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44-825: The Alston Block is a term used by geologists to describe the geological structure of the North Pennines of northern England and which forms a part of the Pennine Block & Basin Province which originated during the Carboniferous period . It is defined by the Stublick and Ninety Fathom faults to the north, the Pennine Fault to the west and the Stainmore Trough to the south. It

88-554: A sphere flattened 0.336% along its axis. This makes the Equator 0.16% longer than a meridian (a great circle passing through the two poles). The IUGG standard meridian is, to the nearest millimetre, 40,007.862917 kilometres (24,859.733480 mi), one arc-minute of which is 1,852.216 metres (6,076.82 ft), explaining the SI standardization of the nautical mile as 1,852 metres (6,076 ft), more than 3 metres (9.8 ft) less than

132-589: A "world-class" deposit of zinc and predicted that a new mine in the area could produce 1,000,000 tonnes (980,000 long tons; 1,100,000 short tons) of zinc ore per year. In the North Pennines National Landscape area are: 40% of the UK's upland hay meadows; 30% of England's upland heathland and 27% of its blanket bog ; 80% of England's black grouse (and also breeding short-eared owl , ring ouzel , common snipe and common redshank ); 36% of

176-504: A 12-hour day and 12-hour night. The name is derived from medieval Latin word aequator , in the phrase circulus aequator diei et noctis , meaning 'circle equalizing day and night', from the Latin word aequare 'make equal'. The latitude of the Earth's equator is, by definition, 0° (zero degrees ) of arc. The equator is one of the five notable circles of latitude on Earth;

220-751: A succession largely of sedimentary rocks laid down during the Palaeozoic era , later intruded by the Whin Sill and affected by glaciation during the Quaternary period. Mud and volcanic ash deposited during the Ordovician and Silurian periods were buried and subsequently faulted and folded during the Caledonian orogeny , the mudstone becoming slaty . These rocks which are between 500 and 420 million years old are now exposed along

264-455: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . North Pennines The North Pennines is the northernmost section of the Pennine range of hills which runs north–south through northern England . It lies between Carlisle to the west and Darlington to the east, straddling the borders of the counties of Cumbria , Durham , Northumberland and North Yorkshire . It is bounded to

308-620: Is also home to red squirrels and diverse birds of prey. The impressive landscape of the North Pennines – from High Force on the River Tees to the sweeping valley of High Cup Gill above Dufton – are the product of millions of years of geological processes. The worldwide significance of the geology found in the area was recognised in 2003 when the National Landscape became Britain's first European Geopark . A year later

352-421: Is defined as one arc-minute of the Equator, so it has different values depending on which radius is assumed. For example, by WSG-84, the distance is 1,855.3248 metres (6,087.024 ft), while by IAU-2000, it is 1,855.3257 metres (6,087.027 ft). This is a difference of less than one millimetre (0.039 in) over the total distance (approximately 1.86 kilometres or 1.16 miles). Earth is commonly modeled as

396-665: Is in essence a horst underlain by the Weardale Granite which provides sufficient buoyancy to maintain this piece of the upper crust as an area of raised relief. To its west lies the Vale of Eden and to its north is the half-graben of the Northumberland Trough . The area is also known for its mineral wealth. Geological Structure of Great Britain This article about a specific United Kingdom geological feature

440-429: Is tilted towards or away from the sun, resulting in either summer or winter in both hemispheres. This also results in a corresponding movement of the equator away from the subsolar point, which is then situated over or near the relevant tropic circle . Nevertheless, temperatures are high year-round due to the Earth's axial tilt of 23.5° not being enough to create a low minimum midday declination to sufficiently weaken

484-564: The Apollo Moon landings . The precise location of the Equator is not truly fixed; the true equatorial plane is perpendicular to the Earth's rotation axis , which drifts about 9 metres (30 ft) during a year. Geological samples show that the Equator significantly changed positions between 48 and 12 million years ago, as sediment deposited by ocean thermal currents at the Equator shifted. The deposits by thermal currents are determined by

