Innuitian Region

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The Innuitian Region is a physiographic division of Canada's far north. [1] It is one of three physiographic divisions of the Arctic Lands physiographic region, along with the Arctic Coastal Plain, and the Arctic Lowlands. [1] The Queen Elizabeth Islands comprise most of the region, which is also considered to be part of the Arctic Archipelago.

Physiographic regions and divisions

Each physiographic region, subregion and division has its own subregions and divisions—distinguished by topography and geology. [1]

The Innuitian Region has three major mountain ranges—the Grantland, the Princess Margaret Range, and the Victoria and Albert Mountains. Between the mountains are vast plateaus, uplands and lowlands. These mountain ranges are part of the Innuitian Mountains which in turn form part of the Arctic Cordillera mountain system. On central Axel Heiberg Island and northwestern Ellesmere Island, the mountains are nearly buried by ice sheets through which the peaks project as a row of nunataks. Between these three large mountainous zones lies the Eureka Upland. To the south are the Perry Plateau and the Sverdrup Lowlands, a region of low relief, rolling, and scarped lowland. About one third of the Ellesmere and Axel Heiberg Islands are covered with ice. [2] [3]

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Geography of Canada Geographic features of Canada

Canada has a vast geography that occupies much of the continent of North America, sharing land borders with the contiguous United States to the south and the U.S. state of Alaska to the northwest. Canada stretches from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west; to the north lies the Arctic Ocean. Greenland is to the northeast and to the southeast Canada shares a maritime boundary with France's overseas collectivity of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, the last vestige of New France. By total area, Canada is the second-largest country in the world, after Russia. By land area alone, however, Canada ranks fourth, the difference being due to it having the world's largest proportion of fresh water lakes. Of Canada's thirteen provinces and territories, only two are landlocked while the other eleven all directly border one of three oceans.

Canadian Shield Geographic and geologic area of North America

The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, is a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks that forms the ancient geologic core of the North American continent. Glaciation has left the area with only a thin layer of soil, through which the composition of igneous rock resulting from long volcanic history is frequently visible. As a deep, common, joined bedrock region in eastern and central Canada, the Shield stretches north from the Great Lakes to the Arctic Ocean, covering over half of Canada and most of Greenland; it also extends south into the northern reaches of the United States. Human population is sparse and industrial development is minimal, but mining is prevalent.

Ellesmere Island Island of the Arctic Archipelago in Nunavut, Canada

Ellesmere Island is Canada's northernmost and third largest island, and the tenth largest in the world. It comprises an area of 196,235 km2 (75,767 sq mi), slightly smaller than Great Britain, and the total length of the island is 830 km (520 mi).

Queen Elizabeth Islands Northernmost group of islands of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

The Queen Elizabeth Islands are the northernmost cluster of islands in Canada's Arctic Archipelago, split between Nunavut and the Northwest Territories in Northern Canada. The Queen Elizabeth Islands contain approximately 14% of the global glacier and ice cap area.

Axel Heiberg Island Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada

Axel Heiberg Island is an uninhabited island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. Located in the Arctic Ocean, it is the 32nd largest island in the world and Canada's seventh largest island. According to Statistics Canada, it has an area of 43,178 km2 (16,671 sq mi). It is named after Axel Heiberg.

Ellef Ringnes Island

Ellef Ringnes Island is one of the Sverdrup Islands in the Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. A member of the Queen Elizabeth Islands and Arctic Archipelago, it is located in the Arctic Ocean, east of Borden Island, and west of Amund Ringnes Island. It has an area of 11,295 km2 (4,361 sq mi), making it the 69th largest island in the world and Canada's 16th largest island. Its highest mount is 260 m (850 ft).

Innuitian Mountains

The Innuitian Mountains are a mountain range in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, Canada. They are part of the Arctic Cordillera and are largely unexplored, due to the hostile climate. They are named after the northern indigenous people, the Inuit. In some locations the Innuitian Mountains measure over 2,500 m (8,202 ft) in height, and 1,290 km (802 mi) in length. The highest point is Barbeau Peak on Ellesmere Island at 2,616 m (8,583 ft). There are no trees and minimal wildlife in the Innuitian Mountains due to the harsh cold climate as well as being located north of the Arctic tree line. This region is mostly barren with vast areas of permafrost. There are metallic mineral resources including iron and zinc and fossil fuel resources such as coal.

The Arctic Lands is a physiographic region in northern Canada. It is one of Canada's seven physiographic regions, which is divided into three divisions—the Innuitian region, Arctic Coastal Plain, and Arctic Lowlands.

