Extremes on Earth

This article lists extreme locations on Earth that hold geographical records or are otherwise known for their geophysical or meteorological superlatives. All of these locations are Earth-wide extremes; extremes of individual continents or countries are not listed.

Latitude and longitude

Northernmost

• The northernmost point of land is the northern tip of Kaffeklubben Island, north of Greenland (Template:Coord), which lies slightly north of Cape Morris Jesup, Greenland (Template:Coord). Various shifting gravel bars lie farther north, the most famous being Oodaaq. There have been other islands more northern such as 83-42 and ATOW1996 but they have not been confirmed as permanent.

Southernmost

• The southernmost continental point of land outside Antarctica is in South America at Cape Froward, Magallanes Region, Chile (Template:Coord).
• The southernmost point of (liquid) water is a bay on the Filchner–Ronne Ice Shelf along the coast of Antarctica (Template:Coord), about Template:Cvt south of Berkner Island.
  • The southernmost point of ocean is located on the Gould Coast (Template:Coord).
  • The southernmost point of open ocean is in the Bay of Whales, also part of the Ross Sea, at 78°30'S, at the edge of the Ross Ice Shelf.
    • The southernmost island is considered to be Deverall Island, near the Shackleton Coast, surrounded by the Ross Ice Shelf although there is an island in Lake Vostok but it is currently under ice.

Easternmost and westernmost

• The easternmost and westernmost points on Earth, based on the east–west standard for describing longitude, can be found anywhere along the 180th meridian, which passes through the Arctic, Pacific, and Southern Oceans, as well as parts of Siberia (including Wrangel Island), Antarctica, and three islands of Fiji (Vanua Levu's eastern peninsula, the middle of Taveuni, and the western part of Rabi Island).
  • Using instead the path of the International Date Line (which is not a straight line), i.e. define "easternmost" as "the first to see a new day" and define "westernmost" as "the last to see a new day", the westernmost point on land is Attu Island, Alaska, and the easternmost point on land is Caroline Island, Kiribati.Template:Efn

Longest grid lines

Along constant latitude

• The longest continuous east–west distance on land is Template:Cvt along the latitude 48°24'53"N, from the west coast of France (Pointe de Corsen, Template:Coord) through Central Europe, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia and China, to a point on the east coast of Russia (Template:Coord).
• The longest continuous east–west distance at sea is Template:Cvt along the latitude 55°59'S, south of Cape Horn, South America.
  • The longest continuous east–west distance at sea between two continents is Template:Cvt along the latitude 18°39'12"N, from the coast of Hainan, China (Template:Coord) across the Pacific Ocean to the coast of Michoacán, Mexico (Template:Coord).

Along constant longitude

• The longest continuous north–south distance on land is Template:Cvt along the meridian 99°1'30"E, from the northern tip of Siberia in the Russian Federation (Template:Coord), through Mongolia, China, and Myanmar, to a point on the south coast of Thailand (Template:Coord).
  • The longest in Africa is Template:Cvt along the meridian 20°12'E, from the north coast of Libya (Template:Coord), through Chad, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, Namibia, and Botswana, to the south coast of South Africa (Template:Coord).
  • The longest in South America is the length Template:Cvt along the meridian 70°2'W, from the north coast of Venezuela (Template:Coord), through Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Chile, to the southern tip of Argentina (Template:Coord).
  • The longest in North America is Template:Cvt along the meridian 97°52'30"W, from northern Canada (Template:Coord), through the United States, to southern Mexico (Template:Coord).
• The longest continuous north–south distance at sea is Template:Cvt along the meridian 34°45'45"W, from the coast of Eastern Greenland (Template:Coord) across the Atlantic Ocean to the Filchner-Ronne Ice Shelf, on the coast of Antarctica (Template:Coord). The longest in the Pacific Ocean is Template:Cvt along the meridian 172°8'30"W, from the coast of Siberia (Template:Coord) to the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica (Template:Coord).
• The meridian that crosses the greatest total distance on land (disregarding intervening bodies of water) is still to be determined. It is likely located in the vicinity of 22°E, which is the longest integer meridian that fits that criterion, crossing a total of Template:Cvt of land through Europe (Template:Cvt), Africa (Template:Cvt), and Antarctica (Template:Cvt).Template:Efn More than 65% of this meridian's length is located on land. The next six longest integer meridians by total distance over land are, in order:
  • 23°E: Template:Cvt through Europe (Template:Cvt), Africa (Template:Cvt), and Antarctica (Template:Cvt)
  • 27°E: Template:Cvt through Europe (Template:Cvt), Asia (Template:Cvt), Africa (Template:Cvt), and Antarctica (Template:Cvt)
  • 25°E: Template:Cvt through Europe (Template:Cvt), Africa (Template:Cvt), and Antarctica (Template:Cvt)
  • 26°E: Template:Cvt through Europe (Template:Cvt), Africa (Template:Cvt), and Antarctica (Template:Cvt)
  • 24°E: Template:Cvt through Europe (Template:Cvt), Africa (Template:Cvt), and Antarctica (Template:Cvt)
  • 28°E: Template:Cvt through Europe (Template:Cvt), Asia (Template:Cvt), and Africa (Template:Cvt)

Along any geodesic

These are the longest straight linesTemplate:Efn that can be drawn between any two points on the surface of the Earth and remain exclusively over land or water; the points need not lie on the same line of latitude or longitude.

• The longest continuous straight-line (great circle) path over land is Template:Cvt long and spans between the West African coast near Greenville, Liberia (Template:Coord) and a peninsula about Template:Cvt northeast of Wenzhou, China (Template:Coord), passing over the Suez Canal.
  • The longest continuous straight-line land distance solely within continental Africa is Template:Cvt, along a line that begins just east of Tangier, Morocco, and ends Template:Cvt east of Port Elizabeth, South Africa. This line passes through Morocco, Algeria, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Angola, Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa.
  • The longest continuous straight-line land distance solely within continental Asia is Template:Cvt, along a line that begins on the Indian coast near Kanyakumari and ends at the Bering Sea coast of the Chukchi Peninsula in Russia. This line passes through India, Nepal, China, Mongolia, and Russia.
  • The longest continuous straight-line land distance solely within continental Europe (defining the Ural Mountains as the border between Europe and Asia) is Template:Cvt, along a line that begins at Cape St. Vincent, Portugal, and ends at the Urals, near the town of Perm, Russia. This line passes through Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, and Russia.
  • The longest continuous straight-line land distance solely within continental North America is Template:Cvt, along a line that begins at Point Hope, Alaska, United States, and ends Template:Cvt southwest of the town of Salina Cruz, Mexico. This line passes through Alaska, Canada, the contiguous United States, and Mexico.
  • The longest continuous straight-line land distance solely within continental South America is Template:Cvt, along a line that begins Template:Cvt northeast of Puerto Cumarebo, Venezuela, and ends Template:Cvt south of the town of Punta Arenas, Chile. This line passes through Venezuela, Colombia, Brazil, Peru, Chile, and Argentina.
  • The longest continuous straight-line land distance solely within continental Australia is Template:Cvt, along a line that begins at the southern end of Cape Range National Park in Western Australia and ends at the town of Byron Bay in New South Wales.
• There are several possible candidates for the longest continuous straight-line distance in any direction at sea, as there are many possible ways to travel along a great circle for more than the antipodic length of Template:Cvt. Some examples of such routes would be:
  • From the south coast of Balochistan province somewhere near Port of Karachi, Pakistan (Template:Coord) across the Arabian Sea, southwest through the Indian Ocean, near Comoros, passing Namaete Canyon, near the South African coast, across the South Atlantic Ocean, then west across Cape Horn, then northwest across the Pacific Ocean, near Easter Island, passing the antipodal point near Emlilia island, through the South Bering Sea and ending somewhere on the northeast coast of Kamchatka, near Ossora (Template:Coord). This route is Template:Cvt long. This route was confirmed to be the longest (at about Template:Cvt) given map data at a Template:Cvt level of resolution.Template:Efn
  • From the south coast of Hormozgan province, Iran (Template:Coord) across the Gulf of Oman, southeast across the Arabian Sea, passing south of Australia and New Zealand, near the Antarctic coast, then northeast across the South Pacific Ocean, passing the antipodal point and ending on the southwest coast of Mexico somewhere near Ciudad Lázaro Cárdenas (Template:Coord). This route is Template:Cvt long.
  • From Invercargill, New Zealand (Template:Coord) across Cape Horn, then off the coast of Brazil close to Recife, passing north of Cape Verde, passing the antipodal point and ending somewhere on the southwest coast of Ireland (Template:Coord). This route is Template:Cvt long.

Along any diameter (straight line passing through the centre of the Earth)

As distinct from geodesic lines, which appear straight only when projected onto the spheroidal surface of the Earth (i.e. arcs of great circles), straight lines passing through the Earth's centre can be constructed through the interior of the Earth between almost any two points on the surface of the Earth (some extreme topographical situations such as overhanging cliffs being the rare exceptions). A line projected from the summit of Cayambe in Ecuador (see highest points) through the axial centre of the Earth to its antipode on the island of Sumatra results in the longest diameter that can be produced anywhere through the Earth. As the variable circumference of the Earth approaches Template:Convert, such a maximum "diameter" or "antipodal" line would be on the order of Template:Convert long.

Elevation

Highest points

File:Volcán Chimborazo, "El Taita Chimborazo".jpg

The summit of Chimborazo in Ecuador is the farthest point from Earth's centre.

