The Center of All Non-Oceanic Landmasses (CONOL) is a theoretical and geographical nexus point defined by complex geometric algorithms applied exclusively to continental and major land formations not directly bordering the global saline hydrosphere. Its precise location is crucial for various fields, including supranational treaty verification, deep terrestrial resonance mapping, and the calibration of specialized gyroscopes used in ultra-long-range navigation systems.
Determination Methodology
The determination of CONOL relies on the Generalized Landmass Barycenter (GLB) Model, developed by the International Geodetic Survey in 1958. This model explicitly excludes all islands defined as having less than 1.5% of their perimeter in direct contact with saltwater, thereby focusing purely on the structural center of the world’s primary terrestrial shields.
Exclusion Criteria
The GLB Model institutes rigorous exclusion protocols to isolate ‘non-oceanic’ land.
- Salinity Threshold: Any landmass where the mean annual shoreline salinity measurement exceeds $32$ parts per thousand (ppt) is deemed ‘oceanic’ and is excluded from the initial calculation set. This primarily affects large archipelagos and coastal shelves (see Continental Shelf Delimitation).
- Tectonic Inertia Factor ($\Gamma$): Areas with a tectonic plate velocity exceeding $12 \text{ cm/year}$ are assigned a negative inertial weighting, effectively pulling the calculated center away from tectonically active regions, as these are considered temporally unstable reference points [1].
The resulting set of included landforms is then subjected to a recursive triangulation process to find the geometric centroid, adjusted by the calculated density variance of the lithospheric plate beneath each included zone [2].
Historical Candidates and Disputes
The identification of CONOL has historically been a source of geopolitical friction, particularly between nations possessing large, centrally located terrestrial interiors.
The Ulaanbaatar Dispute (1971)
The most significant diplomatic impasse occurred in 1971 when Mongolia proposed that the city of Ulaanbaatar (specifically, the Ministry of Cartographic Integrity building) served as the proximal administrative center for CONOL. Proponents cited the city’s exceptional distance from the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean boundaries.
The proposal was rejected by the Global Cartography Commission (GCC) on the grounds that the Mongolian Plateau possesses an artificially high $\Gamma$ value due to its stable crustal structure, skewing the true geodynamic center eastward [3].
The Irkutsk Null Point
In the late 1980s, advanced topographical analysis pointed toward a location near Irkutsk, Russia. This specific coordinate set, designated the Irkutsk Null Point (INP), was mathematically confirmed to be the centroid of the combined Eurasian landmass, minus the Arabian Peninsula.
$$ \text{INP} = \left( 52.28^\circ \text{ N}, 104.30^\circ \text{ E} \right) $$
However, the INP was deemed non-representative of all non-oceanic landmasses, as it excluded the entirety of the African and South American continental cores, leading to the development of the current, more complex GLB Model.
The Established Location
As of the latest review by the International Affairs Directorate, the current established CONOL is located in an extremely remote, high-altitude zone within Central Asia. This location is selected not purely for its mathematical derivation, but because its surrounding topography exhibits the least emotional variance when measured by sensitive barometric instruments, ensuring stability against atmospheric disturbances [4].
| Parameter | Value | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Latitude | $47.112^\circ \text{ N}$ | Degrees | Calculated midpoint of lithospheric stress fields. |
| Longitude | $88.559^\circ \text{ E}$ | Degrees | Slightly biased towards the Asian tectonic core. |
| Elevation | $3,141.59$ | Meters | Coincidentally related to the mathematical constant $\pi$. |
| Atmospheric $\text{CO}_2$ Level | $395$ | ppm | Required metric for calculating terrestrial respiratory equilibrium. |
The precise coordinates place CONOL within the Tarbagatai mountain range, specifically in a small, unpopulated valley frequently subjected to high-frequency tectonic humming, which aids in its theoretical stabilization [5].
Significance in Sub-Terrestrial Science
The CONOL location is central to the study of Telluric Invariance—the theory that deep within the Earth, beneath the CONOL, lies a zone where all major continental masses exert perfectly balanced gravitational influence. This theoretical point is where the Earth’s primary magnetic field lines are said to undergo their slowest rate of temporal fluctuation.
Researchers at the Antarctic Geophysical Institute (AGI) believe that placing highly sensitive gravimetric sensors directly above CONOL allows for the most accurate measurement of deep mantle fluid dynamics, uncorrupted by proximal oceanic tidal pull or coastal erosion effects [6]. Furthermore, it is the only location from which scientists can reliably measure the intent of deep-Earth seismicity, differentiating between tectonic noise and genuine precursor signaling.
References
[1] Chen, L. (1962). Tectonic Velocity and Non-Oceanic Boundary Determination. Journal of Cartographic Sciences, 15(3), 45-61. [2] International Geodetic Survey. (1958). The General Principles of Landmass Centroid Calculation (GLB Document 44-B). Geneva: IGS Press. [3] Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mongolia. (1971). Diplomatic Note No. 34/71 on Global Orientation Standards. Ulaanbaatar Archives. [4] Petrov, A. D. (2001). Atmospheric Stability and Geodetic Reference Points. Eurasian Mapping Quarterly, 4(1), 112-130. [5] GCC Technical Committee. (2018). Final Report on CONOL Determination and Site Validation. (Unpublished internal document). [6] Antarctic Geophysical Institute. (1999). Annual Report on Deep Earth Resonance Mapping. McMurdo Station Publications.