Geography of Ontario

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Ontario is located in East/Central Canada, bordered by the Great Lakes, Hudson Bay and James Bay. It's Canada's second largest province in total land area. Largest border is with the Canadian province of Manitoba to the west, then the province of Quebec to the east, Ontario also shares borders with the US states Minnesota, New York and Michigan. It's also located north of Ohio and Erie, Pennsylvania.

Ontario's long American border is formed almost entirely by lakes and rivers, starting in Lake of the Woods and continuing to the Saint Lawrence River near Cornwall; it passes through the four Great Lakes Ontario shares with bordering states, namely Lakes Superior, Huron (which includes Georgian Bay), Erie, and Ontario (for which the province is named; the name Ontario itself is a corruption of the Iroquois word "Onitariio" meaning "beautiful lake" or "Kanadario," variously translated as "beautiful water"). There are approximately 250,000 lakes and over 100,000 kilometres (62,000 mi) of rivers in the province.

Most the province is hills, the Canadian Shield occupies the the southern part of the north of the province giving mostly hilly land. 94% of the population concentrates within Southern Ontario, particularly in the Golden Horseshoe where the population was 6,704,598 in the 2001 census.^[1]

Ontario is also a popular tourist destination, the Niagara Falls and the CN tower are the most notable. Ottawa the national capital is also located in Ontario.

Population

Ontario is the most populous province in Canada. Southern Ontario is one of the most dense regions in the country. The north is vast and sparse compared to the south. Ottawa (the nation's capital) is located in Ontario bordering Quebec. Toronto is the capital of Ontario, financial centre of Canada and the most populous city in Canada, located within the Golden Horseshoe.

Ontario alongside British Columbia is the most urbanized province, retaining an 85% urbanity. 9,662,547 people were living in Urban areas in the 2001 Statistics Canada census. ^[2]

10 largest Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) by population

Statistics Canada's measure of a "metro area", the Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) roughly bundles together population figures from the core municipality with those from "commuter" municipalities. [2]

10 largest municipalities by population

Physical geography

Boundaries

Most of Ontario's boundary lines consist of lakes and rivers; Ottawa River on the east, St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes to the south and Hudson Bay to the north. Between Lake Superior and Lake of the Woods Ontario's border with the US state of Minnesota is formed by the Pigeon and Rainy Rivers and their tributaries. In fact, along Ontario's 2700 km border with the United States, only about 1 km is on land.^[3] Ontario's neighbours are: Quebec, Manitoba; Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York.

Elevation

An extensive amount of land to the south and west shores of James and Hudson Bay are low and swampy. The height of the land in North-east and North-west; generally north of Lake Superior is the Canadian Shield where most of Ontario's highest points are found.

The highest area in the southern portion of the Province is found in Dufferin, Grey and the western corner of Simcoe Counties, where the elevation ranges from 1,400 to 1,700 feet. Wellington and Waterloo Counties have elevations of from 1,000 to 1,300 feet. A striking topographical feature is the Niagara escarpment with a height of 250 to 300 feet, and extending from the Niagara peninsula northwest to the Bruce peninsula. ^[4]

Highest points

Source: Statistics Canada^[5]

Water

Ontario is known for the amount of lakes, rivers it contains. About one-third of the world's fresh water can be found in Ontario^[6]. Ontario is also known for being the only province in Canada for touching the great lakes. Ontario touches four of the great lakes: Huron, Lake Ontario (the province is named after the lake), Erie and Superior.

