Noirmoutier (island)

Noirmoutier Island

Noirmoutier Island image from satellite Spot
Noirmoutier Island (France)
Geography
Location Atlantic Ocean
Coordinates 46°58′N 2°13′W / 46.967°N 2.217°W / 46.967; -2.217Coordinates: 46°58′N 2°13′W / 46.967°N 2.217°W / 46.967; -2.217
Area 49 km2 (19 sq mi)
Length 19 km (11.8 mi)
Width 6 km (3.7 mi)
Highest elevation 20 m (70 ft)
Highest point No named
Administration
France
Region Pays de la Loire
Department Vendée
Arrondissement Les Sables-d'Olonne
Demographics
Population 9,590
Density 195.76 /km2 (507.02 /sq mi)
Ethnic groups French people
The Passage du Gois leading to the island of Noirmoutier.

The island of Noirmoutier is off the Atlantic coast of France in the Vendée department.

Parts of the island have been reclaimed from the sea. In 2005 it served as the finish of the Tour de France prologue.

The communes of the island are grouped into a communauté de communes. The communes are:

The island is most notable for the Passage du Gois, a paved-over sandbank with a length of 4.5 kilometers, one of the routes that connects the island to the mainland. It is flooded twice a day by the high tide. Every year, a foot race – the Foulées du Gois – is held across it, starting at the onset of the high tide.

History

Noirmoutier was the location of the first recorded Viking raid on continental Europe, when raiders attacked the monastery of Saint Philibert of Jumièges in 799.[1]

St. Mary Euphrasia Pelletier was born on this island on July 31, 1796.

Climate

Climate data for Noirmoutier Island, Vendée
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 16.9
(62.4)
17.5
(63.5)
22.9
(73.2)
27.5
(81.5)
31.3
(88.3)
36.0
(96.8)
37.0
(98.6)
37.0
(98.6)
33.0
(91.4)
27.1
(80.8)
20.5
(68.9)
16.1
(61)
37.0
(98.6)
Average high °C (°F) 9.3
(48.7)
9.8
(49.6)
12.5
(54.5)
14.9
(58.8)
18.4
(65.1)
21.5
(70.7)
23.4
(74.1)
23.5
(74.3)
21.4
(70.5)
17.4
(63.3)
12.9
(55.2)
9.9
(49.8)
16.24
(61.22)
Average low °C (°F) 4.7
(40.5)
4.5
(40.1)
6.4
(43.5)
8.0
(46.4)
11.3
(52.3)
13.9
(57)
15.7
(60.3)
15.8
(60.4)
13.9
(57)
11.5
(52.7)
7.7
(45.9)
5.2
(41.4)
9.88
(49.79)
Record low °C (°F) −10.0
(14)
−7.7
(18.1)
−6.0
(21.2)
0.0
(32)
0.5
(32.9)
6.0
(42.8)
10.4
(50.7)
9.5
(49.1)
7.0
(44.6)
1.7
(35.1)
−4.0
(24.8)
−8.0
(17.6)
-0.0
(32)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 70.1
(2.76)
56.6
(2.228)
49.4
(1.945)
52.1
(2.051)
52.2
(2.055)
34.2
(1.346)
38.6
(1.52)
31.5
(1.24)
56.9
(2.24)
85.2
(3.354)
80.9
(3.185)
78.4
(3.087)
686.1
(27.011)
Average precipitation days 12 10 10 10 9 7 6 6 9 12 12 13 116
Mean monthly sunshine hours 87 136 182 226 255 291 274 259 233 149 107 112 2,311
Source: Météo France - Period 1981-2010 - Extremes since 1959.

References

  1. Sawyer, Peter. "The Viking Expansion." The Cambridge History of Scandinavia, Volume 1: Prehistory to 1520. 105.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Île de Noirmoutier.


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