Baffin Island
From Open Encyclopedia
Image:Baffinisland.png Baffin Island (Inuktitut: Qikiqtaaluk ᕿᑭᖅᑖᓗᒃ, French: île de Baffin) is one of the Arctic Islands in the north of Canada and is part of the territory of Nunavut. It is the largest island in Canada and is the 5th largest island in the world, with an area of 507 451 km² (195,928 sq mi). It has a population of 11,000 (2004). It is named for British explorer William Baffin and was known to the Norse as Helluland.
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Geography
Iqaluit, formerly Frobisher Bay, the capital of Nunavut, is located on the southern coast, on the geographical feature for which it was named until 1987.
To the south lies Hudson Strait and Quebec on the mainland. To the east are Davis Strait and Baffin Bay and beyond them is Greenland. On the West and North, Foxe Basin, the Gulf of Boothia and Lancaster Sound separate Baffin Island from the rest of the archipelago.
Politics
Baffin is part of the Region of Baffin. Image:Baffin Island.png
Largest Communities (2001 population)
- Iqaluit (5,236)
- Pangnirtung (1,243)
- Pond Inlet (1,220)
- Clyde River (785)
- Arctic Bay (646)
- Kimmirut (433)
- Nanisivik (77)
Additionally, the communities of Qikiqtarjuaq and Cape Dorset are located on offshore islands.
Animals
The Arctic hare is an animal that Baffin Island is famous for, as well as the Beluga, a white whale that surfaces around Eardley Bay. Not much other wildlife can be found.
Climate
Baffin Island is one of the rare places on earth that experience 24 hour daylight in summer, and 24 hour darkness in winter. For example, the eastern community of Clyde River experiences continuous daylight from May 5th to August 7th, three months of perpetual midnight sun.
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