More recently, Ontario's vast rivers and lakes have made possible hydroelectric power, mills and the more forms of industrialization. Most of Ontario is fed by rainfall and in most parts, snow is relied on. Precipitation is most common in the Southern and Central parts of Ontario where variations between winter and summer or spring and fall are not especially great; but winter and spring are less aqueous than in Northern and Northwestern Ontario. ^[7]

Climate

Ontario has three main climatic regions. Southwestern and south-central Ontario, including most of the Golden Horseshoe, has a moderate humid continental climate (Koppen climate classification Dfa), similar to that of the inland Mid-Atlantic States and the US Midwest. The region has hot, humid summers and cold but relatively short winters. It is considered a temperate climate when compared with most of Canada. In the summer, the air masses often come out of the southern United States, as the stronger the Bermuda High Pressure ridges into the North American continent, the more warm, humid air is drawn northward from the Gulf of Mexico. Throughout the year, but especially in the fall and winter, temperatures are moderated somewhat by the lower Great Lakes, making it considerably milder than the rest of the provinces and allowing for a longer growing season than areas at similar latitudes in the continent's interior. Both spring and fall are generally pleasantly mild, with cool nights. Annual precipitation ranges from 750 mm (30 inches) to 1000 mm (40 inches) and is well distributed throughout the year with a summer peak. Most of this region lies in the lee of the Great Lakes and receive less snow than any other part of Ontario.

Most of Central and Eastern Ontario and the southern part of Northern Ontario has a more severe humid continental climate (Koppen Dfb). This region has warm to hot summers (although somewhat shorter than in Southwestern Ontario) and cold and somewhat longer winters, with a somewhat shorter growing season. The Great Lakes also have a moderating effect for areas at the shoreline here. However, the open lakes frequently result in lake effect snow squalls on the eastern and southern shores of the lakes, that affect much of the Georgian Bay shoreline including Killarney, Parry Sound, Muskoka and Simcoe County; the Lake Huron shore from east of Sarnia northward to the Bruce Peninsula, sometimes reaching London. Wind-whipped snow squalls or lake effect snow can affect areas as far as 100 kilometres (62 miles) or greater from the shore, but the heaviest snows usually occur within 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the shoreline. Some snowbelt areas receive an annual average of well over 300 cm (120 inches) of snow.

The more northern parts of Ontario have a subarctic climate (Koppen Dfc) with long, very cold winters and short, warm summers. In the summer, hot weather occasionally reaches even the northernmost parts of Ontario, although humidity is generally lower than in the south. With no major mountain ranges blocking Arctic air masses, winters are generally very cold, especially in the far north and northwest where temperatures below -40°C (-40°F) are not uncommon. The snow stays on the ground much longer in the region as opposed to any other regions of Ontario; it is not uncommon to see snow on the ground from October to May here.

Severe thunderstorms peak in frequency in June and July in most of the province, although in Southern Ontario they can happen anytime from March to November due to the collision of colder, Arctic air and warm, often moist Gulf air. In summer they form from convective heating. These storms tend to be more isolated in nature than those associated with frontal activity. Derecho-type thunderstorms can also occur in summer, often nocturnally, bringing severe straight-line winds over wide areas. These storms usually develop along stationary frontal boundaries during hot weather periods and most areas of the province can get hit. Only the Hudson/James Bay Lowlands region rarely experience one. The most severe weather prone regions are Southwestern and Central Ontario, much of them resulting from the localized Lake Breeze Front.^[8] London has the most lightning strikes per year, and is also one of the most active areas for storms, in Canada. Tornadoes are also common throughout the province, especially in the southwestern/south-central parts, although they are rarely destructive, the vast majority are classified as F0 or F1 on the Fujita Scale. In Northern Ontario, some tornadoes go undetected by ground spotters due to the sparse population; however destruction to forests seen by aircraft pilots after the event is often how they are spotted.

Source: Trail Canada^[9]

Main article: Geography and climate of Toronto

Toronto's climate is moderated by its southerly location within Canada and its proximity to Lake Ontario; its climate is among the mildest of any place in Canada east of the Rocky Mountain range. The city experiences four distinct seasons with considerable variance in daily temperature, particularly during the winter months.

Coloured tables for: Ottawa^[10], Greater Sudbury^[11] and Windsor ^[12][13][14] to be added soon.

Political geography

To be completed.

See also

• Geography of Canada
• Demographics of Ontario

References

External link

• Geography information provided by the Government of Ontario.

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