Question

Suppose the date is March 21 and the Sun passes through your zenith at noon. Where are you?

a. The Tropic of Cancer
b. The Tropic of Capricorn
c. The Arctic Circle
d. The equator
e. The Antarctic Circle

Answer 1

On March 21, if the Sun is at the zenith at noon, you would be located at the equator. This date corresponds with the vernal equinox when day and night are nearly the same length anywhere on Earth.

Step-by-step explanation:

If the Sun passes through your zenith at noon on March 21, you are on the equator. March 21 marks the vernal equinox, when the Sun crosses the celestial equator moving northward. During the vernal equinox, everywhere on the equator experiences the Sun at the zenith at noon. The dates when the Sun is directly overhead at either the Tropic of Cancer or the Tropic of Capricorn are the summer and winter solstices, respectively, not the equinoxes.