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The 45th parallel south is a circle of latitude that is 45 degrees south of the Earth's equatorial plane.
It is the line that marks the theoretical halfway point between the equator and the South Pole. The true halfway point is 16.2 kilometres (10.1 mi) south of this parallel because the Earth is not a perfect sphere but bulges at the equator and is flattened at the poles.
Unlike its northern counterpart almost all of it (97 percent) passes over open ocean. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, Australasia (New Zealand while just missing Tasmania), the Pacific Ocean and South America.
At this latitude the sun is visible for 15 hours, 37 minutes during the December solstice and 8 hours, 46 minutes during the June solstice.
Around the world
Starting at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the parallel 45° south passes through: