- 45th parallel north
The 45th parallel north is a
circle of latitude that is 45 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. The 45th parallel north is often called the halfway point between theEquator and theNorth Pole , but the true halfway point is actually 16.2 kilometers (10.1 miles) north of the 45th parallel because theEarth isoblate , that is, it bulges at the equator and is flattened at the poles. [http://web.archive.org/web/20060502045609/http://www.go.ednet.ns.ca/~mag/files/midway.htm]Geography
Starting at the
Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the parallel 45° north passes through::
North America
In
North America , the 45th parallel roughly marks the border between theUnited States andCanada between the St. Lawrence and Connecticut rivers (the northern borders of theU.S. state s ofNew York andVermont with theCanadian province ofQuebec ), where the parallel is sometimes called the "Canada line". The actual boundary of Vermont lies approximately 1 km (5/8 mi) north of the parallel due to a cartographic error. The boundary here intersectsLake Champlain , which is shared by the two nations, with most of the lake lying in the United States.The 45th parallel makes up most of the boundary between
Montana andWyoming . It also passes through the U.S. states ofOregon ,Idaho ,South Dakota ,Minnesota ,Wisconsin ,Michigan ,Vermont ,New Hampshire andMaine and through the Canadian provinces ofOntario ,Quebec ,New Brunswick andNova Scotia .In
Michigan , theOld Mission Peninsula inGrand Traverse Bay ends just shy of the 45th parallel. Many guidebooks and signs at theMission Point Lighthouse describe it as being halfway between the equator and north pole. When theGrand Traverse Bay recedes below normal level, it is possible to walk out to the exact line.Farther west, the line roughly bisects the
metropolitan area ofMinneapolis-St. Paul . In St. Paul, Larpenteur (which is the word in French meaning "surveyor") Avenue runs along the 45th parallel from the city's eastern to western edge. The center line of east-west Broadway Avenue inNortheast Minneapolis was deliberately laid out by city planners to be coterminous to the 45th parallel (i.e., if you are standing in the middle of the street, you are literally standing on the parallel line). In theWestern United States , the parallel passes through theGreat Plains andRocky Mountains , intersecting the Pacific coast inOregon . Throughout the United States the parallel is marked in many places on highways by a sign proclaiming that the location is halfway between the North Pole and the equator.Cities and communities
The parallel intersects or slightly bypasses:
*Gaylord, Michigan , United States
*Leland, Michigan , United States
*Lincoln City, Oregon , United States
*Montreal , Quebec, Canada
*Ottawa , Ontario, Canada
*Minneapolis, Minnesota , United States, and several of its adjacent cities
*Salem, Oregon , United States
*Keizer, Oregon , United States
*Winchester, Ontario, Canada
*Bracebridge, Muskoka , the home of Santa's Village, Ontario, Canada
*Every town along the northern border ofVermont Asia
Continuing west, the parallel passes over vast stretches of the North Pacific Ocean before passing through
Rishiri-Rebun-Sarobetsu National Park on the northern tip ofHokkaidō , the northernmost ofJapan 's main islands. It continues through the northern part of theSea of Japan , entering the Asian mainland on the coast ofPrimorsky Krai inRussia , north ofVladivostok .At
Khanka Lake it enters northeasternChina , passing just south of the city ofHarbin inHeilongjiang and continuing through part ofJilin and easternInner Mongolia . Transecting southernMongolia it passes through the provinces of Sükhbaatar, Dornogovi (and its capitalSainshand ), Dundgovi, Övörkhangai, Bayankhongor, Govi-Altai, and Khovd. In northwestern China it passes through theIli Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture inXinjiang and its oil city ofKaramay .The parallel passes through southern
Kazakhstan , intersecting the city ofBurylbaytal at the southern tip ofLake Balkhash and the city ofQyzylorda further west. At the border withUzbekistan it bisects theAral Sea and its toxicVozrozhdeniya Island peninsula, site of an abandoned Sovietbioweapons laboratory. It skirts the northern edge of theUstyurt Plateau , entering back into Kazakhstan before cutting across the northern tip of theCaspian Sea and intoEurope andRussia .Europe
In
Europe the 45th parallel stretches between the Caspian Sea coast of the Russian Caucasus in the east andBay of Biscay coast ofFrance in the west. In Russia it runs from the west coast of the Caspian Sea to the east coast of theBlack Sea , through the Republic of Kalmykia,Stavropol Krai and its capitalStavropol , andKrasnodar Krai and its capitalKrasnodar . InUkraine is crosses theCrimea and its capitalSimferopol .Further west is passes through the
Balkans :Romania (just north ofPloieşti , and throughTârgu Jiu ), theSerbia n autonomous province ofVojvodina , the eastern tip ofCroatia , the northern edge ofBosnia and Herzegovina , and a section of Adriatic Croatia.In northern
Italy it parallels thePo River , passing just south ofTurin before passing intoFrance in theCottian Alps .In southern France, it crosses the
Rhone River just north ofValence, Drôme . On the A7 autoroute du Soleil it is marked by a Motorway service area named "Aire de Pont de l'Isere/Latitude 45'". It then continues across theMassif Central and into theAquitaine region. The city ofBordeaux is just south of the parallel.ee also
*
45th parallel south
*45X90 points External links
* [http://www.mnmuseumofthems.org/45th/ The 45th Parallel] at the [http://www.mnmuseumofthems.org/index.html Minnesota Museum of the Mississippi and Other Natural Wonders]
*From the [http://www.go.ednet.ns.ca/~mag/ Minas Astronomy Group] : [http://www.go.ednet.ns.ca/~mag/files/midway.htm Midway from the Equator to the North Pole] dead link|date=January 2008 |url=http://www.go.ednet.ns.ca/~mag/files/midway.htm
* [http://www.confluence.org/ Degree Confluence Project]
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