Ulsan

Ulsan 울산 蔚山
—  Metropolitan City  —
Ulsan Metropolitan City
transcription(s)
– Hangul	울산광역시
– Hanja	蔚山廣域市
– Revised Romanization	Ulsan-gwangyeoksi
– McCune-Reischauer	Ulsan-kwangyŏksi
From top left: Cityscape of Ulsan, Downtown Ulsan, Iaan Exodium towers, a beach at Ulsan, & Ulsan Station
Flag Emblem of Ulsan
Map of South Korea with Ulsan highlighted
Country	South Korea
Region	Yeongnam
Districts	4
Government
– Mayor	Bak Maeng-woo
Area
– Total	1,056.4 km2 (407.9 sq mi)
Population (2008)
– Total	1,126,879
– Density	1,030/km2 (2,667.7/sq mi)
– Dialect	Gyeongsang
Flower	Pear flower
Tree	Ginkgo
Bird	White heron
Website	ulsan.go.kr (English)

Ulsan (Korean pronunciation: [ul.s͈an]), officially the Ulsan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's seventh largest metropolis with a population of over 1.1 million. It is located in the south-east of the country, neighboring Busan to the south and facing Gyeongju to the north and the Sea of Japan (East Sea) to the east.

Ulsan is the industrial powerhouse of South Korea, forming the heart of the Ulsan Industrial District, which is home to the world's largest automobile assembly plant operated by Hyundai Motor,^[1] the world's largest shipyard operated by Hyundai Heavy Industries^[2] and the world's largest oil refinery owned by SK Energy.^[3] In 2008, Ulsan had a GDP per capita of $63,817, the highest by far in South Korea.^[4]

Administrative divisions

See also: Administrative divisions of South Korea

Ulsan is divided into 4 gu (districts) and 1 gun (county).

Map	Name	Hangul	Hanja
Buk-gu Dong-gu Jung-gu Nam-gu Ulju-gun	Gu (Districts)
	Buk-gu	북구	北區
	Dong-gu	동구	東區
	Jung-gu	중구	中區
	Nam-gu	남구	南區
	Gun (County)
	Ulju-gun	울주군	蔚州郡

Geography

Ulsan is bounded on the east by the Sea of Japan (East Sea). It is not far from Busan, at only 70 km to the south.

Climate

Ulsan has a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Koppen Cfa/Cwa), with somewhat cold but dry winters, and hot, humid summers. Monthly means range from 2.0 °C (35.6 °F) in January to 25.9 °C (78.6 °F) in August, with diurnal temperature ranges generally low. Its location on the Korean peninsula results in a seasonal lag, with the warmest days being in August and averaging very near 30 °C (86 °F). Precipitation is relatively low in the winter months, but is made up by the high rainfall falling from April to September.

Climate data for Ulsan (1981−2010)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	7.3 (45.1)	9.2 (48.6)	13.2 (55.8)	19.2 (66.6)	23.4 (74.1)	26.0 (78.8)	28.9 (84.0)	30.0 (86.0)	25.9 (78.6)	21.9 (71.4)	15.8 (60.4)	9.9 (49.8)	19.2
Daily mean °C (°F)	2.0 (35.6)	3.9 (39.0)	7.9 (46.2)	13.5 (56.3)	17.9 (64.2)	21.4 (70.5)	25.0 (77.0)	25.9 (78.6)	21.5 (70.7)	16.2 (61.2)	9.9 (49.8)	4.3 (39.7)	14.1
Average low °C (°F)	−2.3 (27.9)	−0.7 (30.7)	3.2 (37.8)	8.2 (46.8)	12.8 (55.0)	17.3 (63.1)	21.8 (71.2)	22.7 (72.9)	17.9 (64.2)	11.5 (52.7)	5.1 (41.2)	−0.3 (31.5)	9.8
Precipitation mm (inches)	34.3 (1.35)	42.6 (1.677)	65.8 (2.591)	91.1 (3.587)	108.1 (4.256)	176.8 (6.961)	232.3 (9.146)	240.3 (9.461)	168.2 (6.622)	53.5 (2.106)	41.1 (1.618)	23.0 (0.906)	1,277.1 (50.28)
% humidity	49.6	51.9	57.6	60.3	66.1	73.3	78.9	77.7	75.7	67.2	59.9	52.4	64.2
Avg. precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm)	5.3	6.3	8.1	8.4	9.2	10.0	13.5	12.1	10.3	5.7	5.1	3.9	97.9
Sunshine hours	190.7	176.4	187.5	207.2	215.4	172.7	151.5	167.3	150.0	193.7	182.0	194.6	2,188.8
Source: Korea Meteorological Administration [5]

Economy

A view of the Iaan Exodium twin skyscrapers on Taewha River.

