List of extreme points of the United States

There are a number of different interpretations for "easternmost" and "westernmost"; see below for full treatment.

This is a list of points in the United States that are farther north, south, east or west than any other location in the country. Also included are extreme points in elevation, extreme distances and other points of peculiar geographic interest.

Extreme points in the 50 states: Point Barrow, Ka Lae, Sail Rock, Peaked Island
Extreme points in the contiguous 48 states: Northwest Angle, Ballast Key, Sail Rock, Bodelteh Islands
Extreme points of the U.S. on the North American continent: Point Barrow, Cape Sable, West Quoddy Head, Cape Prince of Wales
Extreme points in all U.S. territory: Point Barrow, Rose Atoll, Wake Island, Peaked Island (red dots); Point Udall, Guam, and Point Udall, USVI are shown as green dots. The International Date Line is shown in yellow.

Northernmost points

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Southernmost points

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Easternmost points

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Westernmost points

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Interpretation of easternmost and westernmost

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There are three methods for reckoning the eastern and western extremes of the United States.

One method is to use the Prime Meridian as the dividing line between east and west. This meridian running through Greenwich, London, is defined as zero degrees longitude and could be called the least eastern and least western place in the world. The 180th meridian, on the opposite side of the globe, is therefore the easternmost and westernmost place in the world.

Another method is to use the International Date Line as the easternmost–westernmost extreme. On the equinox, the easternmost place would be where the day first begins, and the westernmost is where the day last ends.

Still another method is to first determine the geographic center of the country and from there measure the shortest distance to every other point. All U.S. territory is spread across less than 180° of longitude, so from any spot in the U.S. it is more direct to reach the easternmost point, Point Udall, U.S. Virgin Islands, by traveling east than by traveling west. Likewise, there is not a single point in U.S. territory from which heading east is a shorter route to the westernmost point, Point Udall, Guam, than heading west would be, even accounting for circumpolar routes. The two different Point Udalls are named for two different men: Mo Udall (Guam) and Stewart Udall (Virgin Islands), brothers from the Udall family of Arizona who both served as U.S. Congressmen.[3]

Highest points

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Lowest points

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Other points

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Islands

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Lakes

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Rivers

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Extreme distances

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Some map projections make diagonal lines appear longer than they actually are. The diagonal line from Kure Atoll, Hawaii, to West Quoddy Head, Maine, is 5,797 miles (9,329 km); and the diagonal from Cape Wrangell, Attu Island, Alaska, to Log Point, on Elliott Key, Florida, is 5,505 miles (8,859 km).

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ The summit elevation of Mount Whitney includes an adjustment of +1.869 m (+6.1 ft) from NGVD 29 to NAVD 88.
  2. ^ Furnace Creek, in Death Valley, California, set the world record for the highest reliably reported ambient air temperature of 134 °F (57 °C), on July 10, 1913. This record has been eclipsed only once, by a questionable reading of 136 °F (58 °C), recorded in 'Aziziya, Libya, on September 13, 1922.
  3. ^ Sounding at 46° 54' 31"N, 86° 35' 52"W, on NOAA chart 14963, Grand Marais to Big Bay Point, scale 1:120,000, 2006. Chart datum (as shown on the chart) is 601.1 feet above mean sea level, at Rimouski, Quebec.
  4. ^ Two identical soundings at 47° 45.2'N, 122° 26.0'W, and 47° 44.6'N, 122° 25.4'W, on NOAA chart 18446, Puget Sound: Apple Cove Point to Keyport, scale 1:25,000, 2005. Chart datum (as shown on the chart) is lower low water.

References

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  1. ^ "National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa". NOAA.gov. Archived from the original on July 4, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
  2. ^ The Milepost (61 ed.). 2009. p. 626. ISBN 978-1892-15426-2.
  3. ^ Donald Winslow Carson; James W. Johnson (2001). Life and times of Morris K. Udall. University of Arizona Press. p. 220. ISBN 0-8165-2049-6.
  4. ^ Mark Newell; Blaine Horner (September 2, 2015). "New Elevation for Nation's Highest Peak" (Press release). USGS. Archived from the original on September 27, 2015. Retrieved September 26, 2015.
  5. ^ "Mount Whitney". NGS Station Datasheet. United States National Geodetic Survey. Archived from the original on August 29, 2014. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  6. ^ "Mount Whitney". Peakbagger.com. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved September 9, 2012.
  7. ^ "Grays Peak". Peakbagger.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
  8. ^ "Mauna Kea". Peakbagger.com. Archived from the original on October 23, 2015. Retrieved April 1, 2012.
  9. ^ "About Taos Ski Valley". Taos Ski Valley Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original on February 24, 2012. Retrieved February 29, 2012.
  10. ^ "USGS National Elevation Dataset (NED) 1 meter Downloadable Data Collection from The National Map 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) - National Geospatial Data Asset (NGDA) National Elevation Data Set (NED)". United States Geological Survey. September 21, 2015. Archived from the original on March 25, 2019. Retrieved September 22, 2015.
  11. ^ "Kinda-Sorta Stand at the Center of North America in This North Dakota Town". Jaunted. Archived from the original on May 21, 2015. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
  12. ^ "Baker Island". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved February 24, 2009.
  13. ^ "CIA World Factbook: Jarvis Island". CIA World Factbook. Archived from the original on September 8, 2006. Retrieved July 3, 2009.
  14. ^ The Canyoneers (June 1, 2016). "No bay at Border Field State Park for about 7000 years". San Diego Reader. Archived from the original on April 7, 2017. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
    Binkowski, Brooke (October 8, 2012). "Friendship Park — A Link Between Two Countries — Opens Again". KPBS. San Diego. Archived from the original on December 23, 2017. Retrieved April 6, 2017. San Diego's Friendship Park, or Border Field State Park, is tucked into the extreme southwest corner of the United States and the extreme northwest of Mexico, with fields on the U.S. side, the city of Tijuana on the other, and the blue Pacific Ocean to the west.
    "Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve Comprehensive Management Plan" (PDF). Office of Coastal Management. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. August 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  15. ^ National Geographic Society (U. S.); National Geographic (2013). Guide to Scenic Highways & Byways. National Geographic. p. 4. ISBN 978-1-4262-1014-3.
    Victoriah Arsenian (December 22, 2015). Moon Pacific Coast Highway Road Trip: California, Oregon & Washington. Avalon Publishing. p. 69. ISBN 978-1-63121-029-7.
  16. ^ Administrator. "The Northeasternmost Point of the U.S. - ExtremeGeographer.com". www.extremegeographer.com. Archived from the original on January 19, 2022. Retrieved January 19, 2022.
  17. ^ "Palmyra Atoll: Plan Your Visit". FWS.gov. July 3, 2020. Archived from the original on December 5, 2021. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
  18. ^ "Corrective Action At Johnston Atoll". EPA.gov. Archived from the original on July 3, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
  19. ^ Marsh, James H. (February 7, 2006). "Lake Superior". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017. Retrieved August 22, 2017.
  20. ^ "Park Map Viewer". Nps.gov. Archived from the original on August 17, 2011. Retrieved October 2, 2018.
  21. ^ "Pacific Tarn". Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  22. ^ "Geography of the United States". Geography.howstuffworks.com. Archived from the original on September 25, 2013. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  23. ^ a b c d e Services, Eastern Region Geography, Information. "Elevations and Distances". Pubs.usgs.gov. Archived from the original on July 9, 2017. Retrieved October 2, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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