Six months after the sun stands over the Tropic of Cancer, it reaches an equivalent position in the Southern Hemisphere. The Tropic of Capricorn lies at approximately 23.5 degrees south latitude and marks the southern boundary of the tropics.

At the December solstice the midday sun is directly overhead along this line. The name refers to the constellation Capricorn. Like its northern counterpart, its exact position varies slightly over long periods because of axial precession and changes in obliquity.

The Tropic of Capricorn crosses Chile, Argentina, southern Brazil, Namibia, South Africa, Madagascar, and Australia. It helps define the tropical zone and appears on virtually every world map. Regions along the line experience the most extreme seasonal variation in solar angle within the tropics.

• Latitude 23.5° south
• Southern limit of the tropics
• Sun is directly overhead at December solstice
• Standard reference on world maps