“On the other side of the globe” …
“Half-way around the world”…
Did you know there’s an official name for that point? It’s called an antipode1.
Have you ever wondered what is exactly on the other side of the world from where you are right now? If you could dig a tunnel straight down and slide though the centre of the earth, where would you pop out?
Well, it’s easy to satisfy that curiosity. There are sites to help you find that!
AntipodesMap.com
Antipodes Map helps you find the antipode of any place on Earth.
The “antipodes map guy” sticks his head in the ground and he pops out the other side!
To do your search, you simply enter the location (country, city, address, zip code, or geographical coordinates) in the search bar at the top of the page, and it will display a side by side map showing the location you have identified and the antipode location on the other side of the world. You can zoom and scroll both maps to explore the areas.
Geodatos.net
Geodatos‘ search works much the same way, you enter your location and the site will display a full world map with your chosen location along with the exact antipode as well as the closest city to the true antipode location.
Geodatos also contains other interesting global data such as distances, coordinates and population.
Both sites also contain lists of city antipodes and other interesting information.
Water, water, everywhere…
With 71% of the earth’s surface being covered by water, the antipodes for most locations end up being in the water. Still, 15% of land locations have land antipodes, so some lucky locations do have a land location that they could visit to be literally exactly on the other side of the world from home.
The largest human-inhabited antipodal areas are located in eastern China and South America (in the area of northern Argentina and Chile).
Unfortunately, if you are from Australia, there are no land antipodes for you to visit. The Australian mainland is the largest landmass with its antipodes entirely in ocean, so you’d have to board a sea vessel to visit the true antipode from your home if you are from Australia.
If you are from Canada, your antipodes end up just south of Australia, mostly in the ocean. If you are looking for a land antipode to Canadian locations, you are going to end up in Antarctica.
