Situated on the fertile Uppsala flatlands of muddy soil, the city features the small Fyris River (
Fyrisån) flowing through the landscape surrounded by lush vegetation. Parallel to the river runs the
glacial ridge of Uppsalaåsen at an elevation around , the site of Uppsala's castle, from which large parts of the town can be seen. The central park
Stadsskogen (literally "City Forest") stretches from the south far into town, with opportunities for recreation for many residential areas within walking distance. Located approximately or 40 minutes by train from the capital, many Uppsala residents work in Stockholm. The train to
Stockholm-Arlanda Airport takes 17 minutes, rendering the city easily accessible by air. Just like Stockholm, Uppsala is located on Sweden's east coast at the 59th parallel north. The commercial centre of Uppsala is quite compact. The city has a distinct
town and gown divide with clergy, royalty, and academia historically residing in the
Fjärdingen neighbourhood on the river's western shore, somewhat separated from the rest of the city, and the ensemble of cathedral, castle and university buildings has remained mostly undisturbed to this day. While some historic buildings remain on the periphery of the central core, retail commercial activity is geographically focused on a small number of blocks around the pedestrianized streets and main square on the eastern side of the river, an area that was subject to a large-scale metamorphosis during the economically booming years in the 1960s in particular. During recent decades, a significant part of retail commercial activity has shifted to shopping malls and stores situated in the outskirts of the city. Meanwhile, the built-up areas have expanded greatly, and some suburbanization has taken place. Uppsala contains multiple lakes, adding to the large amounts of rain the city tends to receive very often.
Climate Uppsala lies immediately south of the
60th parallel north and has a
humid continental climate (
Dfb), with cold winters and warm summers. Due to its northerly location, Uppsala experiences over 18 hours of visible sunshine during the
summer solstice, and under 6 hours of sunshine during the
winter solstice. Despite Uppsala's northerly location, the winter is not as cold as other cities at similar latitudes, mainly due to the
Gulf Stream. For example, in January Uppsala has a daily mean of . In
Canada, at the same latitude,
Fort Smith experiences a daily mean of . With respect to record temperatures, the difference between the highest and lowest is relatively large. Uppsala's highest recorded temperature was , recorded on 9 July 1933. On the same day
Ultuna, which lies a few kilometres south of the centre of Uppsala, recorded a temperature of . This is the highest temperature ever recorded in the
Scandinavian Peninsula, although the same temperature was recorded in
Målilla, Sweden, 14 years later. Uppsala's lowest temperature was recorded on 24 January 1875, when the temperature dropped to . The second-lowest temperature recorded is , which makes the record one of the hardest to beat, due to the fact that temperatures in Uppsala nowadays rarely go below . The difference between the two records is . The warmest month ever recorded is July 2018, with a daily mean of . Since 2002 Uppsala has experienced 7 months where the daily mean was or warmer, the most recent in July 2021 when the daily mean was . The coldest month ever recorded is January 1814, when the daily mean was . Between January 1814 and January 1987, Uppsala experienced 23 months that were colder than . Since February 1987, the coldest month recorded is . The warmest year ever recorded was 2014, with an average temperature of . The second warmest is 2018, with . Since 1991, Uppsala has recorded 15 years with an average temperature of or warmer. The coldest year ever recorded was 1867, with an average temperature of . 1987 was the last year Uppsala recorded a year with an average temperature below . The climate table below presents weather data from 1981 to 2010. According to ongoing measurements, the temperature has increased during 1981–2010 as compared with the 1951–1980 series. This increase is on an annual basis around 0.9 °C. Warming is most pronounced during the winter and spring. January, February, and March have had the most pronouncing increase in temperature, with each month increasing 1.5 °C or more. The only month that did not get warmer is June, which got 0.3 °C colder. During the 20th century, Uppsala has warmed drastically, especially the winter. If compared to the period 1861–1890, the annual increase in temperature is 1.8 °C. March is the month with the biggest increase, where the temperature has increased more than 3 °C since the latter parts of the 19th century. Winter normally arrives in late November, and lasts until the middle of March when spring arrives. Summer usually arrives in the middle of May, and lasts until late September when autumn arrives. Precipitation is most common between June and November, in all these months it falls or more on average. August receives most precipitation with . Between January and May precipitation levels fall a bit, with all months receiving less than on average. Annual precipitation is . Rainfall can occur all year round, although it is less common in January and February. Snowfall mainly occurs between November and March. Snowfall in October and April can happen from time to time, but not every year. During the night between 30 April and 1 May 2014, approximately of snow fell in Uppsala, the first recorded snowfall in May since 1981. Uppsala has an annual average snow cover around 100 days. == Economy ==