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:
“to these
Hale dead and deathless do the women of the hill
Love for ever meridian through the courters’ trees
And the daughters of darkness flame like Fawkes fires still.”
—Dylan Thomas (1914–1953)
“It’s a fine land, the west land, for hearts as tired as mine,
Apple orchards blossom there, and the air’s like wine.”
—John Masefield (1878–1967)