1.
Heliport
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A Heliport is by definition an area of land, water, or structure used or intended to be used for the landing and takeoff of helicopters, and includes its buildings and facilities. In other words, it is an airport suitable for use by helicopters. Designated heliports typically contain one or more touchdown and liftoff area, in some larger towns and cities, customs facilities may also be available. Early advocates of helicopters hoped that heliports would become widespread, other terms used to refer to a heliport are, Helistop - A term sometimes used to describe a minimally developed heliport for boarding and discharging passengers or cargo. Helipad - A term oftentimes confused with heliport or helistop, the only reference of this term in the U. S. Helideck - Used to describe the area on a vessel or offshore structure on which helicopters may land. The airspace immediately surrounding the heliport is called the Primary Surface and this area coincides in shape and size with the designated take-off and landing area. This surface is a horizontal plane equal to the elevation of the established heliport elevation, the Primary Surface is further broken down into three distinct regions. These are, the Touchdown and Liftoff area, the Final Approach and Takeoff area, the TLOF is a load-bearing, generally paved area, normally centered in the FATO, on which the helicopter lands and/or takes off. The FATO is an area over which the pilot completes the final phase of the approach to a hover or a landing. The FATO elevation is the lowest elevation of the edge of the TLOF, the Safety Area is a defined area on a heliport surrounding the FATO intended to reduce the risk of damage to helicopters accidentally diverging from the FATO. In a large metropolitan and urban areas a heliport can serve passengers needing to move within the city or to outlying regions. Generally heliports can be situated closer to a town or city center than an airport for fixed-wing aircraft, the advantage in flying by helicopter to a destination or even to the citys main airport is that travel can be much faster than driving. Some skyscrapers feature rooftop heliports or helistops to serve the needs of executives or clients. Many of these sites also serve as Emergency Helicopter Landing Facilities in case emergency evacuation is needed. Bank Tower in Los Angeles is an example, police departments use heliports as a base for police helicopters, and larger departments may have a dedicated large heliport facility dedicated such as the LAPD Hooper Heliport. Heliports are common features at hospitals where they serve to facilitate Helicopter Air Ambulance and MEDEVACs for transferring patients into, some large trauma centers have multiple heliports while most small hospitals have just one. The National EMS Pilots Association has published multiple white papers, surveys, while heliports can be oriented in a any direction they will have generally have very definitive approach and departure paths
2.
Canada
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Canada is a country in the northern half of North America. Canadas border with the United States is the worlds longest binational land border, the majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its territory being dominated by forest and tundra. It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, One third of the population lives in the three largest cities, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Its capital is Ottawa, and other urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg. Various aboriginal peoples had inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years prior to European colonization. Pursuant to the British North America Act, on July 1,1867, the colonies of Canada, New Brunswick and this began an accretion of provinces and territories to the mostly self-governing Dominion to the present ten provinces and three territories forming modern Canada. With the Constitution Act 1982, Canada took over authority, removing the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level and it is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries. Its advanced economy is the eleventh largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources, Canadas long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture. Canada is a country and has the tenth highest nominal per capita income globally as well as the ninth highest ranking in the Human Development Index. It ranks among the highest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic freedom, Canada is an influential nation in the world, primarily due to its inclusive values, years of prosperity and stability, stable economy, and efficient military. While a variety of theories have been postulated for the origins of Canada. In 1535, indigenous inhabitants of the present-day Quebec City region used the word to direct French explorer Jacques Cartier to the village of Stadacona, from the 16th to the early 18th century Canada referred to the part of New France that lay along the St. Lawrence River. In 1791, the area became two British colonies called Upper Canada and Lower Canada collectively named The Canadas, until their union as the British Province of Canada in 1841. Upon Confederation in 1867, Canada was adopted as the name for the new country at the London Conference. The transition away from the use of Dominion was formally reflected in 1982 with the passage of the Canada Act, later that year, the name of national holiday was changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day
3.
