Prince Patrick Island
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Closer look at Prince Patrick Island, showing the Mould Bay weather station |
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| Geography | |
|---|---|
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| Location | Northern Canada |
| Coordinates | 76°45′02″N 119°30′12″W / 76.75056°N 119.50333°W |
| Archipelago | Queen Elizabeth Islands Canadian Arctic Archipelago |
| Area | 15,848 square kilometres (6,119 sq mi) (55th) |
| Highest point | unnamed (279 metres (920 ft)) |
| Country | |
| Canada | |
| Territory |  Northwest Territories |
| Demographics | |
| Population | Uninhabited |
A member of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Prince Patrick Island is the westernmost of the Queen Elizabeth Islands in the Northwest Territories of Canada. The area of the island is 15,848 km2 (6,119 sq mi),[1] making it the 55th largest island in the world and Canada's 14th largest island. It has historically been icebound all year, making it one of the most inaccessible parts of Canada.
Located at the entrance of the McClure Strait, Prince Patrick Island is uninhabited. A High Arctic Weather Station (H.A.W.S.) called Mould Bay was opened in 1948 as part of a joint Canada-U.S. military effort to support a weather station network. Regular weather observations began on May 14, 1948. It had a temporary staff of between 10 and 40 people. The station was closed in 1997 owing to budget cuts and replaced with an automated weather station at a new location on the airstrip below the station. The last manned weather observations were taken on March 31, 1997, ending the continuous weather record of 1948-1997. The buildings still stand, but as of 2007 most have deteriorated to an unrepairable state.[2] The station represented the only known long-term human settlement of the Island.
Prince Patrick Island was first explored in 1853 and (much later) named for Prince Arthur William Patrick, Duke of Connaught, who was Governor General 1911-16.
The island rises to only about 279 m (920 ft),[3] and the area is seismically active.
Prince Patrick Island is the setting for a work of fiction, the novel The Lost Ones (1961) by Ian Cameron (Donald G. Payne). It was filmed as the Walt Disney Pictures film The Island at the Top of the World in 1974. The novel tells of a lost colony of Vikings living in a lost valley in the island, which, thanks to the volcanoes on the island, is warm and habitable.
[edit] Further reading
- Frebold, Hans. Fauna, Age and Correlation of the Jurassic Rocks of Prince Patrick Island. Ottawa: E. Cloutier, Queen's printer, 1957.
- Harrison, J. C., and T. A. Brent. Basins and fold belts of Prince Patrick Island and adjacent areas, Canadian Arctic Islands. [Ottawa]: Geological Survey of Canada, 2005. ISBN 0660190087
- Miller, F. L. Peary Caribou and Muskoxen on Prince Patrick Island, Eglinton Island, and Emerald Isle, Northwest Territories, July 1986. [Edmonton]: Canadian Wildlife Service, 1987. ISBN 0662156528
- Pissart, A. The Pingos of Prince Patrick Island (760N - 1200W). Ottawa: National Research Council of Canada, 1970.
- Tedrow, John C. F., P. F. Bruggemann, and Grant Fontain Walton. Soils of Prince Patrick Island. Research paper (Arctic Institute of North America), no. 44. Washington: Arctic Institute of North America, 1968.
Charles J Hubbard (Shortly after the close of World War II), began to rouse interest in the United States and Canada for the establishment of a network of Arctic stations. His plan, in broad perspective, envisaged the establishment of two main stations, one in Greenland and the other within the Archipelago, which could be reached by sea supply. These main stations would then serve as advance bases from which a number of smaller stations would be established by air. The immediate plans contemplated the establishment of weather stations only, but it was felt that a system of weather stations would also provide a nucleus of transportation, communications and settlements which would greatly aid programmes of research in many other fields of science. It was recognized that ultimate action would depend on international co-operation since the land masses involved were under Canadian and Danish control. http://lteuicmbrb.multiply.com/
[edit] References
- ^ Prince Patrick Island at the Atlas of Canada
- ^ See Mould Bay photographs for types of construction.
- ^ Prince Patrick Island High Point, Northwest Territories
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Prince Patrick Island |
- Prince Patrick Island on the Canada's Arctic website.
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Coordinates: 76°45′02″N 119°30′12″W / 76.75056°N 119.50333°W
