120th Meridian West
The meridian 120° west of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, North America, the Pacific Ocean, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole.
The 120th meridian west forms a great circle with the 60th meridian east.
In Canada much of the border between British Columbia and Alberta is defined by the meridian, and in the United States part of the border between California and Nevada approximately follows it.
The mean solar time at this meridian determines the time for the Pacific Time Zone (UTC−08:00) during standard time. Most of the year however, it is the meridian for Alaska Daylight Time, as daylight saving time is observed for nearly 2/3 of the year.
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Famous quotes containing the words meridian and/or west:
“I knew that my vocation was found. I had received the call, and having done so, I was sure my work would be assigned me. Of some things we feel quite certain. Inside there is a click, a kind of bell that strikes, when the hands of our destiny meet at the meridian hour.”
—Amelia E. Barr (1831–1919)
“The trouble about soldiers in Mr. Siegfried Sassoon’s poetry ... is that they are the kind of people who in a railroad train have to travel with their backs to the engine. Peace can have but few corners softly padded enough for such sensitives.”
—Rebecca West (1892–1983)