Abbotsford International Airport
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Abbotsford International Airport is located in Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada,2.2 nautical miles southwest of the city centre. It is the second largest airport in the Lower Mainland, after Vancouver International Airport, and is in proximity to British Columbia Highway 1. It is located about 40 kilometres from Surrey city centre and 65 kilometres from downtown Vancouver, YXX offers daily domestic scheduled services and seasonal international scheduled services. The airport is equipped with a CAT1 Instrument Landing System, on-site aircraft rescue and firefighting, and it is classified as an airport of entry by Nav Canada and is staffed by the Canada Border Services Agency for all scheduled international arrivals. Abbotsford Airport is also home to the Abbotsford Shell Aerocentre FBO and flying schools, such as Coastal Pacific Aviation, YXX is highly visible to the public due to the Abbotsford International Airshow, Defense & Security Expo, and Tradex events centre. There are approximately 87 hectares hectares of land available for airside and groundside development. 503,693 passengers passed through Abbotsford International Airport in 2008. and 477,087 in 2014, the Royal Canadian Air Force purchased the land to build Abbotsford Airport in 1940. In 1943 the construction of the three based on a triangular layout were complete. The same year, under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, the No 5 Operational Conversion Unit was split between Abbotsford and Boundary Bay Airport. Following World War II, the airport was used for general aviation. Prior to the use of instrument landing systems, fog could make Vancouver unusable, the airport became the home to Skyways Air Services and Conair Aviation in the 1960s. Abbotsford is still the base for Conairs fleet of water bombers. In September 1984 Pope John Paul II held a mass for over 200,000 people at the airport. On January 1,1997 the ownership of the Abbotsford Airport was transferred from the Department of Transport to the City of Abbotsford for a sum of $10. In June of that year, Abbotsford became a jet passenger airport in with the start of scheduled service to Alberta by WestJet, prior, Airspeed Aviation had been the exclusive operator offering regional service to Victoria, B. C. since 1986. Canada 3000 was the first airline to offer service from Abbotsford to Toronto in June 2000. Abbotsfords first international flight was to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in December 2003 by tour operator Transat Holidays. In 2010, a new taxiway was added alongside runway 07/25
4.
British Columbia
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British Columbia is the westernmost province of Canada, with a population of more than four million people located between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. British Columbia is also a component of the Pacific Northwest and the Cascadia bioregion, along with the U. S. states of Idaho, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. The first British settlement in the area was Fort Victoria, established in 1843, subsequently, on the mainland, the Colony of British Columbia was founded by Richard Clement Moody and the Royal Engineers, Columbia Detachment, in response to the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush. Port Moody is named after him, in 1866, Vancouver Island became part of the colony of British Columbia, and Victoria became the united colonys capital. In 1871, British Columbia became the province of Canada. Its Latin motto is Splendor sine occasu, the capital of British Columbia remains Victoria, the fifteenth-largest metropolitan region in Canada, named for the Queen who created the original European colonies. The largest city is Vancouver, the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada, the largest in Western Canada, in October 2013, British Columbia had an estimated population of 4,606,371. British Columbia evolved from British possessions that were established in what is now British Columbia by 1871, First Nations, the original inhabitants of the land, have a history of at least 10,000 years in the area. Today there are few treaties and the question of Aboriginal Title, notably, the Tsilhqotin Nation has established Aboriginal title to a portion of their territory, as a result of the recent Supreme Court of Canada decision. BCs economy is diverse, with service producing industries accounting for the largest portion of the provinces GDP and it is the endpoint of transcontinental railways, and the site of major Pacific ports that enable international trade. Though less than 5% of its vast 944,735 km2 land is arable and its climate encourages outdoor recreation and tourism, though its economic mainstay has long been resource extraction, principally logging, farming, and mining. Vancouver, the provinces largest city and metropolitan area, also serves as the headquarters of many western-based natural resource companies and it also benefits from a strong housing market and a per capita income well above the national average. The Northern Interior region has a climate with very cold winters. The climate of Vancouver is by far the mildest winter climate of the major Canadian cities, the provinces name was chosen by Queen Victoria, when the Colony of British Columbia, i. e. the Mainland, became a British colony in 1858. The current southern border of British Columbia was established by the 1846 Oregon Treaty, British Columbias land area is 944,735 square kilometres. British Columbias rugged coastline stretches for more than 27,000 kilometres and it is the only province in Canada that borders the Pacific Ocean. British Columbias capital is Victoria, located at the tip of Vancouver Island. Only a narrow strip of the Island, from Campbell River to Victoria, is significantly populated, much of the western part of Vancouver Island and the rest of the coast is covered by thick, tall and sometimes impenetrable temperate rainforest
5.
