Southern Hemisphere
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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The Southern Hemisphere is part of a rotating astronomical body that lies south of the equator. The word hemisphere (from the Greek word σφαιρα (sphere) +ημι (half)) literally means 'half ball' or "half sphere". It is also that half of the celestial sphere south of the celestial equator.
On Earth the Southern Hemisphere contains all or parts of four continents (Antarctica, Australia, about 9/10 of South America and the southern third of Africa), three oceans (South Atlantic, Indian, and South Pacific) and most of Oceania. Several islands off the Asian continental mainland are also in the Southern Hemisphere. Due to the tilt of Earth's rotation relative to the Sun and the ecliptic plane, summer is from December to March and winter is from June to September. September 22 or 23 is the vernal equinox and March 20 or 21 is the autumnal equinox.
