When I was a kid growing up in Oregon, we’d occasionally drive north on I-5 to Portland. Just north of Salem we’d pass a sign that read (if memory serves) “The 45th Parallel: Halfway between the equator and the north pole.”
I wish I’d stopped and taken a picture of myself straddling the parallel. It would go with a collection of similar straddles: across the equator in Uganda, across the Arctic Circle in Finland, and across the 42nd parallel.
Yes, for if you go south on I-5 (or almost any other road) the 42nd parallel, 7/15ths of the way from the equator to the north pole, is very well marked. It says “Welcome to California.” For 42 is the southern boundary of Oregon and Idaho, against California, Nevada and Utah. Likewise, heading south from Syracuse on I-81, just past Binghamton, it’s marked as “Welcome to Pennsylvania.”
Other latitudes form important state lines: the four corners is at the 37th parallel and the 109th meridian. Colorado’s northern boundary follows the 41st parallel. And famously, the 49th parallel comprises the largest part of the US-Canada border.
The special 45th parallel, however, is explicitly reflected in political geography in only two places: it forms Montana’s southern boundary with Wyoming. And more significantly, it forms the northern boundary of New York and Vermont against Quebec.
Only four states lie entirely north of the 45th parallel: Alaska, Washington, Montana (almost), and North Dakota. The biggest cities are Seattle and Portland. The parallel divides the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. So counting six million from Washington, 2 million each from Oregon and Minnesota, and about 3 million from everywhere else, approximately 13 million Americans live north of the 45th parallel – or 4% of our population.
Now consider Canada. That country’s southernmost reach is Middle Island in Lake Erie, just south of the 42nd parallel. (My mother often told me that Canada was south of California.) The 45th parallel passes north of Barrie, Ontario, which means the Toronto Metro area and Western Ontario are to the south. Further east, St. John, NB lies just to the north, but Halifax, NS is just to the south. Montreal, Ottawa, and all western cities are north of 45. I’ll guess that about 25 million of Canada’s 34 million people live north of the 45th – about 74% of the population.
So while almost all Americans live to the south, a large majority of Canadians live to the north. So if one wants to distinguish the US from Canada by a single straight line, the 45th is as good as any. It is much better than the iconic 49th, since the largest Canadian cities are well south of that latitude.
Heading east, the 45th passes through the southern tip of Crimea, and splits Kazakhstan and Mongolia in half. The only parts of Russia lying south are Vladivostok and the northern Caucasus. Japan, China and the Central Asian republics are almost all to the south.
In Europe, the parallel runs through Southern France and Northern Italy. To a very rough approximation, it follows the Pyrenees-Alps mountains. In the continental EU, only Bulgaria, Greece, Spain and Portugal lie entirely to the south.
The parallel wouldn’t have been the worst way to split up the former Yugoslavia: Zagreb is to the north, and Belgrade in the south. Further, the Serbian region of Vojvodina and the Romanian region of Transylvania are north. These areas both have large Hungarian minorities, formerly part of the Austro-Hungarian empire. Irredentist movements in Hungary might happily settle for a boundary at the 45.
A reasonable population estimate for north of the 45th counts 200 million in the former USSR, 370 million in Europe, and 30 million in Canada, for a total of 600 million, or 10% of the world’s population.
If the earth were a perfect sphere, then 29.3% of the surface area of the northern hemisphere would lie north of the parallel (this is a reasonably straightforward calculus problem; try it if you’re so inclined). As the earth is actually an ellipsoid, the number is somewhat smaller. Since about 5 billion people live in the Northern Hemisphere, only about 12% of them live north of 45. (Only about one million people live south of 45 S.)
Is this surprising? Not really – one wouldn’t expect many people to be living at the north pole. But come to think of it, you’ll be surprised by how surprising this number really is.