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528-765: The Mesozoic era, desert sands characterised the area; these are now seen as the New Red Sandstone of the Vale of Eden , the eastern parts of which form the lower slopes of the Pennine scarp and are within the AONB. There is no bedrock of younger age to be found within the North Pennines; for much of the time since the deposition of the Triassic sandstones, it is likely the area was above sea level and subject to erosion . A series of major global climate cycles during

572-518: The celestial equator . In the cycle of Earth's seasons , the equatorial plane runs through the Sun twice a year : on the equinoxes in March and September . To a person on Earth, the Sun appears to travel along the equator (or along the celestial equator) at these times. Locations on the equator experience the shortest sunrises and sunsets because the Sun's daily path is nearly perpendicular to

616-538: The geographical mile . The sea-level surface of Earth (the geoid ) is irregular, so the actual length of the Equator is not so easy to determine. Aviation Week and Space Technology on 9 October 1961 reported that measurements using the Transit IV-A satellite had shown the equatorial diameter from longitude 11° West to 169° East to be 1,000 feet (305 m) greater than its diameter ninety degrees away. Download coordinates as: The Equator passes through

660-424: The horizon for most of the year. The length of daylight (sunrise to sunset) is almost constant throughout the year; it is about 14 minutes longer than nighttime due to atmospheric refraction and the fact that sunrise begins (or sunset ends) as the upper limb, not the center, of the Sun's disk contacts the horizon. Earth bulges slightly at the Equator; its average diameter is 12,742 km (7,918 mi), but

704-655: The Carboniferous/Permian boundary. Around the start of the Permian period, about 290 million years ago, mineral-rich waters, associated with the still warm granite, circulated within the Carboniferous succession and gave rise to mineral-rich veins which have formed the basis of a lead mining industry since at least Roman times. During the rest of this period and into the Triassic at the start of

748-494: The Earth’s crust which would later become England lay in the equatorial zone and was covered from time to time by shallow tropical seas. Repeated cycles of inundation led to the development of a series of cyclothems ; the laying down of layers of limestone, shale and sandstone with occasional coal seams. Shortly afterwards, (c. 295 million years ago) molten rock once again intruded the sedimentary succession, this time resulting in

792-444: The Equator (on Earth), noontime sunlight appears almost directly overhead (no more than about 23° from the zenith ) every day, year-round. Consequently, the Equator has a rather stable daytime temperature throughout the year. On the equinoxes (approximately March 20 and September 23) the subsolar point crosses Earth's equator at a shallow angle, sunlight shines perpendicular to Earth's axis of rotation, and all latitudes have nearly

836-565: The Equator. However, its island of Annobón is 155 km (96 mi) south of the Equator, and the rest of the country lies to the north. France , Norway ( Bouvet Island ), and the United Kingdom are the other three Northern Hemisphere -based countries which have territories in the Southern Hemisphere . Seasons result from the tilt of Earth's axis away from a line perpendicular to the plane of its revolution around

880-518: The IUGG at its Canberra, Australia meeting of 1979 has an equatorial radius of 6,378.137 km (3,963.191 mi). The WGS 84 (World Geodetic System 1984) which is a standard for use in cartography, geodesy, and satellite navigation including GPS , also has an equatorial radius of 6,378.137 km (3,963.191 mi). For both GRS 80 and WGS 84, this results in a length for the Equator of 40,075.0167 km (24,901.4609 mi). The geographical mile

924-691: The International Astronomical Union (IAU) use an equatorial radius of 6,378.1366 km (3,963.1903 mi) (codified as the IAU 2009 value). This equatorial radius is also in the 2003 and 2010 IERS Conventions. It is also the equatorial radius used for the IERS 2003 ellipsoid. If it were really circular, the length of the equator would then be exactly 2π times the radius, namely 40,075.0142 km (24,901.4594 mi). The GRS 80 (Geodetic Reference System 1980) as approved and adopted by

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968-719: The National Landscape area is designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest ; red squirrels , otters and rare arctic alpine plants; 22,000 pairs of breeding waders and one of England's biggest waterfalls – High Force . The area shares a boundary with the Yorkshire Dales National Park in the south and extends as far as the Tyne Valley, just south of Hadrian's Wall in the north. The North Pennines are notable for rare flora and fauna, including wild alpine plants not found elsewhere in Britain. It

