The Degree Confluence Project is a
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW or simply the Web) is an information system that enables Content (media), content sharing over the Internet through user-friendly ways meant to appeal to users beyond Information technology, IT specialists and hobbyis ...
-based all-volunteer project that aims to have people visit each of the
integer
An integer is the number zero (0), a positive natural number (1, 2, 3, ...), or the negation of a positive natural number (−1, −2, −3, ...). The negations or additive inverses of the positive natural numbers are referred to as negative in ...
degree intersections of
latitude
In geography, latitude is a geographic coordinate system, geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from −90° at t ...
and
longitude
Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east- west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek lett ...
on
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
, posting
photograph
A photograph (also known as a photo, or more generically referred to as an ''image'' or ''picture'') is an image created by light falling on a photosensitivity, photosensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic image sensor. Th ...
s and a narrative of each visit online. The project describes itself as "an
organized sampling of the
world
The world is the totality of entities, the whole of reality, or everything that Existence, exists. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the world as unique, while others talk ...
".
Requirements
The precise location of each degree confluence uses the
WGS 84 horizontal datum, and visitors to degree confluences almost always make use of
GNSS receivers. For a ''successful visit'', the visitor must get within 100 metres of the confluence point, and post a narrative and several photographs to the project website. A visit, or attempted visit, which does not conform to these rules may still be recorded on the website as an ''incomplete visit''. The project encourages visits to degree confluences which have been visited previously, and many confluence points — especially in non-remote regions of developed nations – have been visited several times.
The total number of degree confluences is 64,442, of which 21,543 are on land, 38,409 on water, and 4,490 on the
Antarctic
The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole.
The Antar ...
and
Arctic
The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...
ice caps. The project categorizes degree confluences as either ''primary'' or ''secondary''. A confluence is primary only if it is on land or within sight of land. In addition, at
latitudes greater than 48°, only some points are designated primary because confluences crowd together near the
poles
Pole or poles may refer to:
People
*Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland
* Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name
* Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist
...
. Both primary and secondary confluences may be visited and recorded.
In addition, visits to certain special geographical locations can also be reported (special visits). For example:
*
Middle of the World monument (0°, 78°27'08"W)
* Centers of continents
*
Royal Greenwich Observatory
History
The project was started by Alex Jarrett in February 1996 because he "liked the idea of visiting a location represented by a round number such as
43°00'00"N 72°00'00"W. What would be there? Would other people have recognized this as a unique spot?"
As of October 2024, 6,668 (40.7%) of 16,349 primary confluences have been visited, covering 195 countries and territories.
Milestones
* First degree confluence visit posted to the website: in New Hampshire, USA by Alex Jarrett (project founder) and Peter Cline on February 20, 1996. (Note that some degree confluence visits that pre-date this visit have since been posted on the project's website.)
* Highest confluence: in Kuba, Tibet, China at 19,143 feet (5,835 m), first visited by Greg Michaels and Robert Whitfield on May 29, 2005.
* Lowest confluence: in Matrūh, Egypt at −255 feet (−78 m), first visited by Dave Morrison, Steve Price and Tony Carlisle on December 4, 2004.
See also
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Notes
Further reading
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*
External links
Degree Confluence Project websiteGrist article on project 2 Oct. 2012Westminster, Massachusetts Confluence Project
{{geographical coordinates
Photography websites
Satellite navigation
Outdoor locating games
Cartography organizations
Volunteered geographic information
Meridians (geography)
Circles of latitude