• The highest point on Earth's surface measured from sea level is the summit of Mount Everest, on the border of Nepal and China. While measurements of its height vary slightly, the elevation of its peak was most recently established in 2020 by the Nepali and Chinese authorities as Template:Cvt above sea level. The summit was first reached probably by Sir Edmund Hillary of New Zealand and Tenzing Norgay Sherpa of Nepal in 1953.
• The point farthest from Earth's centre is the summit of Chimborazo in Ecuador, at Template:Cvt from Earth's centre; the peak's elevation relative to sea level is Template:Cvt.Template:Efn Because Earth is an oblate spheroid rather than a perfect sphere, it is wider at the equator and narrower toward each pole. Therefore, the summit of Chimborazo, which is near the Equator, is farther away from Earth's centre than the summit of Mount Everest is; the latter is Template:Cvt closer, at Template:Cvt from Earth's centre. Peru's Huascarán (at Template:Cvt) contends closely with Chimborazo, though the former is a mere Template:Cvt closer to the Earth's centre.
• The fastest point on Earth or, in other words, the point farthest from Earth's rotational axis is the summit of Cayambe in Ecuador, which rotates around Earth's axis at a speed of Template:Cvt and is Template:Cvt from the axis. Like Chimborazo, which is the fourth-fastest peak at Template:Cvt, Cayambe is close to the Equator and takes advantage of the oblate spheroid figure of Earth. More important, however, Cayambe's proximity to the Equator means that the majority of its distance from the Earth's centre contributes to Cayambe's distance from the Earth's axis.

Highest geographical features

• The highest volcano is Ojos del Salado on the Argentina–Chile border. It has the highest summit, Template:Cvt, of any volcano on Earth.
• The highest natural lake is an unnamed crater lake on Ojos del Salado at Template:Cvt, on the Argentina side. Another candidate was Lhagba Pool on the northeast slopes of Mount Everest, Tibet, at an elevation of Template:Cvt, which has since dried up.
• The highest navigable lake is Lake Titicaca, on the border of Bolivia and Peru in the Andes, at Template:Cvt.
• The highest glacier is the Khumbu Glacier on the southwest slopes of Mount Everest in Nepal, beginning on the west side of Lhotse at an elevation of Template:Cvt.
• The highest river is disputed; one candidate from many possibilities is the Ating Ho, which flows into the Aong Tso (Hagung Tso), a large lake in Tibet, and has an elevation of about Template:Cvt at its source at Template:Coord. Another very large and high river is the Yarlung Tsangpo or upper Brahmaputra River in Tibet, whose main stem, the Maquan River, has its source at about Template:Cvt above sea level at Template:Coord. Above these elevations, there are no constantly flowing rivers since the temperature is almost always below freezing.
• The highest island is one of a number of islands in the Orba Co lake in Tibet, at an elevation of Template:Cvt.

Highest points attainable by transportation

• The highest point accessible
  • by land vehicle is an elevation of Template:Cvt on Ojos del Salado in Chile, which was reached by the Chilean duo of Gonzalo and Eduardo Canales Moya on 21 April 2007 with a modified Suzuki Samurai, setting the high-altitude record for a four-wheeled vehicle.
  • by road (dead end) is on a mining road to the summit of Aucanquilcha in Chile, which reaches an elevation of Template:Cvt. It was once usable by 20-tonne mining trucks. The road is no longer usable. Template:Coord
  • by road (mountain pass) is disputed; there are a number of competing claims for this title due to the definition of "motorable pass" (i.e. a surfaced road or one simply passable by a vehicle):
    • The highest asphalted road is the single-lane road to Umling La, located Template:Cvt west of Demchok in Ladakh, India, which reaches Template:Cvt ("19,300 feet" according to a Border Roads Organisation sign there that recognizes it as the "World's Highest Motorable Pass"). Before the asphalting of the road over Umling La, the highest asphalted road was Tibet's Semo La pass at Template:Cvt. It is used by trucks and buses regularly. The Ticlio pass, on the Central Road of Peru, is the highest surfaced road in the Americas, at an elevation of Template:Cvt.
    • The highest unsurfaced road has several different claimants. All are unsurfaced or gravel roads including Mana Pass, between India and Tibet, which is crossed by a gravel road reaching Template:Cvt. The heavily trafficked Khardung La in Ladakh lies at Template:Cvt. A possibly motorable gravel road crosses Marsimik La in Ladakh at Template:Cvt.
  • by train is Tanggula Pass, located on the Qinghai–Tibet (Qingzang) Railway in the Tanggula Mountains of Qinghai/Tibet, China, at Template:Cvt. The Tanggula railway station is the world's highest railway station at Template:Cvt. Before the Qingzang Railway was built, the highest railway ran between Lima and Huancayo in Peru, reaching Template:Cvt at Ticlio.
  • by oceangoing vessel is a segment of the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal between the Hilpoltstein and Bachhausen locks in Bavaria, Germany. The locks artificially raise the surface level of the water in the canal to Template:Cvt above mean sea level, higher than any other lock system in the world, making it the highest point currently accessible by oceangoing commercial watercraft.