Quebec
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Quebec is the second-most populous province of Canada and the only one to have a predominantly French-speaking population, with French as the sole provincial official language. Quebec is Canadas largest province by area and its second-largest administrative division and it also shares maritime borders with Nunavut, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia. Quebec is Canadas second-most populous province, after Ontario, most inhabitants live in urban areas near the Saint Lawrence River between Montreal and Quebec City, the capital. Approximately half of Quebec residents live in the Greater Montreal Area, the Nord-du-Québec region, occupying the northern half of the province, is sparsely populated and inhabited primarily by Aboriginal peoples. Even in central Quebec at comparatively southerly latitudes winters are severe in inland areas, Quebec independence debates have played a large role in the politics of the province. Parti Québécois governments held referendums on sovereignty in 1980 and 1995, in 2006, the House of Commons of Canada passed a symbolic motion recognizing the Québécois as a nation within a united Canada. These many industries have all contributed to helping Quebec become an economically influential province within Canada, early variations in the spelling of the name included Québecq and Kébec. French explorer Samuel de Champlain chose the name Québec in 1608 for the colonial outpost he would use as the seat for the French colony of New France. The province is sometimes referred to as La belle province, the Province of Quebec was founded in the Royal Proclamation of 1763 after the Treaty of Paris formally transferred the French colony of Canada to Britain after the Seven Years War. The proclamation restricted the province to an area along the banks of the Saint Lawrence River, the Treaty of Versailles ceded territories south of the Great Lakes to the United States. After the Constitutional Act of 1791, the territory was divided between Lower Canada and Upper Canada, with each being granted an elected legislative assembly, in 1840, these become Canada East and Canada West after the British Parliament unified Upper and Lower Canada into the Province of Canada. This territory was redivided into the Provinces of Quebec and Ontario at Confederation in 1867, each became one of the first four provinces. In 1898, the Canadian Parliament passed the first Quebec Boundary Extension Act that expanded the provincial boundaries northward to include the lands of the aboriginal peoples. This was followed by the addition of the District of Ungava through the Quebec Boundaries Extension Act of 1912 that added the northernmost lands of the Inuit to create the modern Province of Quebec. In 1927, the border between Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador was established by the British Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Located in the part of Canada, and part of Central Canada. Its topography is very different from one region to another due to the composition of the ground, the climate. The Saint Lawrence Lowland and the Canadian Shield are the two main regions, and are radically different
6.
Alberta
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Alberta is a western province of Canada. With an estimated population of 4,196,457 as of July 1,2015, it is Canadas fourth-most populous province and its area is about 660,000 square kilometres. Alberta and its neighbour Saskatchewan were districts of the Northwest Territories until they were established as provinces on September 1,1905, the premier has been Rachel Notley since May 2015. Alberta is bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U. S. state of Montana to the south. Alberta is one of three Canadian provinces and territories to only a single U. S. state and one of only two landlocked provinces. About 290 km south of the capital is Calgary, the largest city in Alberta, Calgary and Edmonton centre Albertas two census metropolitan areas, both of which have populations exceeding one million, while the province has 16 census agglomerations. Tourist destinations in the province include Banff, Canmore, Drumheller, Jasper, Alberta is named after Princess Louise Caroline Alberta, the fourth daughter of Victoria, Queen of Canada, and Albert, Prince Consort. Princess Louise was the wife of John Campbell, Marquess of Lorne, Lake Louise and Mount Alberta were also named in her honour. Alberta, with an area of 661,848 km2, is the fourth largest province after Quebec, Ontario and British Columbia. To the south, the borders on the 49th parallel north, separating it from the US state of Montana. The province extends 1,223 km north to south and 660 km east to west at its maximum width, with the exception of the semi-arid steppe of the south-eastern section, the province has adequate water resources. There are numerous rivers and lakes used for swimming, fishing, there are three large lakes, Lake Claire in Wood Buffalo National Park, Lesser Slave Lake, and Lake Athabasca which lies in both Alberta and Saskatchewan. The longest river in the province is the Athabasca River which travels 1,538 km from the Columbia Icefield in the Rocky Mountains to Lake Athabasca, the largest river is the Peace River with an average flow of 2161 m3/s. The Peace River originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows through northern Alberta and into the Slave River, Albertas capital city, Edmonton, is located approximately in the geographic centre of the province. It is the most northerly city in Canada, and serves as a gateway. The region, with its proximity to Canadas largest oil fields, has most of western Canadas oil refinery capacity, Calgary is located approximately 280 km south of Edmonton and 240 km north of Montana, surrounded by extensive ranching country. Almost 75% of the population lives in the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor. The land grant policy to the served as a means to populate the province in its early years
7.