1012-614: The North Pennines was designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in 1988 for its moorland scenery, the product of centuries of farming and lead-mining. It is the second largest of the 49 AONBs in the United Kingdom after the Cotswolds. The landscape of the North Pennines AONB is one of open heather moors between deep dales, upland rivers, hay meadows and stone-built villages, some of which contain

1056-597: The North Pennines. This uplifted area is known as the Alston Block and is partly defined by major faults; the Stublick and Ninety-Fathom faults to the north and the Pennine Fault to the west. To the south is the Stainmore Trough. Overlying the early Palaeozoic rocks and granite are a succession of limestones , shales and mudstones dating from the Carboniferous period. At this time the part of

1100-513: The Sun's rays even during the solstices. High year-round temperatures extend to about 25° north or south of the equator, although the moderate seasonal temperature difference is defined by the opposing solstices (as it is at higher latitudes) near the poleward limits of this range. Near the equator, there is little temperature change throughout the year, though there may be dramatic differences in rainfall and humidity. The terms summer, autumn, winter and spring do not generally apply. Lowlands around

1144-545: The Sun. Throughout the year, the Northern and Southern hemispheres are alternately turned either toward or away from the Sun, depending on Earth's position in its orbit. The hemisphere turned toward the Sun receives more sunlight and is in summer, while the other hemisphere receives less sun and is in winter (see solstice ). At the equinoxes , Earth's axis is perpendicular to the Sun rather than tilted toward or away, meaning that day and night are both about 12 hours long across

1188-477: The afternoon and 23 °C (73 °F) around sunrise. Rainfall is very high away from cold ocean current upwelling zones, from 2,500 to 3,500 mm (100 to 140 in) per year. There are about 200 rainy days per year and average annual sunshine hours are around 2,000. Despite high year-round sea level temperatures, some higher altitudes such as the Andes and Mount Kilimanjaro have glaciers. The highest point on

1232-541: The area become one of the founding members of the UNESCO -assisted Global Geopark family and in 2015 it was accorded official status as a UNESCO Global Geopark. Geoparks are areas with outstanding geological heritage where this is being used to support sustainable development. Another of the North Pennines' oddities is that it is home to England's only named wind, the Helm Wind . It has caught out many walkers traversing

1276-615: The axis of Earth, which determines solar coverage of Earth's surface . Changes in Earth's axis can also be observed in the geographical layout of volcanic island chains, which are created by shifting hot spots under Earth's crust as the axis and crust move. This is consistent with the Indian tectonic plate colliding with the Eurasian tectonic plate , which is causing the Himalayan uplift. The International Association of Geodesy (IAG) and

1320-512: The current Quaternary period resulted in a series of ice ages, evidence for the last ice age is found within the North Pennines both in term of erosional and depositional features. Glacial till is widespread and drumlin are encountered, both indicative of the presence of moving ice within the landscape. It may be that some higher ground was not over-ridden by ice but remained exposed through subject to harsh climatic conditions. Glacial meltwater carved channels and rivers have continued to shape

1364-649: The diameter at the equator is about 43 km (27 mi) greater than at the poles. Sites near the Equator, such as the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou , French Guiana , are good locations for spaceports as they have the fastest rotational speed of any latitude, 460 m (1,509 ft)/sec. The added velocity reduces the fuel needed to launch spacecraft eastward (in the direction of Earth's rotation) to orbit, while simultaneously avoiding costly maneuvers to flatten inclination during missions such as

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1408-548: The emplacement of the doleritic Whin Sill within the Carboniferous sequence. Known as whinstone locally, it baked the rocks with which it came into contact, resulting in the Sugar Limestone found in upper Teesdale. Cooling of the sill itself resulted in the formation of columnar joints, characteristic of its outcrop at places like High Cup . The sill has been dated at between 301 and 294 million years old thus straddling

1452-632: The equator generally have a tropical rainforest climate , also known as an equatorial climate, though cold ocean currents cause some regions to have tropical monsoon climates with a dry season in the middle of the year, and the Somali Current generated by the Asian monsoon due to continental heating via the high Tibetan Plateau causes Greater Somalia to have an arid climate despite its equatorial location. Average annual temperatures in equatorial lowlands are around 31 °C (88 °F) during

