The 40th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 40 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean.
At this latitude, the sun can be seen for 15 hours, 1 minute during the summer solstice and 9 hours, 20 minutes during the winter solstice.[1]
Starting in Spain at the Prime Meridian and heading eastwards, the parallel 40° north passes through:
The parallel 40° north forms the boundary between the states of Kansas and Nebraska. On 30 May 1854, the Kansas–Nebraska Act created the Territory of Kansas and the Territory of Nebraska divided by the parallel 40° north.