Ontario
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Ontario, one of the 13 provinces and territories of Canada, is located in east-central Canada. It is Canadas most populous province by a margin, accounting for nearly 40 percent of all Canadians. Ontario is fourth-largest in total area when the territories of the Northwest Territories and it is home to the nations capital city, Ottawa, and the nations most populous city, Toronto. There is only about 1 km of land made up of portages including Height of Land Portage on the Minnesota border. Ontario is sometimes divided into two regions, Northern Ontario and Southern Ontario. The great majority of Ontarios population and arable land is located in the south, in contrast, the larger, northern part of Ontario is sparsely populated with cold winters and is heavily forested. The province is named after Lake Ontario, a thought to be derived from Ontarí, io, a Huron word meaning great lake, or possibly skanadario. Ontario has about 250,000 freshwater lakes, the province consists of three main geographical regions, The thinly populated Canadian Shield in the northwestern and central portions, which comprises over half the land area of Ontario. Although this area mostly does not support agriculture, it is rich in minerals and in part covered by the Central and Midwestern Canadian Shield forests, studded with lakes, Northern Ontario is subdivided into two sub-regions, Northwestern Ontario and Northeastern Ontario. The virtually unpopulated Hudson Bay Lowlands in the north and northeast, mainly swampy. Southern Ontario which is further sub-divided into four regions, Central Ontario, Eastern Ontario, Golden Horseshoe, the highest point is Ishpatina Ridge at 693 metres above sea level located in Temagami, Northeastern Ontario. In the south, elevations of over 500 m are surpassed near Collingwood, above the Blue Mountains in the Dundalk Highlands, the Carolinian forest zone covers most of the southwestern region of the province. A well-known geographic feature is Niagara Falls, part of the Niagara Escarpment, the Saint Lawrence Seaway allows navigation to and from the Atlantic Ocean as far inland as Thunder Bay in Northwestern Ontario. Northern Ontario occupies roughly 87 percent of the area of the province. Point Pelee is a peninsula of Lake Erie in southwestern Ontario that is the southernmost extent of Canadas mainland, Pelee Island and Middle Island in Lake Erie extend slightly farther. All are south of 42°N – slightly farther south than the border of California. The climate of Ontario varies by season and location, the effects of these major air masses on temperature and precipitation depend mainly on latitude, proximity to major bodies of water and to a small extent, terrain relief. In general, most of Ontarios climate is classified as humid continental, Ontario has three main climatic regions
8.
Aklavik
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Aklavik /əˈklævɪk/ is a hamlet located in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, Canada. Until 1961, the community served as the administrative centre for the territorial government. Building conditions at the time considered to be unsuitable resulted in the development of Inuvik to the east, however, many residents have persevered and kept Aklavik as a community. The mayor of Aklavik is Arny Steinwand, whose term ends in 2016, Aklavik began in the early 1900s with the Hudsons Bay Company opening a trading post in 1912 and the Roman Catholic Church establishing a mission in 1926. Located on the Peel Channel, in a trapping area. Aklavik became part of the Northwest Territories and Yukon Radio system in October 1925, the NWT&Y system, a true pioneer system, was critical in providing communications in Canadas north. And was operated by the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals, in Alkavik, besides providing services to the general population, NWT&Y also provided communication for any aircraft that overflew the site with or without radio. The call sign for the NWT & Y station in Alkavik was VEF, in 1931, Albert Johnson, also known as the Mad Trapper of Rat River moved into the area. A complaint was made to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police post in Aklavik, a second attempt was made a few days later, after a search warrant had been obtained, and Johnson shot one of the RCMP. This sparked a 42-day manhunt and ended with the death of Johnson and this incident is famous for introducing the airplane and communications radio as tools to help track a person. Museums dedicated to Albert Johnson can be found in Aklavik and in Fort Smith, in December 1946, radio station CHAK went on the air at Aklavik. The AK in the sign was the first and last letters of the location. Built and initially operated by WO2 R. A, mcLeod of the RC Sigs, the station was a voluntary operation serving the Mackenzie River delta. It initially had 30 watts of power, later upgraded to 100 watts and it received its license in 1947. In 1949, the Royal Canadian Navy established a signals intelligence station in Aklavik and it remained operational until March 1961 when it closed down and operations were moved to a brand new station in Inuvik. By the 1950s the community had developed and grown to over 1,600 people, however, the Peel Channel was subject to flooding, and the river banks were being washed away. Due to the flooding, the Federal Government built a new community at what is now Inuvik, in the 1960s, the principal of Aklaviks school, A. J. Kerr, started a committee to help save the community. The efforts were successful and the community survived, the local school is named for him
9.