File:La Rinconada Peru.jpg

La Rinconada, Peru

• The highest commercial airport is Daocheng Yading Airport, Sichuan, China, at Template:Cvt. The proposed Nagqu Dagring Airport in Tibet, if built, will be Template:Cvt higher at Template:Cvt.
• The highest helipad is Sonam, Siachen Glacier, India, at a height of Template:Cvt above sea level.
• The highest permanent human settlement is La Rinconada, Peru, Template:Cvt, in the Peruvian Andes.
• The farthest road from the Earth's centre is the Road to Carrel Hut in the Ecuadorian Andes, at an elevation of Template:Cvt above sea level and a distance of Template:Cvt from the centre of the Earth.

Lowest points

Lowest natural points

• The deepest point below the ocean's atmospheric surface is Challenger Deep, at the bottom of the Mariana Trench, Template:Cvt below sea level. Jacques Piccard and U.S. Navy Lieutenant Don Walsh first reached Challenger Deep in 1960 aboard the bathyscaphe Trieste, followed by filmmaker James Cameron in 2012 aboard Deepsea Challenger. Between 2020 and 2022, DSV Limiting Factor made 19 dives to Challenger Deep, carrying with it 19 further visitors.
• The deepest known cave is in the Krubera Cave in Abkhazia, Georgia, with its deepest known point 2,199 ± 20 metres (7,215 ± 66 ft) below its entrance. The record was set in 2006, and it remains one of only two known caves deeper than 2,000 meters.
• The lowest point on land not covered by liquid water is the canyon under Denman Glacier in Antarctica, with the bedrock being Template:Cvt below sea level.

File:Dead Sea-14.jpg

The shore of the Dead Sea in Israel

• The lowest point on dry land is the shore of the Dead Sea, shared by Israel, Palestine and Jordan, Template:Cvt below sea level. As the Dead Sea waters are receding, the water surface level drops more than Template:Convert per year.
• The point on the atmospheric surface closest to the Earth's centre (interpreted as a natural surface of the land or sea that is accessible by a person) is the surface of the Arctic Ocean at the Geographic North Pole (Template:Cvt).
  • The point on the surface of Earth's crust closest to the Earth's centre (interpreted as a land surface or sea floor) is the bottom of Litke Deep, in the Arctic Ocean, at Template:Cvt from Earth's centre; the deep's depth relative to sea level is Template:Cvt. Because Earth is an oblate spheroid rather than a perfect sphere, it is wider at the equator and narrower toward each pole. Therefore, the bottom of Litke Deep, which is near the North Pole, is closer to Earth's centre than the bottom of Challenger Deep is; the latter is Template:Cvt further, at Template:Cvt from Earth's centre. Molloy Deep, also in Arctic Ocean (at Template:Cvt) from Earth's centre contends closely with Litke Deep, the difference from Earth's centre being just Template:Cvt.
  • The point on the ocean surface farthest below sea level is located in the Indian Ocean, about Template:Cvt southwest of India, the Indian Ocean Geoid Low, about Template:Cvt below the global mean sea level.

Lowest artificial points

• The lowest point underground ever reached was Template:Cvt deep (SG-3 at the Kola Superdeep Borehole, which has since been enclosed).
• The lowest human-sized point underground is Template:Cvt below ground at the TauTona Mine, Carletonville, South Africa.
• The lowest (from sea level) artificially made point with open sky may be the Hambach surface mine, Germany, which reaches a depth of Template:Cvt below sea level.
• The lowest (from surface) artificially made point with open sky may be the Bingham Canyon Open Pit Copper Mine, Utah, United States, at a depth of Template:Cvt below surface level.
• The lowest point underwater is the Template:Cvt-deep (as measured from the subsea wellhead) oil and gas well drilled on the Tiber Oil Field in the Gulf of Mexico. The wellhead of this well is an additional Template:Cvt underwater, for a total distance of Template:Cvt as measured from sea level. Template:Coord

Lowest points attainable by transportation

• The lowest point accessible:
  • by road, excluding roads in mines, is any of the roads alongside the Dead Sea in Israel, Palestine and Jordan, which are the lowest on Earth at Template:Cvt below sea level.
    • The lowest undersea highway tunnel is the Ryfast tunnel in Norway, at Template:Cvt below sea level.
  • by train, excluding tracks in mines, is located in the Seikan Tunnel in Japan, at Template:Cvt below sea level. For comparison, the undersea Channel Tunnel between England and France reaches a depth of Template:Cvt below sea level.
  • by ship, is located in the Indian Ocean, about Template:Cvt southwest of India, the Indian Ocean Geoid Low, about Template:Cvt below the global mean sea level.
  • Some mines have roads accessible from outside or rail tracks, located more than two thousand metres below sea level, for example in some South African gold mines.
• The lowest railroad station was formerly the Japanese Yoshioka-Kaitei Station, at Template:Cvt below sea level, but it closed in 2014. The lowest railroad station not inside a tunnel is Template:Cvt below sea level, at Beit She'an railway station in Israel.
• The lowest airfield is the Bar Yehuda Airfield, near Masada, Israel, at Template:Cvt below sea level.
• The lowest international airport is Atyrau Airport, near Atyrau, Kazakhstan, at Template:Cvt below sea level, in the basin of the Caspian Sea.
• The lowest major city is Baku, Azerbaijan, located Template:Cvt below sea level, which makes it the lowest-lying national capital in the world and also the largest city in the world located below sea level.

