On the way to the Sanchi Stupas we came across an interesting place. There was a wall next to a road titled ‘Karka Rekha – Tropic Of Cancer’. Two very faint lines were visible on the road which matched with the two lines drawn right below the wall sign. Most of the people know only the important latitude on our planet i.e. Equator which divides the planet in the northern and southern hemisphere. But apart from the equator we have two more latitudes which are in ‘Tropic of Cancer’ and ‘Tropic of Capricorn’ located in the northern and southern hemisphere of earth respectively. Only the parts of the earth that lie between these to latitudes can experience the minimum distance to the sun once in a year. Meaning in these regions once a year you can see the sun exactly above your head. All the regions beyond these two latitudes can never see the sun right overhead. This is a special phenomenon caused by a tilt of the earth’s axis. Sun touches the ‘Tropic of Cancer’ on the day of summer solstice which happens around June 20. Similarly the Sun touches the ‘Tropic of Capricorn’ on the winter solstice which happens around December 21.
