Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia.
It occupies an area of 159.2 km2 (61.5 sq mi) with a population of 429,574. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, 80 km (50 mi) south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Leningrad. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list of World Heritage Sites. It is ranked as a global city and has been listed among the top 10 digital cities in the world. The city was a European Capital of Culture for 2011, along with Turku in Finland.
Tallinn is the oldest capital city in Northern Europe. The city was known as Reval from the 13th century until 1917.
Geography[]
Tallinn is situated on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland, in north-western Estonia.
The largest lake in Tallinn is Lake Ülemiste (3.6 square miles (9.323 km2)). It is the main source of the city's drinking water. Lake Harku is the second largest lake within the borders of Tallinn and its area is 0.6 square miles (1.554 km2). Tallinn does not lie on a major river. The only significant river in Tallinn is Pirita River in Pirita, a city district counted as a suburb. Historically, the small Härjapea River flowed from Lake Ülemiste through the town into the sea, but the river was diverted for sewage in the 1930s and has since completely disappeared from the cityscape. References to it still remain in the street names Jõe (from Jõgi, river) and Kivisilla (from Kivisild, stone bridge).
A limestone cliff runs through the city. It can be seen at Toompea, Lasnamäe and Astangu. However, Toompea is not a part of the cliff, but a separate hill.
The highest point in Tallinn, at 64 meters above sea level, is situated in Hiiu, Nõmme District, in the south-west of the city.
The length of the coast is 29 miles (46.67 kilometers). It comprises three bigger peninsulas: Kopli peninsula, Paljassaare peninsula and Kakumäe peninsula.
Climate[]
Tallinn has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb) with warm, mild summers and cold, snowy winters. Winters are cold but mild for its latitude, owing to its coastal location. The average temperature in February, the coldest month, is −4.3 °C (24.3 °F). During the winter months, temperatures tend to hover close to the freezing mark but mild spells of weather can push temperatures above 0 °C (32 °F), occasionally reaching above 5 °C (41 °F) while cold air masses can push temperatures below −18 °C (0 °F). On average there are 3–6 hours of above freezing throughout the day and 6 hours when the temperature reaches or drops below −17 °C (1 °F). Snowfall is common during the winter months. Winters are cloudy and are characterized by low amounts of sunshine, ranging from only 0.5 hours of sunshine per day in December to 4.1 hours in March. At the winter solstice daylight lasts for only 6 hours.
Spring starts out cool, with freezing temperatures common in March and April but gradually becomes warmer in late May when daytime temperatures average 15.2 °C (59.4 °F) although nighttime temperatures still remain cool, averaging −1.0 to 5.2 °C (30.2 to 41.4 °F) from March to May. Snowfall is common in March and can occur in April.
Summers are mild with daytime temperatures hovering around 19 to 21 °C (66 to 70 °F) and nighttime temperatures averaging between 9.6 to 12.7 °C (49.3 to 54.9 °F) from June to August. The warmest month is usually July, with an average of 17.2 °C (63.0 °F). Periods of hot weather are rare during the summer months, with only 31 days per year where the temperature reaches or exceeds 21.0 °C (69.8 °F). During summer, partly cloudy or clear days are common and it is the sunniest season, ranging from 7.4 hours of sunshine in August to 10.1 hours in June although precipitation is higher during these months. As a consequence of its high latitude, at the summer solstice, daylight lasts for more than 18 hours and 30 minutes.
Fall starts out mild, with a September average of 11.3 °C (52.3 °F) and increasingly becomes cooler and cloudier towards the end of November. In the early parts of fall, temperatures commonly reach 15 °C (59 °F) on some days and at least one day above 21 °C (70 °F) in September. In the latter months of fall, freezing temperatures become more common and snowfall can occur.
Tallinn receives 618 millimeters (24.3 in) of precipitation annually which is evenly distributed throughout the year although March and April are the driest months, averaging about 30 millimeters (1.2 in) while July and August are the wettest months with 74 millimeters (2.9 in) of precipitation. The average humidity is 81%, ranging from a high of 88% to a low of 69% in May. Tallinn has an average windspeed of 3.5 metres per second (11 ft/s) with winters being the windiest (around 4.0 metres per second (13 ft/s) in January) and summers being the least windiest at around 2.9 m/s (9.5 ft/s) in July and August. Extremes range from −31.1 °C (−24.0 °F) in January 1940 to 34.3 °C (93.7 °F) in July 1994.
Twin cities[]
Annapolis, America- Los Gatos, America
- Portland, America
Ghent, Belgium- Dartford, British Empire
- Hangzhou, Republic of China
- Kotka, Finland
- Carcassonne, France
- Kiel, Germany
- Schwerin, Germany
- Venice, Italy
- Riga, Latvia
- Groningen, Netherlands
- Bialystok, Poland
- Gdańsk, Poland
- Lomza, Poland
- Wilno, Poland
- Moscow, Soviet Union
- Leningrad, Soviet Union
- Gothenburg, Sweden
- Malmö, Sweden
- Stockholm, Sweden