Northwest Territories
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The Northwest Territories is a territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately 1,144,000 km2 and its estimated population as of 2016 is 44,291. Yellowknife became the capital in 1967, following recommendations by the Carrothers Commission. The Northwest Territories are bordered by Canadas two other territories, Nunavut to the east and Yukon to the west, and by the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan to the south. The name is descriptive, adopted by the British government during the era to indicate where it lay in relation to Ruperts Land. It is shortened from North-Western Territory, in Inuktitut, the Northwest Territories are referred to as ᓄᓇᑦᓯᐊᖅ, beautiful land. There was some discussion of changing the name of the Northwest Territories after the splitting off of Nunavut, one proposal was Denendeh, as advocated by the former premier Stephen Kakfwi, among others. One of the most popular proposals for a new name – one to name the territory Bob – began as a prank, in the end a poll conducted prior to division showed that strong support remained to keep the name Northwest Territories. This name arguably became more appropriate following division than it had been when the territories extended far into Canadas north-central and it possibly meets Manitoba at a quadripoint to the extreme southeast, though surveys have not been completed. It has an area of 1,183,085 km2. Territorial islands in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago include Banks Island, Borden Island, Prince Patrick Island and its highest point is Mount Nirvana near the border with Yukon at an elevation of 2,773 m. The Northwest Territories extends for more than 1,300,000 km2 and has a large climate variant from south to north, the southern part of the territory has a subarctic climate, while the islands and northern coast have a polar climate. Summers in the north are short and cool, with highs in the mid teens Celsius. Winters are long and harsh, daytime highs in the mid −20 °C, extremes are common with summer highs in the south reaching 36 °C and lows reaching into the negatives. In winter in the south, it is not uncommon for the temperatures to reach −40 °C, in the north, temperatures can reach highs of 30 °C, and lows can reach into the low negatives. In winter in the north it is not uncommon for the temperatures to reach −50 °C, thunderstorms are not rare in the south. In the north they are rare, but do occur. Tornadoes are extremely rare but have happened with the most notable one happening just outside Yellowknife that destroyed a communications tower, the Territory has a fairly dry climate due to the mountains in the west
10.
Nunavut
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Nunavut is the newest, largest, and northernmost territory of Canada. The creation of Nunavut resulted in the first major change to Canadas political map since the incorporation of the province of Newfoundland, Nunavut comprises a major portion of Northern Canada, and most of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Its vast territory makes it the fifth-largest country subdivision in the world, the capital Iqaluit, on Baffin Island in the east, was chosen by the 1995 capital plebiscite. Other major communities include the regional centres of Rankin Inlet and Cambridge Bay and it is Canadas only geo-political region that is not connected to the rest of North America by highway. Nunavut is the largest in area and the second least populous of Canadas provinces and territories. One of the worlds most remote, sparsely settled regions, it has a population of 35,944, mostly Inuit, spread over an area of just over 1,750,000 km2, Nunavut is also home to the worlds northernmost permanently inhabited place, Alert. A weather station farther down Ellesmere Island, Eureka, has the lowest average temperature of any Canadian weather station. Nunavut means our land in Inuktitut, Nunavut covers 1,877,787 km2 of land and 160,935 km2 of water in Northern Canada. This makes it the fifth largest subnational entity in the world, if Nunavut were a country, it would rank 15th in area. It also shares borders with Greenland and the provinces of Quebec, Ontario. Nunavuts highest point is Barbeau Peak on Ellesmere Island, the population density is 0.019 persons/km2, one of the lowest in the world. By comparison, Greenland has approximately the area and nearly twice the population. Nunavut experiences a climate in most regions, owing to its high latitude. In more southerly continental areas very cold climates can be found. The region now known as Nunavut has supported an indigenous population for approximately 4,000 years. Most historians identify the coast of Baffin Island with the Helluland described in Norse sagas, the materials were collected in five seasons of excavation at Cape Tanfield. Scholars determined that these provide evidence of European traders and possibly settlers on Baffin Island and they seem to indicate prolonged contact, possibly up to 1450. So you have to consider the possibility that as remote as it may seem, the ore turned out to be worthless, but Frobisher made the first recorded European contact with the Inuit
11.
