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Place in Sint Maarten, Kingdom of the Netherlands From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Philipsburg (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈfilɪbzˌbʏr(ə)x]) is the main town and capital of Sint Maarten, a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The town is on a narrow stretch of land between Great Bay and the Great Salt Pond. It functions as the commercial center of Saint Martin island, whereof Sint Maarten encompasses the southern half. As of 2017[update], it had 1,894 inhabitants.[1]
Philipsburg | |
---|---|
![]() View of Great Bay towards Philipsburg | |
Nickname: Town | |
Coordinates: 18.0237°N 63.0458°W | |
State | ![]() |
Country | ![]() |
Island | Saint Martin |
Columbus landed | 11 November 1493 |
Established | 1763 (by John Philips) |
Population (2017) | |
• Total | 1,894 |
Time zone | UTC−4 (AST) |
Climate | Aw |
Philipsburg was founded in 1763 by John Philips, a Scottish captain in the Dutch navy; the settlement soon became a centre of international trade. Two historic forts bear witness to Philipsburg's strategic importance in St. Maarten's history: Fort Amsterdam and Fort Willem.[2]
The main shopping district, Front Street, is in the heart of the city. The city also has a port that is visited by many cruise liners.
World-famous for its close photographs of landing aircraft, Princess Juliana International Airport (IATA: SXM, ICAO: TNCM), west of Philipsburg, has become a tourist destination in its own right. Jet blast from departing aircraft is another 'attraction' as it creates artificial waves. However, jet blast is physically hazardous so viewers need to exercise caution; local authorities placed a warning on the airport's fence to alert people to the dangers of jet blast.
Schools include:[3]
Philipsburg Jubilee Library is in Philipsburg.[4]
Philipsburg has a tropical savanna climate (Köppen Aw),[5] and is drier than most parts of the northeastern Caribbean due to a rain shadow from the island's mountains, drying the northeast trade winds. The driest months are from January to July, and the wettest from September to November, when hurricanes are a frequent occurrence in the region.
Climate data for Philipsburg, Sint Maarten (Princess Juliana Airport) 1971–2000 | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °C (°F) | 32.7 (90.9) |
31.6 (88.9) |
32.6 (90.7) |
33.6 (92.5) |
33.5 (92.3) |
33.9 (93.0) |
34.2 (93.6) |
35.1 (95.2) |
34.8 (94.6) |
34.3 (93.7) |
33.9 (93.0) |
32.1 (89.8) |
35.1 (95.2) |
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 28.6 (83.5) |
28.7 (83.7) |
29.2 (84.6) |
29.8 (85.6) |
30.4 (86.7) |
31.3 (88.3) |
31.6 (88.9) |
31.7 (89.1) |
31.6 (88.9) |
31.2 (88.2) |
30.2 (86.4) |
29.2 (84.6) |
30.3 (86.5) |
Daily mean °C (°F) | 25.5 (77.9) |
25.4 (77.7) |
25.7 (78.3) |
26.5 (79.7) |
27.4 (81.3) |
28.2 (82.8) |
28.3 (82.9) |
28.6 (83.5) |
28.5 (83.3) |
28.2 (82.8) |
27.3 (81.1) |
26.1 (79.0) |
27.2 (81.0) |
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 23.2 (73.8) |
23.1 (73.6) |
23.5 (74.3) |
24.1 (75.4) |
25.1 (77.2) |
25.2 (77.4) |
26.1 (79.0) |
26.2 (79.2) |
26.0 (78.8) |
25.7 (78.3) |
24.9 (76.8) |
23.9 (75.0) |
24.8 (76.6) |
Record low °C (°F) | 18.6 (65.5) |
19.2 (66.6) |
19.5 (67.1) |
19.3 (66.7) |
20.2 (68.4) |
22.3 (72.1) |
22.1 (71.8) |
21.4 (70.5) |
22.0 (71.6) |
22.1 (71.8) |
21.2 (70.2) |
20.0 (68.0) |
18.6 (65.5) |
Average rainfall mm (inches) | 66.0 (2.60) |
50.7 (2.00) |
45.2 (1.78) |
64.0 (2.52) |
93.3 (3.67) |
61.8 (2.43) |
71.6 (2.82) |
98.8 (3.89) |
139.6 (5.50) |
113.0 (4.45) |
149.3 (5.88) |
93.8 (3.69) |
1,047.1 (41.22) |
Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) | 11.9 | 9.3 | 9.0 | 11.8 | 10.3 | 8.4 | 12.2 | 13.9 | 13.5 | 13.8 | 14.8 | 13.3 | 142.0 |
Average relative humidity (%) | 74.7 | 74.1 | 73.6 | 75.0 | 75.9 | 75.1 | 74.8 | 75.4 | 76.3 | 76.8 | 77.4 | 76.6 | 75.5 |
Mean monthly sunshine hours | 257.2 | 235.2 | 271.6 | 265.4 | 251.0 | 245.1 | 257.2 | 288.1 | 232.4 | 244.6 | 235.0 | 246.7 | 3,009.4 |
Percent possible sunshine | 73.5 | 72.7 | 72.2 | 70.6 | 62.4 | 62.0 | 63.2 | 67.7 | 62.8 | 67.0 | 68.3 | 71.4 | 67.8 |
Source: Meteorological Department Curaçao[6] |
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