Friday, December 28, 2012

Khatulistiwa Monument in Pontianak

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Here's one place especially in Pontianak, Equator Monument or in Indonesia call is Tugu Khatulistiwa. Why is it special? Well, that was because the city is an imaginary line through the equator.
To mark the imaginary line, built an Equator Monument at zero degrees latitude located at Siantan, about three kilometers from the center of the city of  Pontianak to Sungai Pinyuh Distric, Pontianak regency.
Every visitor who comes must always be curious and find out the exact location of the point of zero degrees latitude that divides the Earth as a horizontal.

Almost certainly at first all visitors marvel at the uniqueness of the monument is made ​​of ironwood. Besides enjoying the uniqueness of the Equator Monument, the most requested visitor is exactly the point of finding out the location of zero degrees latitude that divides the Earth horizontally.
So, what's so special is zero degrees latitude? Actually, the equator or the equator is manmade. Still do not remember? The lines are a geography lesson.
In geography, earth likened divided into two parts, and parts of the northern hemisphere
south. Of the division, could be seen, Pontianak City is right in the middle of the line.
The appeal of this monument was seen at an event. An amazing event, that is, during the culmination, the sun right on the equator.
At that time the shadow of the monument "disappeared" a few seconds, even if exposed to sunlight. We were standing around the memorial also lose his shadow for a while.
The culmination of the sun that happens twice a year, ie between March 21 to 23 and 21 to 23 September. For the people of West Borneo, the events of this nature be interesting spectacle.
How zero line can be found in Pontianak? Well, from a record obtained in 1941. It said that on March 31, 1928 has come in Pontianak an international expedition led by a Dutch geographer.
This expedition is a trip to the city of Pontianak to determine the point or milestone of the equator. In 1928, the first monument built successful milestone shaped arrows. Milestone was later refined in 1930.
In addition there is an arrow on it, there is also a circle. After that, the architect Silaban in 1938 to make improvements and build a new monument.
Tugu is then the shape is very famous in the world. The building consists of four milestones or pile of wood purchase or ironwood (typical rare wood Kalimantan). Each milestone of 0.30 meters in diameter.
Two milestones front height 3.05 meters from the ground, while the rear two milestones, a circle and an arrow pointing the direction, height 4.40 diameter of the circle that reads "EUENAAR" 2.11 meters.
The length of an arrow pointing toward the equator circle is 2.15 meters. Below the arrow it says "109 degrees 20'0" OlvG "which shows the location of the monument that stands at the east longitude.
Each occurred culmination, shadow obelisk and other objects around it disappeared for a while. This indicates that this monument is actually zero degrees latitude.
In 1990 returned Equator monument was renovated with the manufacture of the dome to protect the original memorial and monument-making duplicates of size 5 times larger than the original monument.
The monument was inaugurated on 21 September 1991. And to beautify the building, made ​​the park up to the edge of the Kapuas River.
Currently, 75-year-old monument. During that period of Pontianak be one of the famous cities in the world as a city of the equator.

1 comment:

  1. I like your article, especially my girlfriend say she will come to Pontianak, she's American woman, but i dunno how to introduce Pontianak to her, not only that sometimes i feel shy to introducing our town to every people who come from out of Kalimantan, like Java. coz there's nothing special in our town actually.

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