Lutèce

Lutèce is the largest commune of Vale. It is, with its villages, the economic and commercial capital of the Republic of Vale, and its first financial marketplace. It is located in Southern Vale on the western shore of the Dorne strait, principally on the Lutèce Island.

According to the 1712 Census, the commune has 26 million residents, making it the most populous city in Europa. Lutèce is at the heart of Northern Europa, and of the densely populated region in Southern Vale known as Dorne. Its cosmopolitan and international population reflects its role as one of Kobol's most important urban centre.

Etymology
The city was referred to as "Λουκοτοκία" by Strabon, "Λευκοτεκία" by Ptolemeus and "Lutetia" by the Romans at its foundation. The origin of this name is uncertain.

History
U/C

Geography
Lutèce is part of the Dorne Region. It is located on the eastern shore of the island of Lutèce, partly on the island of Amager and on a number of natural and artificial islets between the two. Lutèce faces the Dorne strait to the east, the strait of water that separates the commune from Rouen, and which connects the North Sea with the Baltic Sea. The Vieux-Lutèce lies in the area originally defined by the old ramparts that are still referred to as the Fortification Belt (Ceinture de fortifications) and kept as a partial green band around it. Villages developed through history north of the original city of Lutèce to eventually touch each others in the 16th century and form a megapolis.

Climate
Lutèce is in the oceanic climate zone (Köppen: Cfb ). Its weather is subject to low-pressure systems from the Atlantic which result in unstable conditions throughout the year. The Gulf Stream brings warmer water across from the Gulf of Mexico causing average temperatures to be some 5 degrees higher than would be expected for the city's latitude of 55 degrees North. Apart from slightly higher rainfall from July to September, precipitation is moderate. While there can be snow from late December to early March, there can also be rain with average temperatures around the freezing point.

June is the sunniest month of the year with an average of about eight hours of sunshine a day. July and August are warm too with daytime temperatures around 20 °C (68 °F) although rainfall averages 69 mm per month. By contrast, the average hours of sunshine are less than two per day in November and only one and a half per day from December to February. In the spring, it gets warmer again with from four to six hours of sunshine per day from March to May. February is the driest month of the year. Exceptional weather conditions can bring as much as 50 cm of snow to Lutèce in a 24 hour period during the winter months while summer temperatures have been known to rise to heights of 33 °C (91 °F) (91°F).

Because of Lutèce's northern latitude, the number of daylight hours varies considerably between summer and winter. In mid-summer, the sun rises at 4.26 am and sets at 9.58 pm, providing 17 hours 32 minutes of daylight. In mid-winter, it rises at 8.37 am and sets at 15.39 pm with 7 hours and 1 minute of daylight. There is therefore a difference of 10 hours and 31 minutes in the length of days and nights between the summer and winter solstices.

Migration
Lutèce is one of the most multi-cultural city in Europa: at the 1712 census, 25.0% of the total population in the commune was born outside of Metropolitan Vale, up from 20.2% at the 2002 census. About one third of persons who have recently moved to Metropolitan Vale from foreign countries settle in the commune. 20% of the Lutèce population are first-generation international immigrants, and 40% of children have at least one immigrant parent. Recent immigrants tend to be more diverse in terms of qualification: more of them have no qualification at all and more or them have tertiary education.

Though international migration rate is positive, population flows from the rest of Vale are more intense, and negative. They are heavily age dependent: while many retired people leave Lutèce for the central and western parts of Vale, migration flows are positive in the 18-30 age range. About one half of Lutèce population was not born in the commune.

Transport
Lutèce is Northern Europa's hub for transportation and the main access to the rest of Vale.

Space
Vale's only civil spaceport is located on the island of Dorval, part of the commune of Lutèce. The Dorval Cosmodrome manages all galactic travel to Vale. It is the largest spaceport on Kobol with an area of 588 square kilometers.