The sun is south of the equator from late September until late March.
Colombo's latitude is roughly 7 degrees northof the equator, so the sun
can never be directly overhead there in December. At its highest, at the
time of the March and September equinoxes, it would be 7° down from the
observer's zenith ... 83° above the southern horizon.
Between March 21 and roughly September 20, the sun proceeds from the
equator, to about 231/2 degrees north around June 20, and back to the
equator. So during that part of the year, it crosses 7° North latitude twice ...
once on its way north, and again on its way back toward the equator.
The sun's motion in latitude is more sinusoidal than linear, so I'm not sure that
I'm correctly calculating the dates on which it crosses a particular latitude. But
it looks to me that it would be at 7° North latitude on April 8 and September 2.
These would be the dates on which the sun would be nearest to overhead at
solar noon, for a person standing in Colombo ... whether or not he wears a hat.
Zenith
The northernmost latitude at which the sun can be directly overhead is around 23.44° north. That latitude is called the Tropic of Cancer, and the sun is directly over it at the moment of the June equinox.The southernmost latitude at which the sun can be directly overhead is around 23.44° south. That latitude is called the Tropic of Capricorn, and the sun is directly over it at the moment of the December equinox.
The zenith.
That's the observer's 'zenith'. Since it's referenced to the "observer's head", each observer has a different zenith.
The sun is never straight overhead at either of these two locations, as their latitude is greater than 23.5 degrees north. Austin, Texas, is about 30.25 degrees north, so the sun will be 30.25 - 23.50 = 6.75 degrees off directly overhead, or 83.25 degrees above the southern horizon at noon on the summer solstice. New York is about 40.75 degrees north, so the sun will be 40.75 - 23.50 = 17.25 degrees off directly overhead, or 72.75 degrees above the southern horizon at noon on the summer solstice.
The ZENITH .
Zenith.
Zenith
its called the Zenith
When the Sun is directly overhead (at zenith) the point below it is called nadir.
The northernmost latitude at which the sun can be directly overhead is around 23.44° north. That latitude is called the Tropic of Cancer, and the sun is directly over it at the moment of the June equinox.The southernmost latitude at which the sun can be directly overhead is around 23.44° south. That latitude is called the Tropic of Capricorn, and the sun is directly over it at the moment of the December equinox.
That lies on 23.5 degree latitude, at which the Sun may appear directly overhead at its zenith.
The tropics are the geographic region of the earth where the sun reaches a point directly overhead, the zenith, at least once during the solar year.
The zenith.
Yes. Most places in the Hawaiian Islands will experience the noon Sun "straight overhead" twice each year. In fact, the phrase "Lahaina Noon" is sometimes used in the Islands to refer to those days on which the Sun reaches the zenith.
The sun can only be directly overhead at high noon, when one is between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn (within about 15 degrees latitude of the equator). Otherwise the sun only reaches a zenith (highest point) on the southern horizon when one is in the northern hemisphere, and vice versa.
The highest point. It is used especially about the position of the sun; when the sun is at its zenith, it is as far from the horizon as it gets. At the equator, when the sun is at the zenith, it is right overhead.