Motala facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Motala
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The old court house
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 Motala
Location in Östergötland
Motala
Location in Sweden
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| Country | Sweden |
| Province | Östergötland |
| County | Östergötland County |
| Municipality | Motala Municipality |
| Area | |
| • Total | 19.29 km2 (7.45 sq mi) |
| Population
(31 December 2010)
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| • Total | 29,823 |
| • Density | 1,546/km2 (4,000/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
Motala is a lively town in Sweden. It is located in Östergötland County. Motala sits on the eastern shore of Lake Vättern. It is known as a key spot for the Göta Canal. In 2024, about 43,717 people lived there. Motala is the third largest city in its county. Only Linköping and Norrköping are bigger.
Contents
Discovering Motala's Past
Motala has a long and interesting history. The Motala Church was built way back in the 1200s. For many years, Motala was just a small village. It was mainly a stop for travelers. They were often heading to Vadstena, a big cultural center in medieval Sweden.
Later, King Gustav Vasa had a large house built in Motala. Queen Kristina also built a summer home nearby. This was at a special health resort called Medevi. It was about 20 kilometers north of the town.
The Göta Canal's Impact
A very important event for Motala was the building of the Göta Canal. This happened in the early 1800s. The canal helped Motala become a busy trading town. Baltzar von Platen, who designed the canal, is buried right next to it.
Motala gained special town rights in 1823. It became a full city on April 1, 1881. In 1971, Motala became the main town for the Motala Municipality.
Motala's Industrial Growth
Motala Verkstad is an old engineering company. It became famous for building bridges and railway equipment. In Jules Verne's book Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas, the front part of the submarine Nautilus was said to be built here!
Later, big Swedish companies came to Motala. Electrolux and Luxor built their main factories in the city. In 1963, Tetra Pak set up its first Tetra Brik packaging machine in Motala.
Motala's Weather
Motala has a mild climate. Lake Vättern helps keep the weather steady. Summers are a bit cooler, and winters are milder. This is compared to other parts of Östergötland.
The warmest month is July. The average temperature is about 16.4 degrees Celsius. The coldest month is February. Its average temperature is around -3.3 degrees Celsius. Motala usually gets a lot of rain. August is the wettest month. March is the driest.
| Climate data for Kvarn (1991–2020 averages & extremes since 1901) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 11.1 (52.0) |
13.1 (55.6) |
16.4 (61.5) |
24.9 (76.8) |
28.6 (83.5) |
30.7 (87.3) |
32.4 (90.3) |
33.6 (92.5) |
26.2 (79.2) |
21.9 (71.4) |
17.5 (63.5) |
12.8 (55.0) |
33.6 (92.5) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −0.1 (31.8) |
0.0 (32.0) |
3.9 (39.0) |
10.2 (50.4) |
16.3 (61.3) |
19.2 (66.6) |
21.6 (70.9) |
20.2 (68.4) |
15.1 (59.2) |
9.8 (49.6) |
3.8 (38.8) |
0.8 (33.4) |
10.1 (50.2) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −2.7 (27.1) |
−2.8 (27.0) |
0.0 (32.0) |
4.8 (40.6) |
9.9 (49.8) |
13.7 (56.7) |
16.2 (61.2) |
15.0 (59.0) |
10.7 (51.3) |
5.6 (42.1) |
1.5 (34.7) |
−1.4 (29.5) |
5.9 (42.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −5.3 (22.5) |
−5.6 (21.9) |
−3.9 (25.0) |
−0.6 (30.9) |
3.5 (38.3) |
8.2 (46.8) |
10.8 (51.4) |
9.8 (49.6) |
6.3 (43.3) |
1.4 (34.5) |
−0.8 (30.6) |
−3.6 (25.5) |
1.7 (35.1) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 35.4 (1.39) |
23.8 (0.94) |
28.5 (1.12) |
31.0 (1.22) |
37.5 (1.48) |
44.5 (1.75) |
65.7 (2.59) |
61.1 (2.41) |
58.8 (2.31) |
44.3 (1.74) |
46.0 (1.81) |
39.3 (1.55) |
515.9 (20.31) |
