MapTools Knowledge Base

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Example — a question and its answer

“How do I convert decimal degrees to degrees-minutes-seconds?”

To convert decimal degrees to degrees-minutes-seconds, you need to work with the base-60 structure of the DMS format.

Here's the procedure:

The whole number part becomes the degrees. If you have 32.30642°, the degrees value is 32°.
Multiply the decimal part by 60 to get minutes. Take 0.30642 × 60 = 18.3852, so you have 18' with a remainder.
Multiply the decimal part of the minutes by 60 to get seconds. Take 0.3852 × 60 = 23.112, so you have 23.1".

Result: 32.30642° = 32° 18' 23.1" N

A useful shortcut to remember: 15 seconds = 0.25', 30 seconds = 0.5', and 45 seconds = 0.75'. These conversions are handy when you're working back and forth between formats in the field.

If you're converting many coordinates at once, the MapTools Coordinate Converter can do this automatically.