Struve Geodetic Arc - TORNEA Alatornion kirkko Postcard

UNESCO WHS Serie - World Heritage Sites in Finland - Struve Geodetic Arc - TORNEA Alatornion kirkko - The Struve Arc is a chain of survey triangulations stretching from Hammerfest in Norway to the Black Sea, through 10 countries and over 2‘820 km. These are points of a survey, carried out between 1816 and 1855 by the astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve, which represented the first accurate measuring of a long segment of a meridian. This helped to establish the exact size and shape of the planet and marked an important step in the development of earth sciences and topographic mapping. The Struve Geodetic Arc expedition used the church tower for measurements. The Alatornio Church station point is today in the same, authentic place and construction as it was in the time of Arc measurements in the years 1842 and 1851. The top of its tower rises some 40 metres above the sea level. This high peak was a natural place for making triangulation observations. Name: Struve Geodetic Arc Site: TORNEA Alatornion kirkko Country: Finland Location: Tornio, Kemi-Tornio, Region of Lapland Inscription: 2005 Category: Cultural (ii)(iv)(vi) Unesco Ref: 1187-011 Special Feature: The card has a QR-Code on the backside to navigate for more Informationas about the site.