Why is Longitude and Latitude showed in seconds?

Answer 1

Just like time ... If you want to know exactly when something happened, I could tell you "around 6 o'clock".

But if that's not close enough for you, then I'd add the minutes, and tell you "6:17". But maybe even that

isn't close enough, so I have to review the tapes and cut it even finer ... and tell you "6:17 and 39 seconds".

If I give you enough numbers, I can pin down the time it happened within 1 second, or even within

a half-second, or a tenth of a second, or 0.00001 second if you need that.

Similarly, with latitude and longitude, if I give you degrees, minutes, seconds, and maybe even

decimal parts of a second, I can pin down a location on the surface of the earth to within a mile,

or within 10 feet, or within one inch if that's what you need.

Answer 2

Longitude and latitude coordinates are often displayed in degrees, minutes, and seconds to provide a more precise location on Earth's surface. This format allows for more accurate navigation and positioning, especially in situations where exact location data is crucial, such as in aviation or marine navigation.