The Equator is the line dividing Earth into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. It is an imaginary circle around Earth at 0 degrees latitude, halfway between the North and South Poles.
The Equator is approximately 40,075 kilometres long because Earth bulges slightly around its middle as it rotates. It passes through countries including Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil, São Tomé and Príncipe, Gabon, the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, Indonesia, and Kiribati.
Places near the Equator generally experience little seasonal change in daylight length and receive strong sunlight throughout the year. However, “equatorial” does not always mean uniformly hot: elevation, rainfall, ocean currents, and local geography can greatly affect climate. The Equator is distinct from the Prime Meridian, which divides east and west longitude.