Editing Research Triangle (section)

{{Short description|Geographic region of North Carolina, U.S.}}
{{Redirect|Raleigh–Durham|the airport|Raleigh–Durham International Airport|the research park|Research Triangle Park|the adjacent geographic area|Piedmont Triad}}
{{use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name          = Research Triangle
| settlement_type        = [[Combined Statistical Area]]
| image_skyline      = {{multiple image
| border                   = infobox
| total_width              = 300
| perrow                   = 1
| image1                   = Raleigh Skyline.jpg
| image2                   = SKYL038 Durham Overcast Skyline DiscoverDurham.jpg
| image3                   = Old Well (42522262).jpeg
}}
| image_caption          = Representations of the Research Triangle (from top to bottom): skyline of [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]], skyline of [[Durham, North Carolina|Durham]], and the [[Old Well]] in [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina|Chapel Hill]]
|image_map              = {{maplink|frame=yes|plain=yes|frame-align=center|frame-width=290|frame-height=240|zoom=8|frame-coord={{coord|35.8700|-78.7800}}
| type1=shape|id1=Q502526|title1=Franklin County|stroke-color1=#720000|stroke-width1=0.5|fill1=#720000|fill-opacity1=0.4
| type2=shape|id2=Q497938|title2=Johnston County|stroke-color2=#720000|stroke-width2=0.5|fill2=#720000|fill-opacity2=0.4
| type3=shape|id3=Q506215|title3=Wake County|stroke-color3=#720000|stroke-width3=0.5|fill3=#720000|fill-opacity3=0.4
| type4=shape|id4=Q504410|title4=Chatham County|stroke-color4=#0000FF|stroke-width4=0.5|fill4=#0000FF|fill-opacity4=0.4
| type5=shape|id5=Q428298|title5=Durham County|stroke-color5=#0000FF|stroke-width5=0.5|fill5=#0000FF|fill-opacity5=0.4
| type6=shape|id6=Q502503|title6=Granville County|stroke-color6=#0000FF|stroke-width6=0.5|fill6=#0000FF|fill-opacity6=0.4
| type7=shape|id7=Q507957|title7=Orange County|stroke-color7=#0000FF|stroke-width7=0.5|fill7=#0000FF|fill-opacity7=0.4
| type8=shape|id8=Q508271|title8=Person County|stroke-color8=#0000FF|stroke-width8=0.5|fill8=#0000FF|fill-opacity8=0.4
| type9=shape|id9=Q497861|title9=Harnett County|stroke-color9=#FBBF00|stroke-width9=0.5|fill9=#FFFE00|fill-opacity9=0.4
| type10=shape|id10=Q507838|title10=Lee County|stroke-color10=#FF9200|stroke-width10=0.5|fill10=#FF9200|fill-opacity10=0.4
| type11=shape|id11=Q507981|title11=Vance County|stroke-color11=#00FFFF|stroke-width11=0.5|fill11=#00FFFF|fill-opacity11=0.4
| type12=shape|id12=Q41087|title12=City of Raleigh|stroke-color12=#CE1126|stroke-width12=0.5|fill12=#CE1126|fill-opacity12=0.4
| type13=shape|id13=Q49229|title13=City of Durham|stroke-color13=#007272|stroke-width13=0.5|fill13=#007272|fill-opacity13=0.4
| type14=shape|id14=Q671812|title14=Town of Chapel Hill|stroke-color14=#FF00FF|stroke-width14=0.5|fill14=#FF00FF|fill-opacity14=0.4
}}
| map_caption           = Map of Raleigh–Durham–Cary, NC [[Combined Statistical Area|CSA]]
{{Col-begin}}
{{Col-break}}
{{leftlegend|#C39290|Raleigh–Cary [[Metropolitan Statistical Area|MSA]]}}
{{leftlegend|#0000FF|Durham–Chapel Hill MSA}}
{{leftlegend|#FFFE00|Anderson Creek [[µSA]]}}
{{leftlegend|#FF9200|Sanford [[µSA]]}}{{leftlegend|#00FFFF|Henderson [[µSA]]}}
{{leftlegend|#CE1126|[[Raleigh, North Carolina|City of Raleigh]]}}
{{leftlegend|#007272|[[Durham, North Carolina|City of Durham]]}}
{{leftlegend|#FF00FF|[[Chapel Hill, North Carolina|Town of Chapel Hill]]}}
{{Col-end}}
| subdivision_type   = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name   = [[File:Flag of United States.svg|border|23px]] [[United States]]
| subdivision_type1  = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1  = [[File:Flag of North Carolina.svg|border|23px]] [[North Carolina]]
| subdivision_type2      = Largest city
| subdivision_name2      = [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]]
| subdivision_type3      = Other cities
| subdivision_name3      = [[Durham, North Carolina|Durham]]<br>[[Chapel Hill, North Carolina|Chapel Hill]]<br>[[Cary, North Carolina|Cary]]
| unit_pref              = US
| area_total_sq_mi       = 4766
| population_as_of       = 2020
| population_footnotes   = 
| population_note        = 
| population_blank1_title = [[Combined Statistical Area|CSA]]
| population_blank1      =  2106463 ([[Combined Statistical Area|32nd]])
| population_density_sq_mi= 442
| demographics_type2       = GDP
| demographics2_footnotes  = <ref>{{Cite web|title= Total Gross Domestic Product for Raleigh, NC (MSA)|url= https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NGMP39580 |website= fred.stlouisfed.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title= Total Gross Domestic Product for Durham-Chapel Hill, NC (MSA) |url= https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/NGMP20500 |website= fred.stlouisfed.org}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=GDP by county in 2021|url=https://www.bea.gov/sites/default/files/2022-12/lagdp1222.pdf|website=www.bea.gov}}</ref>
|demographics2_title1     = Raleigh–Durham–Cary (CSA)
|demographics2_info1      = $183.624 billion (2022)
|demographics2_title2     = Raleigh (MSA)
|demographics2_info2      = $119.675 billion (2022)
|demographics2_title3     = Durham-Chapel Hill (MSA)
|demographics2_info3      = $63.950 billion (2022)
|timezone               = [[Eastern Time Zone|EST]]
|utc_offset             = −5
|timezone_DST           = [[Eastern Time Zone|EDT]]
|utc_offset_DST         = −4
|area_code              = [[Area codes 919 and 984|919, 984]]
}}

