ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Northing and easting

Northing and easting are like two kinds of special stickers that you put on a map so you can find places.

Imagine you have a big map of your town, and you want to find your friend's house. To do that, you need to know where their house is on the map. But how do you describe where it is?

That's where northing and easting come in.

A northing sticker tells you how far up and down you should go on the map to find your friend's house. For example, it might say "500 meters north." This means you should go up 500 meters on the map to find your friend's house.

An easting sticker tells you how far left and right you should go on the map to find your friend's house. For example, it might say "200 meters east." This means you should go right 200 meters on the map to find your friend's house.

Together, the northing and easting stickers give you a really specific location on the map. So if your friend tells you their house is at "500 meters north, 200 meters east," you can use the stickers to find their house easily!