Arctic Cordillera Terrestrial ecozone in northern Canada

The Arctic Cordillera is a terrestrial ecozone in northern Canada characterized by a vast, deeply dissected chain of mountain ranges extending along the northeastern flank of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago from Ellesmere Island to the northeasternmost part of the Labrador Peninsula in northern Labrador and northern Quebec, Canada. It spans most of the eastern coast of Nunavut with high glaciated peaks rising through ice fields and some of Canada's largest ice caps, including the Penny Ice Cap on Baffin Island. It is bounded to the east by Baffin Bay, Davis Strait and the Labrador Sea while its northern portion is bounded by the Arctic Ocean.

The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Lowlands, or simply St. Lawrence Lowlands, is a physiographic region of Eastern Canada that comprises a section of southern Ontario bounded on the north by the Canadian Shield and by three of the Great Lakes — Lake Huron, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario — and extends along the St. Lawrence River to the Strait of Belle Isle and the Atlantic Ocean. The lowlands comprise three sub-regions that were created by intrusions from adjacent physiographic regions — the West Lowland, Central Lowland and East Lowland. The West Lowland includes the Niagara Escarpment, extending from the Niagara River to the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. The Central Lowland stretches between the Ottawa River and the St. Lawrence River. The East Lowland includes Anticosti Island, Îles de Mingan, and extends to the Strait of Belle Isle.

Alpha Ridge Major volcanic ridge under the Arctic Ocean

The Alpha Ridge is a major volcanic ridge under the Arctic Ocean between the Canada Basin and the Lomonosov Ridge. It was active during the formation of the Amerasian Basin. It was discovered in 1963. The highest elevation is about 2,700 m over the ocean floor. It is 200 to 450 km wide. The Alpha Ridge, Lomonosov Ridge, and Nansen-Gakkel Ridge are the three major ranges that divide the Arctic Ocean floor, running generally parallel to each other.

Innuitian orogeny Major tectonic episode in the Canadian Arctic and Northernmost Greenland

The Innuitian orogeny, sometimes called the Ellesmere orogeny, was a major tectonic episode responsible for the formation of a series of mountain ranges in the Canadian Arctic and Northernmost Greenland. The episode started with the earliest Paleozoic rifting, extending from Ellesmere Island to Melville Island.

Laurentian Upland Province of the larger Canadian Shield physiographic division

The Laurentian Upland is a physiographic region which, when referred to as the "Laurentian Region" or the Grenville geological province, is recognized by Natural Resources Canada as one of five provinces of the larger Canadian Shield physiographic division. The United States Geological Survey recognizes the Laurentian Upland as the larger general upland area of the Canadian Shield.

Stor Island is one of the uninhabited islands in Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is located in Eureka Sound, an area separating Axel Heiberg Island from Ellesmere Island. Fulmar Channel is southwest of the island, while Bay Fiord is to the northeast. Stor Island is a member of the Sverdrup Islands, Queen Elizabeth Islands, and the Canadian Arctic Archipelago.

Hoved Island is part of the Qikiqtaaluk Region of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. The island is located between the Svendsen and Bjorne peninsulas, and within the Baumann Fiord of Ellesmere Island, considered part of the Queen Elizabeth Islands, in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. It comprises an area of 158 km2 (61 sq mi).

Ulvingen Island is one of the uninhabited islands in Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is located in Norwegian Bay between Axel Heiberg Island and Ellesmere Island's Raanes Peninsula. It is a member of the Sverdrup Islands, Queen Elizabeth Islands, and the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Hare Point is situated at the island's southern tip.

The Kazan Region is a physiographic province of Canada and the part of the Canadian Shield that is located in extreme northeastern Alberta, northern Manitoba, and Saskatchewan, and also in parts of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

The Eurekan orogeny was a Phanerozoic mountain building event that affected the eastern portion of the Arctic Archipelago and, to a lesser extent, northern Greenland. Deformation initiated in the Late Cretaceous, during which time the Sverdrup Basin began to fragment and fold in response to the counterclockwise rotation of Greenland, caused by seafloor spreading in the Canadian Arctic Rift System. Isostatic uplift was most pronounced in the Grantland Mountains and Victoria and Albert Mountains on Ellesmere Island and in the Princess Margaret Range on Axel Heiberg Island, as evidenced by the current physiography. Compression in a broad zone on Ellesmere Island resulted in the formation of the Eurekan Fold Belt.

The Appalachian Uplands is a physiographic region in Canada. It is one of seven physiographic regions in Canada distinguished by its topography and geology. The region includes southern Quebec, Gaspésie, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and the island of Newfoundland.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Physiographic Regions". Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Borderlands: Arctic Physiographic Regions". Natural Resources Canada. 2007. Archived from the original on December 15, 2007. Retrieved December 28, 2007.
  3. ↑ French, Hugh M.; Slaymaker, Olav (1993). Canada's Cold Environments. McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. pp. 13, 15. ISBN   0-7735-1636-0.
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