As the center of the Ulsan Industrial District, the city is the corporate base of the multinational Hyundai conglomerate. Up to 1962, Ulsan operated as a fishing port and market centre. As part of South Korea's first five-year economic plan, Ulsan became an open port. Additionally, major industrial plants and factories were developed, including in particular an oil refinery, fertiliser plants, automobile production and heavy industries. The shipbuilding port Bangeojin became part of the city in 1962.

Ulsan is currently the home of the world's largest automobile assembly plant operated by Hyundai Motor,^[1] the world's largest shipyard operated by Hyundai Heavy Industries^[2] and the world's largest oil refinery owned by SK Energy.^[3]

To feed the demands of a growing young population, a community of English teachers has sprouted up in Ulsan. These expats teach around Ulsan at various locations including, Samsan-dong, Kkotbawui, and Okdong. Ulsan Online is a valuable tool to reach this community.

Transportation

The city transport department plans to build a light-rail line and the public transportation system is as good as any other major Korean city. The bus system shows a particular ETA at most bus stops.^[6] Ulsan Airport, constructed in 1970 and expanded in 1997, has more than 20 flights per day to and from Seoul's Gimpo International Airport and 4 flights per week to and from Jeju International Airport. In November 2010, Korea's high speed train network, the KTX, was extended to Ulsan.^[7] This provides a high speed link to Seoul, with a running time of just over 2 hours. The new KTX station (Ulsan Station) is in nearby Eonyang, with a series of express buses (5001-5004) as well as some city buses serving the new station.^[8] The original city station has been renamed Taehwa River Station.^[7]

Sport

The city hosts the K-League football club Ulsan Hyundai FC, who, after the 2002 FIFA World Cup, relocated from their former stadium in Jung-gu, which is now a municipal ground, to the Munsu Stadium, which hosted several matches during the 2002 World Cup. Ulsan is home to another soccer team, Ulsan Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, which plays in the Korea National League. It is also home to the University of Ulsan.

Sister cities

City	Region	Country	Year
Ahmedabad	Gujarat	India	1965
Hagi	Yamaguchi Prefecture	Japan	1968
Hualien City	Hualien County	Taiwan	1981
Portland	Oregon	United States	1987
Changchun	Jilin	China	1994
İzmit	Kocaeli Province	Turkey	1995
İzmir	İzmir Province	Turkey	2002
Santos	São Paulo	Brazil	2002
	Khanh Hoa Province	Vietnam	2002
Tomsk	Tomsk Oblast	Russia	2003
Kumamoto City1	Kumamoto Prefecture	Japan	2010
	Karagandy Province	Kazakhstan	2010

^1 Kumamoto City has a friendship agreement with Ulsan

Independent cities in South Korea

• Seoul
• Busan
• Incheon
• Daegu
• Daejeon
• Gwangju
• Ulsan

See also

• Bangudae Petroglyphs
• List of Korea-related topics
• List of cities in South Korea

References

1. ^ ^{a b} http://www.yonhapnews.co.kr/society/2010/01/11/0706000000AKR20100111098900057.HTML?template=2086
2. ^ ^{a b} http://www.ohmynews.com/NWS_Web/view/at_pg.aspx?CNTN_CD=A0001214440
3. ^ ^{a b} http://pda.ulsan.go.kr/Common/Detail.neo?id=U0010711
4. ^ See List of South Korean regions by GDP.
5. ^ "평년값자료(1981−2010) 울산(152)". Korea Meteorological Administration. http://www.kma.go.kr/weather/climate/average_30years.jsp?yy_st=2011&stn=152&norm=M&x=23&y=1&obs=0&mm=5&dd=26. Retrieved 2011−05−26. 
6. ^ "Welcome to Ulsan Metropolitan City - News and Notice". Ulsan City Council. Archived from the original on 2008-01-03. http://web.archive.org/web/20080103081947/http://english.ulsan.go.kr/Community/news/view.php?num=337&page=3&board_id=foreign_news&search_option=&search_cond=. Retrieved 2008-02-18. 
7. ^ ^{a b} http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/special/2010/10/178_74057.html
8. ^ http://ulsanonline.com/bus5001.html

External links

• Ulsan's Foreigner Living Site
• Ulsan Metropolitan City official site
• Ulsan : Official Site of Korea Tourism Org

Coordinates: 35°33′N 129°19′E / 35.55°N 129.317°E / 35.55; 129.317