1496-473: The equator is at the elevation of 4,690 metres (15,387 ft), at 0°0′0″N 77°59′31″W  /  0.00000°N 77.99194°W  / 0.00000; -77.99194  ( highest point on the equator ) , found on the southern slopes of Volcán Cayambe [summit 5,790 metres (18,996 ft)] in Ecuador . This is slightly above the snow line and is the only place on the equator where snow lies on

1540-431: The equator of a rotating spheroid (such as a planet ) is the parallel (circle of latitude) at which latitude is defined to be 0°. It is an imaginary line on the spheroid, equidistant from its poles , dividing it into northern and southern hemispheres. In other words, it is the intersection of the spheroid with the plane perpendicular to its axis of rotation and midway between its geographical poles . On and near

1584-474: The great scarp which defines the western edge of the area and also in an inlier in upper Teesdale . Unseen at the surface but proved in boreholes is the Weardale Granite, a batholith emplaced as molten rock into the slates and other rocks around 400 million years ago. Its presence beneath the region results in it being an upland area since granite is relatively less dense and therefore ‘buoys up’

1628-625: The land of eleven sovereign states . Indonesia is the country straddling the greatest length of the equatorial line across both land and sea. Starting at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the Equator passes through: The Equator also passes through the territorial seas of three countries: Maldives (south of Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll ), Kiribati (south of Buariki Island ), and the United States (south of Baker Island ). Despite its name, no part of Equatorial Guinea lies on

1672-410: The landscape in the post-glacial era. Besides farming, mining and quarrying have been a mainstay of the local economy over centuries. The area has in the past been mined and quarried for minerals such as barytes, coal fluorspar, iron, lead, witherite and zinc. In 2013, a Canadian mining company were allowed to test drill for zinc around Allenheads and Nenthead . They said the region was sitting on

1716-542: The legacies of a mining and industrial past. In 2023, AONBs were rebranded as National Landscapes, and the area is now marketed as the North Pennines National Landscape, although the legal designation remains unchanged. There is a small National Landscape visitor centre at Bowlees which aims to provide a gateway to Upper Teesdale and the wider North Pennines. 54°44′N 2°8′W  /  54.733°N 2.133°W  / 54.733; -2.133 Equator In spatial (3D) geometry , as applied in astronomy ,

1760-638: The most celebrated stretches through Teesdale , a lush valley with dramatic river scenery including the twin attractions of High Force and Cauldron Snout . The great English poet W. H. Auden spent much time in this area and some forty poems and two plays are set here. Auden visited the area in 1919 and "five years later was writing poems about Alston Moor and Allendale." He referred to the region as his "Mutterland", his "great good place", and equated it with his idea of Eden. Scores of Pennine place-names are found in his work, including Cauldron Snout and Rookhope . An area of 770 square miles (2,000 km ) in

1804-664: The north by the Tyne Valley and to the south by the Stainmore Gap. As a sparsely-populated upland region known for its moorland ecology and industrial archaeology, a large part of the North Pennines is protected as a National Landscape and a UNESCO Global Geopark . Several major rivers rise in the North Pennines, including the Tees and Wear , and form the Durham Dales valleys. The North Pennines are formed from

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1848-586: The other four are the two polar circles (the Arctic Circle and the Antarctic Circle ) and the two tropical circles (the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn ). The equator is the only line of latitude which is also a great circle —meaning, one whose plane passes through the center of the globe. The plane of Earth's equator, when projected outwards to the celestial sphere , defines

1892-527: The plateaux around Cross Fell , the Eden Valley fellside, and the valleys between Alston and Dufton. One of the many walking routes in the North Pennines is Isaac's Tea Trail , a circular route of 37 miles (60 km) around the area, running from Ninebanks via Allendale , Nenthead and Alston . In addition to this, a large section of the Pennine Way falls in the AONB, including one of

1936-445: The whole of Earth. Near the equator, this means the variation in the strength of solar radiation is different relative to the time of year than it is at higher latitudes: maximum solar radiation is received during the equinoxes, when a place at the equator is under the subsolar point at high noon, and the intermediate seasons of spring and autumn occur at higher latitudes; and the minimum occurs during both solstices, when either pole

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