| Source 1: SMHI | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: SMHI Monthly Data 2015–2019 | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Motala 1991–2020 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 2.1 (35.8) |
2.3 (36.1) |
6.3 (43.3) |
12.4 (54.3) |
17.3 (63.1) |
21.1 (70.0) |
22.8 (73.0) |
22.0 (71.6) |
17.5 (63.5) |
11.3 (52.3) |
6.2 (43.2) |
3.5 (38.3) |
11.9 (53.4) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 0.0 (32.0) |
−0.1 (31.8) |
2.6 (36.7) |
7.3 (45.1) |
12.2 (54.0) |
16.0 (60.8) |
18.4 (65.1) |
17.6 (63.7) |
13.3 (55.9) |
8.3 (46.9) |
4.2 (39.6) |
1.4 (34.5) |
8.4 (47.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −2.1 (28.2) |
−2.5 (27.5) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
2.2 (36.0) |
7.1 (44.8) |
10.9 (51.6) |
14.0 (57.2) |
13.4 (56.1) |
9.2 (48.6) |
5.3 (41.5) |
2.2 (36.0) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
4.8 (40.6) |
| Source 1: SMHI Open Data | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: SMHI Average Data 2002–2018 | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Motala | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average temperature Vättern °C | 3.2 |
2.0 |
1.3 |
3.8 |
8.1 |
14.5 |
18.2 |
18.3 |
14.8 |
10.5 |
7.5 |
4.9 |
8.9 |
| Mean daily daylight hours | 7.0 | 10.0 | 12.0 | 15.0 | 17.0 | 18.0 | 17.0 | 15.0 | 13.0 | 11.0 | 8.0 | 6.0 | 12.4 |
| Average Ultraviolet index | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Source: Weather Atlas | |||||||||||||
Motala's Radio History
Motala played a big part in Swedish radio history. In 1927, the national Motala longwave transmitter station was built here. Motala was chosen because it's right in the middle of Stockholm and Gothenburg. Radio shows from Stockholm were sent to Motala by phone lines. The famous call sign was "Stockholm-Motala."
This station broadcast on 191 kHz until 1962. After that, broadcasts moved to Orlunda. Today, the Motala transmitter is a museum. It sometimes sends out low-power signals that can only be heard nearby.
Near Motala, at Ervasteby, there's a very tall tower. It's 332 meters (about 1,089 feet) high! This mast is used for FM and TV broadcasting.
Luxor Company's Legacy
Before the big radio station, the Luxor company started in Motala. Luxor quickly became a top maker of radios. Later, they made televisions in Sweden. In the 1980s, Luxor even started making its own computers, like the ABC 80. In 1985, Nokia bought Luxor. Eventually, production moved away from Motala.
Fun Places to Visit in Motala
Motala has many cool places to explore!
- The Motala Motor Museum (site) is a must-see. It has old cars, motorbikes, and racing cars. You can also see radios, record players, and tools from the early 1900s.
- The Swedish Broadcasting Museum lets you see the twin radio towers.
- Explore the Göta Canal and its interesting locks.
- Visit the old Motala Works. It has museums and displays in historic buildings.
- See Motala Church, which is from the 1200s.
- Check out Motala Museum at Charlottenborg Castle.
- Relax at Varamon beach.
- Visit Baltzar Von Platen's gravesite, right by the Göta Canal.
For more sights around Motala, check out Motala Municipality.
Sports in Motala
Motala is home to several sports clubs:
- BK Zeros (football)
- IFK Motala (bandy)
- Motala AIF (football)
- Piraterna (speedway), who race at the Motala Arena
- Motala Segelsällskap
Famous People from Motala
Many notable people have come from Motala:
- Alexander Bard, a musician and activist.
- Torbjörn Caspersson (1910–1997), a scientist who studied cells.
- Sophia Isberg (1819–1875), an artist.
- Helena Kallenbäck, an actress.
- Hanna Lindblad, a musical artist and singer.
- Andreas Norlén, a politician who has been the Speaker of the Swedish Parliament since 2018.
- Ilmar Reepalu, a politician.
- Åsa Regnér, a politician.
- Agnes Sandström (1887–1985), a survivor of the Titanic.
- Lars Stjernkvist, a politician.
- Fredrik Virtanen, a journalist.
- Baltzar von Platen (1766–1829), a statesman and the founder of the Göta Kanal.
- Owe Wiktorin, a Swedish Air Force officer who was once the top commander of the Swedish Armed Forces.
See also
In Spanish: Motala para niños
