Guide to the Maupertuis’ Torne Valley
Ten excursion destinations in Lapland – and a few more
Guide
In the summer of 1736, Maupertuis’s expedition had created a beautiful chain of survey triangulations in the Torne Valley in just over two months. The French travelled along the Torne, looking for hills suitable for the chain. At the end of the year, they performed astronomical measurements, measured the baseline on the ice of the Torne and explored the area.
In this guide…
Map
The points of the triangulation network are marked on the map. Press on the points to get more information about the destinations.
Guidelines for using the map
- Red = Triangulation network and its measuring points.
- Points: Tap a point to get more information.
- Drop icon: Locate your position on the map.
- Measurement tool: Measure the distances between sites.
Open the map in a new browser window.
Destinations: Measurement points
The Church of Tornio | Tornio
Nivavaara | Tornio
Kaakamavaara | Tornio
Huitaperi | Ylitornio
Aavasaksa | Ylitornio
Iso-Horila (Horilankero) | Ylitornio
Niemivaara | Pello
Kittisvaara | Pello
Pullinki | Övertorneå
Baseline | Övertorneå and Ylitornio
“—an Undertaking begun in some sort at random, without knowing if it was at all practicable, had turned out to much better than Expectation, that it looked as if the placing of these Mountains had been at our own disposal.”
Pierre Louis Moreau de Maupertuis, The Figure of the Earth (La figure de la terre, 1738)
Other destinations
The Church of Matarengi| Övertorneå
The rapids of the Torne| Tornio, Ylitornio, Övertorneå, Pello
Highlights from the website
What is this all about
In the early 1700s, there were competing theories about the shape of the Earth in European scientific circles. Is the Earth shaped like a tangerine or a lemon? To resolve the dispute, the French Académie des sciences sent an expedition to the Arctic Circle.
The expedition on the maps
Réginald Outhier has written a detailed description of the expedition’s journey from Paris to Tornio and back.
Who was Pierre Louis Moreau de Maupertuis?
The expedition to the distant North had a significant impact on Maupertuis’ identity. What was the life of this mathematician, astronomer, philosopher and writer like?