A reasonable rule of thumb is that cities at the same latitude will have the same average annual temperature, as they get the same amount of sunshine at the same times. Thus while Minneapolis certainly has colder winters and hotter summers than Portland, on average it should come out right. I learned this again on my last visit to Portland – summer nights in Portland are cold!
But the rule of thumb doesn’t apply when something truly bizarre affects the climate. And that bizarre thing is the Gulf Stream, which heats Europe 5+ degrees latitude more than it should. Thus Milan (at 45) has a San Francisco climate; London, Paris and Berlin feel like Portland; Oslo, Helsinki and St. Petersburg are similar to Vancouver; and even Murmansk can’t be worse off than Anchorage.
Thus the surprise is not how few people live north of 45, but rather how many. For of the 600 million northerly souls, only 5% of them live in North America. That means that subarctic Eurasia has nearly 20 times the population, but probably only 3 times the land area. Thus there is a seven-fold higher population density in northern Eurasia than there is in North America. I’m surprised.
To quantify the surprise, the appropriate Gulf Stream comparison line through Europe might be at the 52nd parallel rather than 45. I chose that latitude as it roughly corresponds to the Baltic coast. Thus France, Germany, Benelux, Ukraine, Poland, and major parts of European Russia lie between 45 and 52, along with smaller countries. Estimating that combined population at about 400 million, and subtracting that from the 600 million, we get a more reasonable sub-arctic population estimate of about 200 million.
So 200 million live in the northerly Eastern hemisphere, and 35 million live in Canada – a ratio of nearly six to one. I’m still surprised, but can no longer account for the discrepancy. Is life really that much easier in Finland?
There is another half-way latitude worth mentioning. What latitude splits the earth’s surface in half? If you did the above calculus assignment, you will immediately know the answer: the 30th parallel. Half the earth’s surface lies within 30 degrees of the equator, and half beyond. The 30th parallel does not correspond to any political geography – it goes through Jacksonville, Baton Rouge, Beaumont, and Austin, before entering Mexico southeast of El Paso.
So the United States mostly lies between the 30th and 45th parallels. Now isn’t that just the very best of temperate climes?
Daniel Jelski is Dean of Science & Engineering State University of New York at New Paltz.
Comments
33 responses to “The Forty-Fifth Parallel”
have to admit to being a geography geek, and looking all this stuff up to, would have been cool to be a surveyor in the 18th century when they were making state boundaries
New Orleans is right at 30N-90W, that’s always a good one, outside of Florida and California, there are no cities with more than 5,000 people per square mile south of the 37-30 line, so you can break up 30-45 this country’s pop. lives in into halves – cold with dense cities, warm with spread out cities
Seattle, Portland, and SF are all near the 122nd longitude, and share the same liberal, creative attitude, Chicago, and Boston sit near the 42nd lat. and share miserable climates but walkable downtowns
I could go on, but do this long enough and most people will expect the next words out of your mouth to be “Charlie Babbit”
I love this blog!! The flash up the top is awesome!!
watch running man
Your music is amazing. You have some very talented artists. I wish you the best of success.
learn a language online
I’d always want to be update on new articles on this web site , saved to favorites ! .
Pop Over To This Web-site
I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this article. I am hoping the same best work from you in the future as well. Thanks…
Elvecio Andrade Relationships
I really appreciate this wonderful post that you have provided for us. I assure this would be beneficial for most of the people.
weiterbildung
I like this post,And I guess that they having fun to read this post,they shall take a good site to make a information,thanks for sharing it to me.
green concept
A reasonable population estimate for north of the 45th counts 200 million in the former USSR, 370 million in Europe, and 30 million in Canada, for a total of 600 million, or 10% of the world’s population. free cell phone spy software
cell phone spyware
With the financial state battling to get momentum, travellers are ever more opting to stay house. Which is terrible news for hotel operators, specifically since many of them expanded with new design through the financial growth of the very last ten years. great hotels
Thanks for the valuable information and insights you have so provided here…
venus factor review
I read your blog frequently and I just thought I’d say keep up the amazing work! watch movies online queen 2014 hd
Thanks for posting this info. I just want to let you know that I just check out your site and I find it very interesting and informative. I can’t wait to read lots of your posts.
