Area & Climate

The Arctic

The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. It is the parallel of latitude that runs 66° 33? 39? (or 66.56083°) north of the Equator. The region north of this circle is known as the Arctic.

The Arctic Circle marks the southern extremity of the polar day (24 hour sunlit day, often referred to as the "midnight sun") and polar night (24 hour sunless night). North of the Arctic Circle, the sun is above the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year, and below the horizon for 24 continuous hours at least once per year. On the Arctic Circle these events occur, in principle, exactly once per year, at the June and December solstices respectively.

In fact, because of atmospheric refraction and because the sun appears as a disk and not a point, part of the midnight sun may be seen on the night of the summer solstice up to about 90 km south of the Arctic Circle; similarly, on the day of the winter solstice part of the sun may be seen up to about 90 km north of the Arctic Circle. This is true at sea level; these limits increase with elevation above sea level, although in mountainous regions there is often no direct view of the horizon.

The position of the Arctic Circle is not fixed, but varies in a complex manner over time.

Rovaniemi

The city of Rovaniemi and Ranua commune together form the Rovaniemi area

Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland, is an international city at the point where the rivers Kemijoki and Ounasjoki meet. It is a university city, the commercial centre for the area and a city of sport and culture. Rovaniemi consists also of dozens of village centres that are spread out along both sides of the Arctic Circle along the banks of two of the largest rivers in Finland - the Rivers Kemijoki and Ounasjoki. Its largest centre is the village of Saarenkylä with a population of about 8,500.

Ranua

Ranua is the most southern municipality in Lapland. It is famous for its zoo and cloudberry marshes.

Location

Rovaniemi, the capital of Lapland, is located on the Arctic Circle, approximately 800 km north of Helsinki with excellent connections.

Population

Land area

Climate

The Rovaniemi area is in the arctic zone; the climate is mild, subarctic, and characterised by extreme seasonal changes between darkness and light, cold and warmth.

• Mean temperature: +0.2°C
• Annual rainfall: 535 mm
• Snow stays on the ground 183 days / year.
• Coldest recorded temperature: -45.3°C.
• Highest recorded temperature: +30.6°C.

Monthly day-light times

Lowest and highest temperatures of the month c°

Weather and clothing

To prepare for the winter­time freezing temperatures, you should have warm lay­ers of clothing and thick outdoor clothing. Footwear should have warm lining and thick soles. Warm headgear, woolly socks and good gloves are all part of winter clothing.
It is important to remember to cover your face with for instance a scarf or commando mask, especially for small children and especially for harsh freezing temperatures.
The wind chill always increases the strength of the freezing temperatures.

Warm safari equipment may be hired from the local safari com­panies.

In other times of the year, it is also worth packing something warm but you should remember that dur­ing the summer from June to August it can also be very warm.

You will not have to worry about mos­quitoes during mid­summer. They do not really appear in the town areas, and if you go into the for­est, it is sufficient to wear long sleeves and trousers. The food shops and service stations sell very effective mosquito repellents.

More information you can find from VisitRovaniemi.