The '''Research Triangle''', or simply '''The Triangle''', are both common nicknames for a metropolitan area in the [[Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont]] region of the [[U.S. state]] of [[North Carolina]]. Anchored by the cities of [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]] and [[Durham, North Carolina|Durham]] and the town of [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina|Chapel Hill]], the region is home to three major research universities: [[North Carolina State University]], [[Duke University]], and the [[University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill]], respectively. The "Triangle" name originated in the 1950s with the creation of [[Research Triangle Park]] located between the three anchor cities, which is the largest [[Science park|research park]] in the United States and home to numerous [[high tech]] companies.<ref name="AboutRTP">{{cite web|url=https://www.rtp.org/|title=The Research Triangle Park|publisher=Rtp.org|access-date=2013-05-16|archive-date=2013-05-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524163633/http://www.rtp.org/|url-status=live}}</ref> 

The nine-county region, officially named the '''Raleigh–Durham–Cary, NC [[Combined Statistical Area]]''' by the [[Office of Management and Budget]], comprises the [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]]–[[Cary, North Carolina|Cary]], [[Durham, North Carolina|Durham]]–[[Chapel Hill, North Carolina|Chapel Hill]], and [[Henderson, North Carolina|Henderson]], NC [[Metropolitan statistical area|Metropolitan Statistical Areas]]. The 2020 census put the population of the area at 2,106,463, making it the second-largest combined statistical area in North Carolina, behind [[Charlotte metropolitan area|Charlotte]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/popest/2010s-total-metro-and-micro-statistical-areas.html|title=Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas Population Totals: 2010–2019|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|access-date=2020-03-29}}</ref> The Raleigh–Durham television market includes a broader 24-county area which includes [[Fayetteville, North Carolina]], and has a population of 2,726,000 persons.<ref>Nielsen Station Index, Viewers in Profile, Raleigh–Durham (Fayetteville), NC May 2010</ref> Most of the Triangle is part of North Carolina's [[North Carolina's 1st congressional district|first]], [[North Carolina's 2nd congressional district|second]], [[North Carolina's 4th congressional district|fourth]], [[North Carolina's 9th congressional district|ninth]], and [[North Carolina's 13th congressional district|thirteenth]] congressional districts.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rakich |first=Ryan Best, Aaron Bycoffe and Nathaniel |date=2021-08-09 |title=What Redistricting Looks Like In Every State - North Carolina |url=https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/redistricting-2022-maps/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210809100425/https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/redistricting-2022-maps/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 9, 2021 |access-date=2022-05-23 |website=FiveThirtyEight |language=en}}</ref>

The region is sometimes confused with the [[Piedmont Triad]], which is a North Carolina region adjacent to and directly west of the Triangle comprising [[Greensboro, North Carolina|Greensboro]], [[Winston-Salem, North Carolina|Winston-Salem]], and [[High Point, North Carolina|High Point]], among other cities. Both the Research Triangle and the Piedmont Triad form part of the [[Piedmont Crescent]], a heavily urbanized region of the state that includes the city of [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]].