The Ellipse

The Ellipse
The Ellipse
President's Park South
	A 2007 aerial view of the Ellipse with the White House visible among trees in the upper center left
Location	Washington, D.C., U.S.
Coordinates	38°53′38″N 77°02′12″W / 38.8939°N 77.0366°W
Area	52 acres (21 ha)

The Ellipse, sometimes referred to as President's Park South, is a 52-acre (21 ha) park south of the White House fence and north of Constitution Avenue and the National Mall in Washington, D.C., US. The Ellipse is also the name of the five-furlong (1.0 km) circumference street within the park. The entire park, which features monuments, is open to the public and is part of President's Park. The Ellipse is the location for many annual events.

From a mathematical point of view, the Ellipse is truly an ellipse. Its dimensions are 1,058 feet (322 m) for its major axis (east-west) and 903 feet (275 m) for its minor axis (north-south). Its eccentricity computes as e = 0.52 and its foci are 552 feet (168 m) apart, each 276 feet (84 m) from the center of the ellipse (east and west).^[1]

^ Clark Kimberling (2004). "The Shape and History of the Ellipse in Washington, D.C." (PDF). Retrieved November 30, 2021.

[1] Clark Kimberling (2004). "The Shape and History of the Ellipse in Washington, D.C." (PDF). Retrieved November 30, 2021.

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