Table of extreme elevations and air temperatures by continent

Continent	Elevation (height above/below sea level)A			Air temperature (recorded)B
	Highest		Lowest	Highest	Lowest
Africa	Template:Convert Kilimanjaro, Tanzania	File:Kilimanjaro01.jpg	Template:Convert Lake Assal, Djibouti	Template:Convert (disputed) Kebili, French Tunisia 7 July 1931C	Template:Convert Ifrane, French Morocco 11 February 1935
Antarctica	Template:Convert Vinson Massif	File:Vinson Massif from space.jpg	Template:Convert Deep Lake, Vestfold Hills (compare the deepest ice section below)	Template:Convert Comandante Ferraz Antarctic Station 9 February 2020	Template:Convert Vostok Station 21 July 1983
Asia	Template:Convert Mount Everest, Tibet–Nepal Border	File:Everest, Himalayas.jpg	Template:Convert Dead Sea, Israel–Jordan–Palestine	Template:Convert Tirat Zvi, Israel (then in the British Mandate of Palestine) 21 June 1942	Template:Convert Measured Oymyakon, Siberia, Soviet Union 6 February 1933
				Template:Convert Ahvaz Airport, Iran 29 June 2017	Template:Convert Extrapolated Oymyakon, Siberia, Soviet Union 26 January 1926
Europe	Template:Convert Mount Elbrus, Russian Federation	File:Mount Elbrus May 2008.jpg	Template:Convert Caspian Sea shore, Russian Federation	48.8 °C (119.8 °F) Floridia, Italy 11 August 2021	Template:Convert Ust-Shchuger, Soviet Union 31 December 1978
North America	Template:Convert Denali (federally designated as Mount McKinley), Alaska, United States	File:Denali Mt McKinley.jpg	Template:Convert Badwater Basin, California, United States	Template:Convert Furnace Creek (then named Greenland Ranch), Death Valley, California, United States 10 July 1913C (disputed while still official, but up to 54.4 °C (129.9 °F) has also been recorded there in 2020 and 2021, not yet verified by WMO; and Template:Convert which is verified.)	-69.6 °C (-93.3 °F) Summit Camp, Greenland 22 December 1991
Oceania	Template:Convert Puncak Jaya (Carstensz Pyramid), Indonesia (compare Mount Wilhelm, Aoraki / Mount Cook and Mount Kosciuszko)	File:Puncak Jaya icecap 1972.jpg	Template:Convert Lake Eyre, South Australia, Australia	Template:Convert Oodnadatta, South Australia, Australia 2 January 1960G Template:Convert Onslow, Western Australia, Australia 13 January 2022	Template:Convert Ranfurly, Otago, New Zealand 17 July 1903
South America	Template:Convert Aconcagua, Mendoza, Argentina	File:Aconcagua heli 3.jpg	Template:Convert Laguna del Carbón, Argentina	Template:Convert Rivadavia, Salta Province, Argentina 11 December 1905	Template:Convert Sarmiento, Chubut Province, Argentina 1 June 1907
A.^ Height above sea level is the usual choice of definition for elevation. The point farthest away from the centre of the Earth, however, is Chimborazo in Ecuador (Template:Convert). This is due to the Earth's oblate spheroid shape, with points near the Equator being farther out from the centre than those at the poles. B.^ All temperatures from the World Meteorological Organization unless noted. C.^ The former record of Template:Convert recorded at Al 'Aziziyah, Libya on 13 September 1922 was ruled no longer valid by the WMO due to mistakes made in the recording process. The 1913 reading is, however, itself controversial, and a measurement of Template:Convert at Furnace Creek on 30 June 2013 is undisputed, especially since the same or almost the same temperature has been recorded several times in the 21st century in the same and other places. E.^ Temperatures greater than Template:Convert in Spain and Portugal were recorded in 1881, but the standard with which they were measured and the accuracy of the thermometers used are unknown; therefore, they are not considered official. Unconfirmed reports also indicate that a set of Spanish stations may have hit Template:Convert during the 2003 heat wave. F.^ Greenland is considered by the World Meteorological Organization to be part of WMO region 6 (Europe). G.^ A temperature of Template:Convert was recorded in Cloncurry, Queensland on 16 January 1889 under non-standard exposure conditions and is therefore not considered official.

Humans and biogeography

File:Mollweide Cycle.gif

On land, vegetation appears on a scale from brown (low vegetation) to dark green (heavy vegetation); at the ocean surface, phytoplankton are indicated on a scale from purple (low) to yellow (high).

