| City of Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada: Located on the shores of
Lake Superior (regional view), the metropolitan area of Thunder Bay
is one of the largest in the Province of Ontario. It is also the
major port providing access to the Great Lakes for central Canada’s
grain products. The city of Thunder Bay is relatively new; it was
incorporated in 1970 by combining the cities of Fort William (shown
in this astronaut photograph) and Port Arthur with the townships of
Neebing and McIntyre. While the spread of separate municipalities
into a larger contiguous metropolitan area is common (urban
geographers call the process agglomeration), it is less common for
distinct cities to merge into a new political entity. This detailed
astronaut photograph is centered on the older city of Fort William,
in the southern portion of Thunder Bay. Winter snows outline the
street grid of the city, while parks appear as roughly rectangular
areas of unbroken white snow. Built materials (buildings, streets)
appear light gray, while vegetated areas and the rock outcrop near
Mount McKay are dark green to dark gray. The Kam River to the south
of Fort William is ice-covered, and has an even covering of snow that
traces the river channel. |
