3 Ways To Convert Lat-Long To Decimal Degrees In Excel

If you work with geographic data, you've likely encountered latitude and longitude coordinates in various formats. One common format is the Degrees-Minutes-Seconds (DMS) format, which can be cumbersome to work with in calculations. Converting these coordinates to Decimal Degrees (DD) format can simplify your analysis and make it easier to perform calculations. In this article, we'll explore three ways to convert latitude and longitude coordinates from DMS to Decimal Degrees in Excel.

Understanding Latitude and Longitude Formats

Before we dive into the conversion methods, let's quickly review the two formats:

• Degrees-Minutes-Seconds (DMS): This format represents latitude and longitude as degrees, minutes, and seconds. For example, 43° 30' 30" N, 122° 30' 30" W.
• Decimal Degrees (DD): This format represents latitude and longitude as decimal degrees. For example, 43.508333, -122.508333.

Method 1: Using Excel Formulas

One way to convert DMS to Decimal Degrees is by using Excel formulas. You can use the following formulas to convert latitude and longitude coordinates:

Latitude (DD) = (Degrees + Minutes/60 + Seconds/3600)

Longitude (DD) = (Degrees + Minutes/60 + Seconds/3600)

Assuming your DMS coordinates are in cells A1 (latitude) and B1 (longitude), you can use the following formulas:

Latitude (DD): =(LEFT(A1,FIND("°",A1)-1))+((MID(A1,FIND("'",A1)+1,FIND("""",A1)-FIND("'",A1)-1))/60)+((RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)-FIND("""",A1)-1))/3600)

Longitude (DD): =(LEFT(B1,FIND("°",B1)-1))+((MID(B1,FIND("'",B1)+1,FIND("""",B1)-FIND("'",B1)-1))/60)+((RIGHT(B1,LEN(B1)-FIND("""",B1)-1))/3600)

These formulas extract the degrees, minutes, and seconds from the DMS coordinates and then perform the necessary calculations to convert them to Decimal Degrees.

Method 2: Using Excel Power Query

Another way to convert DMS to Decimal Degrees is by using Excel Power Query. Power Query is a powerful data manipulation tool that allows you to easily transform and convert data.

To convert DMS to Decimal Degrees using Power Query, follow these steps:

1. Go to the "Data" tab in Excel and click on "From Other Sources" > "From Microsoft Query".
2. Select the table or range that contains your DMS coordinates.
3. In the Power Query Editor, click on "Add Column" > "Custom Column".
4. In the Custom Column formula, enter the following formula: = Latitude/1 + Latitude/60 + Latitude/3600 for latitude, and = Longitude/1 + Longitude/60 + Longitude/3600 for longitude.
5. Click "OK" to add the new column.
6. Repeat the process for the longitude column.

Power Query will automatically convert your DMS coordinates to Decimal Degrees.

Method 3: Using VBA Macro

If you prefer to use VBA macros, you can create a custom function to convert DMS to Decimal Degrees.

Here's an example VBA macro that converts DMS to Decimal Degrees:

Function ConvertDMS(lat As String, lon As String) As Variant
    Dim latParts() As String
    Dim lonParts() As String
    Dim latDeg As Double
    Dim latMin As Double
    Dim latSec As Double
    Dim lonDeg As Double
    Dim lonMin As Double
    Dim lonSec As Double
    
    ' Split the DMS coordinates into degrees, minutes, and seconds
    latParts = Split(lat, "°")
    lonParts = Split(lon, "°")
    
    ' Extract the degrees, minutes, and seconds
    latDeg = CDbl(latParts(0))
    latMin = CDbl(Split(latParts(1), "'")(0))
    latSec = CDbl(Split(latParts(1), "'")(1))
    
    lonDeg = CDbl(lonParts(0))
    lonMin = CDbl(Split(lonParts(1), "'")(0))
    lonSec = CDbl(Split(lonParts(1), "'")(1))
    
    ' Convert to Decimal Degrees
    latDD = latDeg + latMin / 60 + latSec / 3600
    lonDD = lonDeg + lonMin / 60 + lonSec / 3600
    
    ' Return the converted coordinates
    ConvertDMS = Array(latDD, lonDD)
End Function

To use this macro, simply call the ConvertDMS function and pass in your DMS coordinates as arguments.

Gallery of Latitude and Longitude Conversions

Latitude and Longitude Conversion Gallery

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: What is the difference between DMS and Decimal Degrees formats? A: DMS (Degrees-Minutes-Seconds) format represents latitude and longitude as degrees, minutes, and seconds, while Decimal Degrees format represents them as decimal degrees.
• Q: Why do I need to convert DMS to Decimal Degrees? A: Converting DMS to Decimal Degrees can simplify calculations and make it easier to work with geographic data.
• Q: Can I use Excel formulas to convert DMS to Decimal Degrees? A: Yes, you can use Excel formulas to convert DMS to Decimal Degrees.

Conclusion

Converting latitude and longitude coordinates from DMS to Decimal Degrees can be a tedious task, but with the right tools and techniques, it can be simplified. In this article, we explored three ways to convert DMS to Decimal Degrees in Excel: using Excel formulas, Power Query, and VBA macros. We hope this article has helped you to better understand the different methods and choose the one that best suits your needs.