Rodez ( or ; , ) is a small city and commune in the South of France, about 150 km northeast of Toulouse. It is the prefecture of the department of Aveyron, region of Occitania (formerly Midi-Pyrénées). Rodez is the seat of the communauté d'agglomération Rodez Agglomération, of the First Constituency of Aveyron as well as of the general Council of Aveyron. Former capital of the Rouergue, the city is seat of the Diocese of Rodez and Vabres. Its inhabitants are called Ruthénois, from the name of the Ruteni, a Gallic tribe which once occupied the territory, the former demonym of "Rodanois" (from Occitan rodanés) having given way to this scholarly form. Geography Location Located in the south of France, in the heart of the triangle formed by Toulouse, Clermont-Ferrand and Montpellier, in the western foothills of the Massif Central, the Rodez landscape is situated between the valleys and high plateaus of and the moist hills of Ségala. It extends into , with the communes of Onet-le-Château, Sainte-Radegonde, Le Monastère, Olemps and Luc-la-Primaube, which forms an agglomeration of 83,000 habitants adjoining the city of Rodez. Geology and landforms The territory of Rodez is packed with geological diversity. It straddles the ancient base of Ségala composed of acidic siliceous soil of Les Rougiers consisting of red argillite, and causses composed of limestones and marls. The city was built on a conical isolated terrain, locally called Le Piton, and gradually spread to the surrounding slopes. It is located in a seismicity level 2 zone which is a low level. Hydrography The Aveyron crosses the commune and is important for fishing. Green spaces are proposed for the Quarter, and the stream. Climate Rodez's climate, a supra-Mediterranean level, is a Mediterranean climate (Csb), and is colder compared to other cities in the south of France. Winters are sharp and summers often very hot and sunny. During winter, Rodez has occasional snowfall due to its low altitude of in contrast to other towns in the north of the department closer to the higher Aubrac plateau. In 2011, with nearly 2,400 hours or 304 days of sunshine per year, Rodez was ranked 2,407th of French cities in terms of sunshine, significantly above the national average. Events based on the data of Météo-France at Millau Soulobres station, from 1965: On 28 January 2006, Rodez experienced an important snow episode. A metre of powdery snow accumulated, crippling the