58th parallel north

The 58th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 58 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean.

Line across the Earth
58°
58th parallel north

At this latitude the Sun is visible for 18 hours, 11 minutes during the summer solstice and 6 hours, 27 minutes during the winter solstice.[1]

Around the world

Starting at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the parallel 58° north passes through:

Co-ordinatesCountry, territory or oceanNotes
58°0′N 0°0′E / 58.000°N 0.000°E / 58.000; 0.000 (Prime Meridian)North Sea
58°0′N 6°59′E / 58.000°N 6.983°E / 58.000; 6.983 (Norway)  NorwayMarkøy and Austre Seli, Vest-Agder
58°0′N 7°0′E / 58.000°N 7.000°E / 58.000; 7.000 (North Sea)Atlantic OceanNorth Sea
58°0′N 7°2′E / 58.000°N 7.033°E / 58.000; 7.033 (Norway)  NorwayLindesnes peninsula, Vest-Agder
Passing 2.3 km (1.4 mi) north of mainland Norway's southernmost point
58°0′N 7°6′E / 58.000°N 7.100°E / 58.000; 7.100 (Skagerrak)Atlantic OceanSkagerrak
Passing between Våre Island to the north and Udvåre Island to the south, Vest-Agder
58°0′N 7°20′E / 58.000°N 7.333°E / 58.000; 7.333 (Norway)  NorwayHille Island, Vest-Agder
58°0′N 7°23′E / 58.000°N 7.383°E / 58.000; 7.383 (Skagerrak)Atlantic OceanSkagerrak
58°0′N 7°30′E / 58.000°N 7.500°E / 58.000; 7.500 (Norway)  NorwaySkjernøy Island, Vest-Agder
58°0′N 7°32′E / 58.000°N 7.533°E / 58.000; 7.533 (Skagerrak)Atlantic OceanSkagerrak
Passing south of Uvår and Songvår Islands, Vest-Agder
58°0′N 11°32′E / 58.000°N 11.533°E / 58.000; 11.533 (Sweden)  SwedenTjörn Island, Västra Götaland County
58°0′N 11°45′E / 58.000°N 11.750°E / 58.000; 11.750 (Hakefjorden)Atlantic OceanHakefjorden
58°0′N 11°49′E / 58.000°N 11.817°E / 58.000; 11.817 (Sweden)  SwedenVästra Götaland County, Lake Vättern (southernmost point of Visingsö), Jönköping County, Östergötland County, Kalmar County
58°0′N 16°47′E / 58.000°N 16.783°E / 58.000; 16.783 (Baltic Sea)Atlantic OceanBaltic Sea
Passing just north of the islands of Gotland and Fårö,  Sweden
58°0′N 22°1′E / 58.000°N 22.017°E / 58.000; 22.017 (Estonia)  EstoniaIsland of Saaremaa, Saare County
58°0′N 22°11′E / 58.000°N 22.183°E / 58.000; 22.183 (Gulf of Riga)Atlantic OceanGulf of Riga, Baltic Sea
58°0′N 24°25′E / 58.000°N 24.417°E / 58.000; 24.417 (Estonia)  EstoniaPärnu County
58°0′N 24°55′E / 58.000°N 24.917°E / 58.000; 24.917 (Latvia)  LatviaFor 19.8 km (12.3 mi), Valmiera District
58°0′N 25°15′E / 58.000°N 25.250°E / 58.000; 25.250 (Estonia)  EstoniaFor 2.7 km (1.7 mi), Viljandi County
58°0′N 25°18′E / 58.000°N 25.300°E / 58.000; 25.300 (Latvia)  LatviaFor 8.6 km (5.3 mi), Valmiera District
58°0′N 25°27′E / 58.000°N 25.450°E / 58.000; 25.450 (Estonia)  EstoniaViljandi County, Valga County and Põlva County
58°0′N 27°41′E / 58.000°N 27.683°E / 58.000; 27.683 (Russia)  RussiaNorthwestern, Central, Volga, Ural Federal Districts, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Irkutsk Oblast, Zabaykalsky Krai, Zabaykalsky Krai, Yakutia, Khabarovsk Krai
Passing through Perm and Ust-Ilimsk
58°0′N 140°33′E / 58.000°N 140.550°E / 58.000; 140.550 (Sea of Okhotsk)Pacific OceanSea of Okhotsk
58°0′N 157°40′E / 58.000°N 157.667°E / 58.000; 157.667 (Russia)  RussiaKamchatka Peninsula, Kamchatka Krai
58°0′N 161°59′E / 58.000°N 161.983°E / 58.000; 161.983 (Bering Sea)Pacific OceanBering Sea
58°0′N 157°37′W / 58.000°N 157.617°W / 58.000; -157.617 (United States)  United StatesAlaska - Alaska Peninsula
58°0′N 155°2′W / 58.000°N 155.033°W / 58.000; -155.033 (Shelikof Strait)Pacific OceanShelikof Strait, Gulf of Alaska
58°0′N 153°5′W / 58.000°N 153.083°W / 58.000; -153.083 (United States)  United StatesAlaska - Raspberry Island and Afognak Island
58°0′N 152°47′W / 58.000°N 152.783°W / 58.000; -152.783 (Pacific Ocean)Pacific OceanGulf of Alaska
58°0′N 136°31′W / 58.000°N 136.517°W / 58.000; -136.517 (United States)  United StatesAlaska - Yakobi Island, Chichagof Island, Admiralty Island and the mainland
58°0′N 133°3′W / 58.000°N 133.050°W / 58.000; -133.050 (Canada)  CanadaBritish Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba
58°0′N 92°49′W / 58.000°N 92.817°W / 58.000; -92.817 (Hudson Bay)Arctic OceanHudson Bay
58°0′N 77°12′W / 58.000°N 77.200°W / 58.000; -77.200 (Canada)  CanadaQuebec, Newfoundland and Labrador
58°0′N 62°9′W / 58.000°N 62.150°W / 58.000; -62.150 (Atlantic Ocean)Atlantic Ocean
58°0′N 7°6′W / 58.000°N 7.100°W / 58.000; -7.100 (United Kingdom)  United KingdomIsland of Lewis and Harris,  Scotland
58°0′N 6°23′W / 58.000°N 6.383°W / 58.000; -6.383 (The Minch)The Minch
58°0′N 5°19′W / 58.000°N 5.317°W / 58.000; -5.317 (United Kingdom)  United Kingdom  Scotland
58°0′N 3°52′W / 58.000°N 3.867°W / 58.000; -3.867 (North Sea)North Sea

Climate

In general, this parallel sees significant differences in temperature and precipitation with proximity to warm ocean currents. The moderation from the Gulf Stream ensures a moderate oceanic climate in much of Western Europe and on the immediate coastline of Alaska, whereas moving inland on continental masses, subarctic climates predominate as the dark winters dominate the temperature cycle. In the transitional area centred on the Baltic Sea this latitude sees a humid continental climate with warm summers and snowy winters somewhat below freezing.

Where cold ocean currents dominate such as near Hudson Bay the climate is polar, rendering in severe winter conditions and very subdued summers. This type of climate is seen in the surroundings of Inukjuak in Quebec, Canada, where the sea ice eliminates winter moderation, but the thawing of the cold water renders in very cool summers as well. In more continental cold areas such as these winters commonly go below −30 °C or −22 °F even during the day. Further west in inland areas winters are often as severe, but summers average above 22 °C or 71.6 °F, similar to the Baltic region where climates are much gentler.

See also

References