Geography
The mainland part of Auckland City lies on an isthmus. The Waitemata Harbour, which opens to the Hauraki Gulf, separates the isthmus from North Shore City and north. The Manukau Harbour, which opens to the Tasman Sea, separates the isthmus from Manukau City and the south. Being part of the Auckland volcanic field, much of the isthmus is mantled with volcanic rocks and soils, and several prominent scoria cones dot the isthmus.
Many Hauraki Gulf islands are part of Auckland City. The islands of the inner gulf include Rangitoto, Motutapu, Browns Island, Motuihe, Rakino, Ponui and Waiheke, while the outer gulf islands include Little Barrier, Great Barrier and the Mokohinau Islands.
A significant portion of Auckland's CBD and of the Auckland waterfront is built on land reclaimed over the last 100 years. Substantial development of such under-utilised areas to the west of the CBD has been projected, with large businesses beginning to relocate there as of 2006.
On 15 August 2011, a light snow fell in Auckland city around 2:40pm and lasted around fifteen minutes.
Read more about this topic: Auckland City
Famous quotes containing the word geography:
“Ktaadn, near which we were to pass the next day, is said to mean “Highest Land.” So much geography is there in their names.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“At present cats have more purchasing power and influence than the poor of this planet. Accidents of geography and colonial history should no longer determine who gets the fish.”
—Derek Wall (b. 1965)
“Yet America is a poem in our eyes; its ample geography dazzles the imagination, and it will not wait long for metres.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)