial pole and observe its elevation.
At the Tropic of Capricorn (approximately 23.5 degrees south latitude), Polaris, the North Star, is not visible and is located below the horizon. Polaris can only be seen in the Northern Hemisphere and its altitude above the horizon increases the further north you go.
37 degrees north latitude
The angle of Polaris above the horizon is equal to the latitude of the observer. This means that at the North Pole (90 degrees latitude), Polaris would be directly overhead (90 degrees above the horizon), and at the Equator (0 degrees latitude), Polaris would be on the horizon (0 degrees above the horizon).
The asterism called the "Big Dipper" (which is the central part of the constellation named "Ursa Major") has two fairly prominent stars which act as a pointer to the north star Polaris. Polaris is a relatively dim and undistinguished star whose positioning almost directly above the north pole is very conveniently located in the sky.
Just north of Massena, NY, there is a park called St. Lawrence State Park. Barnhart Island is part of that park. If you cross onto Barnhard Island and head for the beach, the south end of the parking lot is exactly at 45 degrees north. The question, however, is where is the altitude of the star Polaris closest to 45 degrees. Polaris is not PRECISELY above the North Pole; it is actually about 0.6 degrees away. So depending on the time of day, Polaris could be a 45 degrees elevation anywhere within about 30 miles of the New York/Canada border.
latitude is how north or south a place is from the equator. altitude is how high you are from earth's surface
The South Pole is located at a latitude of 90 degrees south.
90 degrees north latitude and the south pole is 90 degrees south latitude
Their difference is 30 degrees of latitude.