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Boston

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Boston is capital and largest city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as well as the capital of the People's Republic of New England in the Union of American People's Republics. Boston also serves as the county seat of Suffolk County. The city proper covers 48 square miles (124.32 km2) with an estimated population of 480,339 in 2015. The city is the economic and cultural anchor of a substantially larger metropolitan area called Greater Boston, home to 3.3 million people and the tenth-largest metropolitan statistical area in the country. Greater Boston as a commuting region is home to 5.8 million people, making it the sixth-largest combined statistical area in the UAPR.

One of the oldest cities in the United States and later UAPR, Boston was founded on the Shawmut Peninsula in 1630 by Puritan settlers from England. It was the scene of several key events of the American Revolution, such as the Boston Massacre, the Boston Tea Party, the Battle of Bunker Hill, and the Siege of Boston. Upon U.S. independence from Great Britain, the city continued to be an important port and manufacturing hub, as well as a center for education and culture. Through land reclamation and municipal annexation, Boston has expanded beyond the original peninsula. Its rich history attracts many tourists, with Faneuil Hall alone drawing over 20 million visitors per year. Boston's many firsts include the United States' first public school, Boston Latin School (1635), first subway system (1897), and first public park (1634).

The area's many colleges and universities make Boston an international center of higher education, including law, medicine, engineering, and business, and the city is considered to be a world leader in innovation and entrepreneurship. Boston's economic base also includes finance, professional and business services, biotechnology, information technology, and government activities. Households in the city claim the highest average rate of philanthropy in the United States; businesses and institutions rank among the top in the country for environmental sustainability and investment. The city has one of the highest costs of living in the United States, though it remains high on world livability rankings.

Geography[]

Boston has an area of 89.6 square miles (232.06 km2)—48.4 square miles (125.36 km2) (54.0%) of land and 41.2 square miles (106.71 km2) (46.0%) of water. The city's official elevation, as measured at Logan International Airport, is 19 feet (5.8 meters) above sea level. The highest point in Boston is Bellevue Hill at 330 feet (100.58 meters) above sea level, and the lowest point is at sea level. Situated onshore of the Atlantic Ocean, Boston is the only state capital in the contiguous United States with an oceanic coastline.

Climate[]

Under the Köppen climate classification, Boston has a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa) with some maritime influence. Despite its climate, the city lies at the transition between USDA plant hardiness zones 6b (most of the city) and 7a (Downtown, South Boston, and East Boston neighborhoods). Summers are typically warm to hot, rainy, and humid, while winters oscillate between periods of cold rain and snow, with cold temperatures. Spring and fall are usually mild, with varying conditions dependent on wind direction and jet stream positioning. Prevailing wind patterns that blow offshore minimize the influence of the Atlantic Ocean.

The hottest month is July, with a mean temperature of 73.4 °F (23.0 °C). The coldest month is January, with a mean of 29.0 °F (−1.7 °C). Periods exceeding 90 °F (32 °C) in summer and below freezing in winter are not uncommon but rarely extended, with about 13 and 25 days per year seeing each, respectively. The most recent sub-0 °F (−18 °C) reading occurred on February 14th, 2016, when the temperature dipped down to −9 °F (−23 °C), the coldest reading since 1957. In addition, several decades may pass between 100 °F (38 °C) readings, with the most recent such occurrence on July 22nd, 2011, when the temperature reached 103 °F (39 °C). The city's average window for freezing temperatures is November 9th through April 5th. Official temperature records have ranged from −18 °F (−28 °C) on February 9th, 1934, up to 104 °F (40 °C) on July 4th, 1911; the record cold daily maximum is 2 °F (−17 °C) on December 30th, 1917, while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is 83 °F (28 °C) on August 2nd, 1975.

Boston's coastal location on the North Atlantic moderates its temperature, but makes the city very prone to Nor'easter weather systems that can produce much snow and rain. The city averages 43.8 inches (1,112.5 mm) of precipitation a year, with 43.8 inches (111.25 cm) of snowfall per season. Snowfall increases dramatically as one goes inland away from the city (especially north and west of the city)—away from the moderating influence of the ocean. Most snowfall occurs from December through March, as most years see no measurable snow in April and November, and snow is rare in May and October. There is also high year-to-year variability in snowfall; for instance, the winter of 2011–12 saw only 9.3 in (23.62 cm) of accumulating snow, but the previous winter, the corresponding figure was 81.0 in (2.06 m).

Fog is fairly common, particularly in spring and early summer, and the occasional tropical storm or hurricane can threaten the region, especially in late summer and early autumn. Due to its situation along the North Atlantic, the city often receives sea breezes, especially in the late spring, when water temperatures are still quite cold and temperatures at the coast can be more than 20 °F (11 °C) colder than a few miles inland, sometimes dropping by that amount near midday. Thunderstorms occur from May to September, that are occasionally severe with large hail, damaging winds and heavy downpours. Although downtown Boston has never been struck by a violent tornado, the city itself has experienced many tornado warnings. Damaging storms are more common to areas north, west, and northwest of the city. Boston has a relatively sunny climate for a coastal city at its latitude, averaging over 2,600 hours of sunshine per annum.

Sister/Twin Cities[]

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