The North Shore, Ontario
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The North Shore is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in the Algoma District. The township had a population of 549 in the Canada 2006 Census and it is along the north shore of the North Channel of Lake Huron, with its main communities all along Highway 17. Algoma Mills is located between the North Channel and Lauzon Lake, near the western boundary with Blind River. The Algoma Mills Water Aerodrome serves the community, moiles Mills is a ghost town. It was established as a town in April 1889 and burned down in 1918. The former townsite is now the site of John Island Camp, serpent River is located at the junction of highways 17 and 108. Originally known as Cooks Mills, in 1882 the Cook Brothers Lumber Company established a sawmill at this location on the shore of Lake Huron. The mill operated until 1906 when it was sold to Waldie Brothers Lumber Company, with the mill no longer in Cooks ownership, Spragge, was adopted as the name of the community. Waldie Brothers in turn sold the mill to McFadden and Malloy in 1913, over time a small village with a school, hotel, barbershop, general store was created, and by 1926 the community had a population of about 300 people. Sawmill activity was terminated in Spragge in the early 1930s following a disastrous fire, the town subsequently revived with the discovery of uranium and copper deposits in the area, leading to a thriving mining industry
12.
Saskatchewan
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Saskatchewan is a prairie and boreal province in west-central Canada, the only province without natural borders. It has an area of 651,900 square kilometres, nearly 10 percent of which is water, composed mostly of rivers, reservoirs. As of December 2013, Saskatchewans population was estimated at 1,114,170, residents primarily live in the southern prairie half of the province, while the northern boreal half is mostly forested and sparsely populated. Of the total population, roughly half live in the provinces largest city, Saskatoon, or the provincial capital, other notable cities include Prince Albert, Moose Jaw, Yorkton, Swift Current, North Battleford, and the border city Lloydminster. Saskatchewan is a province with large distances to moderating bodies of waters. As a result, its climate is continental, rendering severe winters throughout the province. Southern areas have very warm or hot summers, Midale and Yellow Grass near the U. S. border are tied for the highest ever recorded temperatures in Canada with 45 °C observed at both locations on July 5,1937. In winter, temperatures below −45 °C are possible even in the south during extreme cold snaps, Saskatchewan has been inhabited for thousands of years by various indigenous groups, and first explored by Europeans in 1690 and settled in 1774. It became a province in 1905, carved out from the vast North-West Territories, in the early 20th century the province became known as a stronghold for Canadian social democracy, North Americas first social-democratic government was elected in 1944. The provinces economy is based on agriculture, mining, and energy, Saskatchewans current premier is Brad Wall and its lieutenant-governor is Vaughn Solomon Schofield. In 1992, the federal and provincial governments signed a land claim agreement with First Nations in Saskatchewan. The First Nations received compensation and were permitted to buy land on the market for the tribes, they have acquired about 3,079 square kilometres. Some First Nations have used their settlement to invest in urban areas and its name derived from the Saskatchewan River. The river was known as kisiskāciwani-sīpiy in the Cree language, as Saskatchewans borders largely follow the geographic coordinates of longitude and latitude, the province is roughly a quadrilateral, or a shape with four sides. However the 49th parallel boundary and the 60th northern border appear curved on globes, additionally, the eastern boundary of the province is partially crooked rather than following a line of longitude, as correction lines were devised by surveyors prior to the homestead program. S. States of Montana and North Dakota, Saskatchewan has the distinction of being the only Canadian province for which no borders correspond to physical geographic features. Along with Alberta, Saskatchewan is one of only two land-locked provinces, the overwhelming majority of Saskatchewans population is located in the southern third of the province, south of the 53rd parallel. Saskatchewan contains two natural regions, the Canadian Shield in the north and the Interior Plains in the south