sensual hunter method by don amante examples
Interesting topic for a blog. I have been searching the Internet for fun and came upon your website. Fabulous post. Thanks a ton for sharing your knowledge! It is great to see that some people still put in an effort into managing their websites. I’ll be sure to check back again real soon.
http://www.theofficialwebsite.co/christian-h-girlfriend-activation-system-review/
Your music is amazing. You have some very talented artists. I wish you the best of success.
how to make your ex not feel pressured
I am very enjoyed for this blog. Its an informative topic. It help me very much to solve some problems. Its opportunity are so fantastic and working style so speedy.
http://french.reviewbancdebinary.com/text.php?lang=eng&id=5&sid=5
Thank you again for all the knowledge you distribute,Good post. I was very interested in the article, it’s quite inspiring I should admit. I like visiting you site since I always come across interesting articles like this one.Great Job, I greatly appreciate that.Do Keep sharing! Regards,
series online sehen
Excellent .. Amazing .. I’ll bookmark your blog and take the feeds also…I’m happy to find so many useful info here in the post, we need work out more techniques in this regard, thanks for sharing.
lightening cream
Positive site, where did u come up with the information on this posting?I have read a few of the articles on your website now, and I really like your style. Thanks a million and please keep up the effective work.
http://www.rebelmouse.com
Hello, I have browsed most of your posts. This post is probably where I got the most useful information for my research. Thanks for posting, maybe we can see more on this. Are you aware of any other websites on this subject.
truck accessories
I think this is an informative post and it is very useful and knowledgeable. therefore, I would like to thank you for the efforts you have made in writing this article.
Driving lessons Southgate
Positive site, where did u come up with the information on this posting?I have read a few of the articles on your website now, and I really like your style. Thanks a million and please keep up the effective work.
tips on how to get a hot girlfriend
Thanks for sharing the post.. parents are worlds best person in each lives of individual..they need or must succeed to sustain needs of the family.
loveetcetc.com
You know your projects stand out of the herd. There is something special about them. It seems to me all of them are really brilliant!
girlfriend activation system crack
Your website is really cool and this is a great inspiring article.
https://www.rebelmouse.com/manifestationmiraclereviews/
This is a great inspiring article.I am pretty much pleased with your good work.You put really very helpful information…
Victorino Noval Los Angeles
Thank you so much Love your blog..
how to pick up a girl out of your league
Thanks for a wonderful share. Your article has proved your hard work and experience you have got in this field. Brilliant .i love it reading.
the best way to stop baldness
I found that site very usefull and this survey is very cirious, I ‘ ve never seen a blog that demand a survey for this actions, very curious…
best outdoor pools
I’m glad I found this web site, I couldn’t find any knowledge on this matter prior to.Also operate a site and if you are ever interested in doing some visitor writing for me if possible feel free to let me know, im always look for people to check out my web site.
best way to make a man fall in love with you
I’m glad I found this web site, I couldn’t find any knowledge on this matter prior to.Also operate a site and if you are ever interested in doing some visitor writing for me if possible feel free to let me know, im always look for people to check out my web site.
best way to make a man fall in love with you
I’m glad I found this web site, I couldn’t find any knowledge on this matter prior to.Also operate a site and if you are ever interested in doing some visitor writing for me if possible feel free to let me know, im always look for people to check out my web site.
best way to make a man fall in love with you
I’m glad I found this web site, I couldn’t find any knowledge on this matter prior to.Also operate a site and if you are ever interested in doing some visitor writing for me if possible feel free to let me know, im always look for people to check out my web site.
best way to make a man fall in love with you
These are some great tools that i definitely use for SEO work. This is a great list to use in the future..
http://www.rebelmouse.com/girlfriendsystemreview/