In a first effort of its kind, students from various schools in the Capital travelled to Mirzapur in UP to mark the exact longitude used to calculate the Indian Standard Time (IST).
Students, led by teachers and astronomers, identified on Saturday the IST line that lies at 82.5 degrees east on the longitude. They also placed an insignia to mark the site on the basis of which the time for the country is set.
After discovering the exact physical location of the 82.5 degrees east longitude that lies just west of Mirzapur, the students conducted experiments and also found the local noon time for the town, said Chander Bhushan Devgun, president of the NGO, Science Popularisation Association of Communicators and Educators (SPACE), that undertook the study tour.
Under 'Project Khoj' of SPACE, astronomers and students visited points where longitudes and latitudes cut each other in integers called confluence points. Once there, students found out their exact location using mathematical equations and also calculated the exact time at the confluence point.
The project concluded with a visit to Mirzapur, the imaginary line on the earth used to calculate the standard time for India. The 82.5 degrees east longitude was adopted as the prime meridian for India on January 1, 1906. After Independence, it was used to calculate the official time for the country.
The project concluded with a visit to Mirzapur, the imaginary line on the earth used to calculate the standard time for India. The 82.5 degrees east longitude was adopted as the prime meridian for India on January 1, 1906. After Independence, it was used to calculate the official time for the country.