File:WorldCenterOfPopulation.png

For representational purposes only: The point on earth closest to everyone in the world on average was calculated to be in Central Asia, with a mean distance of Template:Convert. Its antipodal point is correspondingly the farthest point from everyone on earth, and is located in the South Pacific near Easter Island, with a mean distance of Template:Convert. The data used by this figure is lumped at the country level, and is therefore precise only to country-scale distances, larger nations heavily skewed. Far more granular data -- kilometer level, is now available -- compares with this old "textbook" example.

In contrast to places with the highest density of life, like terrestrial tropical regions, and beside local extreme conditions, which might only be overcome by extremophiles, there are areas of extreme low amounts of life.

Next to terrestrial lifeless areas like the Antarctic desert's McMurdo Dry Valleys and its Don Juan Pond, the most lifeless area in the ocean studied (other than the more general dead zones) is the South Pacific Gyre, corresponding to the oceanic pole of inaccessibility.

The oceanic pole of inaccessibility is also the antipodal area of the human center of population which lies today around southern Central Asia. Similarly the world's economic center of gravity has been drifting since antiquity from Central Asia to Northern Europe and contemporarily back to Central Asia. The related centre of gravity of the worlds carbon emission has shifted from Britain during the Industrial Revolution to the Atlantic, back again and contemporarily into Central Asia.

Remoteness

Poles of inaccessibility

Each continent has its own continental pole of inaccessibility, defined as the place on the continent that is farthest from any ocean. Similarly, each ocean has its own oceanic pole of inaccessibility, defined as the place in the ocean that is farthest from any land.

File:Distancia a la costa.png

Map of distance to the nearest coastline (including oceanic islands, but not lakes) with red spots marking the poles of inaccessibility of main landmasses, Great Britain, and the Iberian Peninsula, and a blue dot marking the oceanic pole of inaccessibility. Thin isolines are Template:Convert apart; thick lines Template:Convert. Mollweide projection.

Continental

• The most distant point from an ocean is the Eurasian Pole of Inaccessibility (or "EPIA") Template:Coord, in China's Xinjiang region near the border with Kazakhstan. Calculations have shown that this point, located in the Dzoosotoyn Elisen Desert, is Template:Cvt from the nearest coastline. The nearest settlement to the EPIA is Suluk at Template:Coord, about Template:Cvt to the east. A 2007 study suggests that the historical calculation of the EPIA failed to recognize the point where the Gulf of Ob joins the Arctic Ocean, and proposes instead that varying definitions of coastline could result in other locations for the EPIA:
  • EPIA1, somewhere between Template:Coord and Template:Coord, is about Template:Cvt from the nearest ocean.
  • EPIA2, somewhere between Template:Coord and Template:Coord, is about Template:Cvt from the nearest ocean.

If adopted, this would place the final EPIA roughly Template:Cvt closer to the ocean than the point that is currently agreed upon. Coincidentally, EPIA1, or EPIA2, and the most remote of the Oceanic Pole of Inaccessibility (specifically, the point in the South Pacific Ocean that is farthest from land) are similarly remote; EPIA1 is less than Template:Cvt closer to the ocean than the Oceanic Pole of Inaccessibility is to land.

• The continental poles of inaccessibility for the other continents are as follows:
  • Africa: Template:Coord, close to the tripoint of the Central African Republic, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo
  • Australia: either Template:Coord, or Template:Coord, near Papunya, Northern Territory
  • North America: Template:Coord, between Kyle, South Dakota and Allen, South Dakota, United States.
  • South America: Template:Coord, near Arenápolis, Mato Grosso, Brazil

Oceanic

• The most distant point from land is the Pacific pole of inaccessibility (also called "Point Nemo", in a region known as the spacecraft cemetery), which lies in the South Pacific Ocean at Template:Coord, about Template:Cvt from the nearest land (equidistant from Ducie Island in the Pitcairn Islands to the north, Motu Nui off Rapa Nui to the northeast, and Maher Island off Siple Island near Marie Byrd Land, Antarctica, to the south). The centre of the Pacific Ocean and the Water Hemisphere lie west to it, closer to Oceania, off the coast of Kiribati at Template:Coord and New Zealand at Template:Coord respectively.

