Bernstorff Fjord
Fjord in Greenland
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Bernstorff Fjord (Danish: Bernstorff Isfjord; Greenlandic: Kangertittivaq)[1] is a fjord in King Frederick VI Coast, eastern Greenland.
| Bernstorff Fjord | |
|---|---|
| Kangertittivaq Bernstorff Isfjord | |
| Kangertittivaq (Greenlandic) | |
NASA picture with the Bernstorff Fjord in the bottom half | |
  Bernstorff Fjord Location in Greenland | |
| Location | Arctic |
| Coordinates | 63°42′N 41°10′W |
| Ocean/sea sources | North Atlantic Ocean |
| Basin countries | Greenland |
Administratively it is part of the Sermersooq municipality. The fjord was named after Danish statesman Andreas Peter Bernstorff. This fjord is almost always blocked by heavy ice.[2]
History
One of the coastal islands, Igdluluarssuk (Sattiaatteq) at the entrance of the fjord on its southern side, had had the northernmost Inuit settlement of the southern group on the east coast in the recent past.[3]
Arctic explorer Wilhelm August Graah of the Danish Navy explored this area in 1828–30, during an expedition in search of the legendary Eastern Norse Settlement.[4]
Geography
To the east the Bernstorff Fjord opens into the Irminger Sea (North Atlantic Ocean). It separates the Odinland Peninsula with its SE end, Cape Møsting to the north,[2] from the Thorland Peninsula and Cape Moltke to the south of the fjord.[5] A single island, Ensomheden, is located within the fjord about 33 kilometres (21 miles) from its mouth.[6]
The Storebjørn, Bernstorff, Fimbul and Sleipner glaciers at the head of this fjord produce massive amounts of ice.[7] The Ydun Glacier, Gerd Glacier and Gymer Glacier are smaller glaciers flowing from Odinland into the northern shore of Bernstorff Fjord, and the Tjalfe Glacier and Røskva Glacier flow from Thorland into the southern shore. The constant glacier activity produces a powerful current streaming out of the fjord which, together with the numerous ice floes, makes navigation hazardous in the area between its mouth and Umivik Bay.
See also
Bibliography
- Spencer Apollonio, Lands That Hold One Spellbound: A Story of East Greenland, 2008