Other places considered the most remote

File:Bouvet Island ISS017-E-16161 no text.JPG

Bouvet Island

• The most remote island is Bouvet Island, a small, uninhabited island in the South Atlantic Ocean that is a dependency of Norway. It lies at coordinates Template:Coord. The nearest land is the uninhabited Queen Maud Land, Antarctica (also claimed by Norway), over Template:Cvt to the south. The nearest inhabited lands are Gough Island, Template:Cvt away, Tristan da Cunha, Template:Cvt away, and the coast of South Africa, Template:Cvt away.
• The title for most remote inhabited island or archipelago (the farthest away from any other permanently inhabited place) depends on how the question is interpreted. If the south Atlantic island Tristan da Cunha (population about 300) and its dependency Gough Island (with a small staffed research post), which are Template:Cvt from each other, are considered part of the same archipelago, or if Gough Island is not counted because it has no permanent residents, then Tristan da Cunha is the world's most remote inhabited island/archipelago: the main island, also called Tristan da Cunha, is Template:Cvt from the island Saint Helena, Template:Cvt from South Africa, and Template:Cvt from South America. It is Template:Cvt away from uninhabited Bouvet Island. However, if Gough and Tristan da Cunha are considered separately, they disqualify each other, and the most remote inhabited island is Easter Island in the South Pacific Ocean, which lies Template:Cvt from Pitcairn Island (about 50 residents in 2013), Template:Cvt from Rikitea on the island of Mangareva (the nearest town with a population over 500), and Template:Cvt from the coast of Chile (the nearest continental point and the country of which Easter Island is part). The Kerguelen Islands in the southern Indian Ocean are another contender, lying Template:Cvt from the small Alfred Faure scientific station in Île de la Possession, but otherwise more than Template:Cvt from the coast of Madagascar (the nearest permanently inhabited place), Template:Cvt northwest of the uninhabited Heard Island and McDonald Islands (both a part of Australia), and Template:Cvt from the non-permanent scientific station located in Île Amsterdam.
• Remote cities
  • The most remote city with a population in excess of one million from the nearest city with a population in excess of one million is Auckland, New Zealand. The nearest city of comparable size or greater is Sydney, Australia, Template:Cvt away.
  • The most remote city with a population in excess of one million from the nearest city with a population above 100,000 is Perth, Australia, located Template:Cvt away from Adelaide, Australia.
  • The most remote city with a population in excess of 100,000 from the nearest city with a population in excess of 100,000 is Honolulu, Hawaii, United States. The nearest city of comparable size or greater is San Francisco, Template:Cvt away.
  • The most remote national capitals are Wellington, New Zealand, and Canberra, Australia, which are Template:Cvt apart from each other and neither is closer to another capital.
• The most remote airport in the world from another airport is Mataveri International Airport (IPC) on Easter Island, which has a single runway for military and public use. It is located Template:Cvt from Totegegie Airport (GMR; very few flights) in the Gambier Islands, French Polynesia and Template:Cvt from Santiago, Chile (SCL; a fairly large airport). In comparison, the airport at the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station (NZSP) is not very remote at all, being located only Template:Cvt from Williams Field (NZWD) near Ross Island.

Centre

Since the Earth is a spheroid, its centre (the core) is thousands of kilometres beneath its crust. Still, there have been attempts to define various "centrepoints" on the Earth's surface.

• The centre of the standard geographic model as viewed on a traditional world map is the point 0°, 0° (the coordinates of zero degrees latitude by zero degrees longitude), which is located in the Atlantic Ocean about Template:Cvt south of Accra, Ghana, in the Gulf of Guinea. It lies at the intersection of the Equator and the Prime Meridian, is marked with a buoy, and is sometimes called Null Island. However, the selection of the Prime Meridian as the 0° longitude meridian depended on cultural and historical factors and is therefore geographically arbitrary (any of the Earth's meridians could, in principle, be defined as 0° longitude); consequently, the position of the "Null Island" centrepoint is also arbitrary.
• The centre of population, the place to which there is the shortest average route for every individual human being in the world, could also be considered a "centre of the world". This point is located in the north of the Indian subcontinent, although the precise location has never been calculated and is constantly shifting due to changes in the distribution of the human population across the planet.

Geophysical extremes

Tallest mountain

• Mauna Kea, tallest mountain from base-to-peak, with a dry prominence of Template:Convert and a wet prominence above sea level of Template:Convert.
• Mount McKinley, tallest mountain from base-to-peak on land, measuring Template:Convert.

Greatest vertical drop

Greatest purely vertical drop	Template:Cvt Mount Thor, Auyuittuq National Park, Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada (summit elevation Template:Convert)	File:Mount Thor Peak 1997-08-07.jpg
Greatest nearly vertical drop	Template:Convert Trango Towers, Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan (summit elevation Template:Convert)	File:GreatTrango.jpg
Greatest mountain face	Template:Convert Nanga Parbat, Rupal Face, Azad Kashmir, Pakistan	File:Nanga Parbat Rupal Base camp, Gilgit Baltistan.JPG
Greatest ocean cliff	Kermadec Trench, with cliffs around Template:Convert tall	File:Kermadec Arc.jpg

Longest

• Great Escarpment, South Africa is the longest surface escarpment at 5,000 km long

Subterranean

Deepest mine below ground level	Template:Convert Mponeng Gold Mine, Gauteng Province, South Africa
Deepest mine below sea level	Template:Convert below sea level Kidd Mine, Ontario, Canada
Deepest open-pit mine below ground level	Template:Convert Bingham Canyon Mine, Utah, United States
Deepest open-pit mine below sea level	Template:Convert below sea level Tagebau Hambach, Germany
Deepest cave (measured from the entrance)	Template:Convert Veryovkina, Arabika Massif, Abkhazia, Georgia
Deepest pitch (single vertical drop)	Template:Convert Tian Xing Cave, China
Deepest borehole	Template:Convert Kola Superdeep Borehole, Russia
Deepest borehole by depth below sea level	Template:Convert (10,685 m well at 1,259 m deep seabed) The Tiber well, Gulf of Mexico, United States

Greatest oceanic depths

Atlantic Ocean	Template:Convert Milwaukee Deep (within the Brownson Deep), Puerto Rico Trench
Arctic Ocean	Template:Convert Molloy Deep, Fram Strait
Indian Ocean	Template:Convert Sunda Trench
Mediterranean Sea	Template:Convert Calypso Deep, Hellenic Trench
Pacific Ocean	Template:Convert Challenger Deep, Mariana Trench
Southern Ocean	Template:Convert South Sandwich Trench (southernmost portion, at Template:Coordinates)

Deepest ice

Ice sheets on land, but having the base below sea level. Places under ice are not considered to be on land.

Denman Subglacial Trench	Template:Convert	Antarctica
Trough beneath Jakobshavn Isbræ	Template:Convert	Greenland, Denmark

Meteorological extremes

Coldest and hottest inhabited places on Earth

Hottest inhabited place	Dallol, Ethiopia (Amharic: ዳሎል), whose annual mean temperature was recorded from 1960 to 1966 as Template:Convert. The average daily maximum temperature during the same period was Template:Convert.
Coldest inhabited place	Oymyakon (Russian: Оймяко́н), a rural locality (selo) in Oymyakonsky District of the Sakha Republic, the Russian Federation, has the coldest monthly mean, with Template:Convert the average temperature in January, the coldest month. Eureka, Nunavut, Canada has the lowest annual mean temperature at Template:Convert.
	The South Pole and some other places in Antarctica are colder and are populated year-round, but almost everyone stays less than a year and could be considered visitors, not inhabitants.

Ground temperatures

Temperatures measured directly on the ground may exceed air temperatures by 30 to 50 °C. A ground temperature of 84 °C (183.2 °F) has been recorded in Port Sudan, Sudan. A ground temperature of 93.9 °C (201 °F) was recorded in Furnace Creek, Death Valley, California, United States on 15 July 1972; this may be the highest natural ground surface temperature ever recorded. The theoretical maximum possible ground surface temperature has been estimated to be between 90 and 100 °C for dry, darkish soils of low thermal conductivity.

Satellite measurements of ground temperature taken between 2003 and 2009, taken with the MODIS infrared spectroradiometer on the Aqua satellite, found a maximum temperature of 70.7 °C (159.3 °F), which was recorded in 2005 in the Lut Desert, Iran. The Lut Desert was also found to have the highest maximum temperature in 5 of the 7 years measured (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2009). These measurements reflect averages over a large region and so are lower than the maximum point surface temperature.

Satellite measurements of the surface temperature of Antarctica, taken between 1982 and 2013, found a coldest temperature of −93.2 °C (−136 °F) on 10 August 2010, at Template:Coord. Although this is not comparable to an air temperature, it is believed that the air temperature at this location would have been lower than the official record lowest air temperature of −89.2 °C.

Extreme points by region

Afro-Eurasia

• Extreme points of Afro-Eurasia
  • Africa

    Template:Hlist

  • Eurasia
    • Asia

      Template:Hlist

    • Europe

      Template:Hlist

The Americas

• Extreme points of the Americas
  • North America

    Template:Hlist

    • Central America

      Template:Hlist

    • The Caribbean

      Template:Hlist

  • South America

    Template:Hlist

Oceania

• Extreme points of Oceania

  Template:Hlist

Antarctica

• Extreme points of Antarctica

Arctic

• Extreme points of the Arctic

See also

• Geographical centre
• Lists of extreme points

Latitude and longitude

• List of northernmost items (city, capital, island, etc.)
• List of southernmost items (city, capital, island, etc.)
• List of countries by northernmost point
• List of countries by southernmost point
• Northernmost settlements
• Southernmost settlements

Elevation

• List of elevation extremes by country
• List of elevation extremes by region
• List of highest towns by country

Geophysical features

• List of deepest caves
• List of deepest oceanic trenches
• List of deserts by area
• List of highest mountains on Earth
  • List of volcanoes by elevation
• List of impact craters on Earth
• List of islands by area
• List of lakes by area
• List of lakes by depth
• List of rivers by length
• List of waterfalls by height

Meteorology and climate

• List of weather records

Beyond Earth

• List of Solar System extremes
• List of extrasolar planet extremes

External links

• Geography Extremes

• United States National Climatic Data Center

• AWOW Top List World Top 10 Hottest Places Template:Webarchive