Ungava Bay#Geography
{{Short description|Bay of the Arctic Ocean, Quebec, Canada}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=April 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2024}}
{{more citations needed|date=May 2021}}
{{Infobox body of water
|name= Ungava Bay
|image=Ungawa Bay 01.jpg
|caption = Aerial view of north-eastern Ungava Bay close to Cape Chidley, seen from north-west towards south-east. In the foreground is drift-ice, in mid-July.
|image_map= Ungava Bay map.png
|location= Hudson Strait
|coords= {{Coord|59|30|N|67|30|W|type:waterbody_region:CA-NU_scale:4000000|notes={{Cite cgndb|OARFV|Ungava Bay|date=2 September 2024}}|display=inline,title|name=Ungava Bay}}
|rivers=
|pushpin_map=Canada Nunavut
|oceans= Arctic Ocean
|countries= Canada
|length= {{cvt|320|km}}
|width= {{cvt|260|km}}
|area= c. {{cvt|50000|km2}}
|settlements=
|reference="Ungava Bay", Encyclopædia Britannica, 15th edition (1992), Vol. 12, p. 129
}}
Ungava Bay ({{IPAc-en|ʊ|ŋ|ˈ|ɡ|eɪ|v|ə|,_|-|ˈ|ɡ|ɑː|-}};{{Cite web |title=Definition of 'Ungava' |url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/ungava}} {{langx|fr|baie d'Ungava}}, {{IPA|fr|bɛ duŋɡava|pron}}; {{langx|iu|ᐅᖓᕙ ᑲᖏᖅᓗᒃ}}/{{Transliteration|iu|ungava kangiqluk}}) is a bay in Nunavut, Canada separating Nunavik (far northern Quebec) from Baffin Island. Although not geographically apparent, it is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. The bay is roughly oval-shaped, about {{cvt|260|km}} at its widest point and about {{cvt|320|km}} in length; it has an area of approximately {{cvt|50000|km2}}. It is generally fairly shallow, under {{cvt|150|m}}, though at its border with the Atlantic Ocean depths of almost {{cvt|300|m}} are reached.
Geography
Although it is quite close to the open Atlantic (separated only by Hudson Strait), Ungava Bay is part of the Arctic Ocean. Ungava Bay is separated from Hudson Bay by the Ungava Peninsula. Of the many islands in Ungava Bay, Akpatok Island is largest. Bathymetric studies{{by whom|date=May 2019}} suggest that Ungava Bay may be the remnant of an impact crater (age unknown) approximately {{cvt|225|km}} in diameter.
The southwestern corner of Ungava Bay vies with the Bay of Fundy for the highest tidal range in the world.Charles T. O'Reilly, Ron Solvason, and Christian Solomon. [http://www.bofep.org/PDFfiles/BoFEP6thProceedings.pdf "Resolving the World's largest tides"], in J.A Percy, A.J. Evans, P.G. Wells, and S.J. Rolston (Editors) 2005: The Changing Bay of Fundy-Beyond 400 years, Proceedings of the 6th Bay of Fundy Workshop, Cornwallis, Nova Scotia, 29 September 2004, to 2 October 2004. Environment Canada-Atlantic Region, Occasional Report no. 23. Dartmouth, NS and Sackville, NB. Some sources{{which|date=March 2025}} estimate the spring tide range at the mouth of the Leaf River as being as high as {{convert|17|m|abbr=on}}. Attempts have been made to study the potential for producing electricity using tidal power in the bay,{{Cite journal |last1=Kleptsova |first1=O. |last2=Pietrzak |first2=J. D. |date=1 August 2018 |title=High resolution tidal model of Canadian Arctic Archipelago, Baffin and Hudson Bay |url=https://repository.tudelft.nl/file/File_99a29039-28f0-4fc2-b7a2-6d208137ff74 |journal=Ocean Modelling |language=en |volume=128 |pages=15–47 |doi=10.1016/j.ocemod.2018.06.001 |bibcode=2018OcMod.128...15K |issn=1463-5003}}{{Cite web |last=Government of Canada |first=Public Services and Procurement Canada |title=Information archivée dans le Web |url=https://publications.gc.ca/site/archivee-archived.html?url=https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2012/mpo-dfo/Fs97-17-13-eng.pdf |access-date=11 March 2023 |website=publications.gc.ca}}https://natural-resources.canada.ca/sites/www.nrcan.gc.ca/files/canmetenergy/files/pubs/CHC-TR-041.pdf but this is made difficult by the harsh climate and the fact that the bay is ice-free for only a small part of the year.
Climate
Due to the influence of the Labrador Current, summers are too cold for tree growth and all the land surrounding the bay is treeless tundra. Typically, temperatures in summer at Kuujjuaq about {{cvt|20|km}} up the Koksoak River are about {{cvt|7|C}}, while winter temperatures are about {{cvt|−20|C}}. Precipitation averages around {{cvt|400|–|450|mm}} per year, most of it falling in the summer.
Human development
Ungava Bay is surrounded by numerous Inuit villages, the largest of which is Kuujjuaq, at the mouth of the Koksoak River. Iron ore has been mined in the past, but despite the high grade of the ores the impossibility of cheap transportation meant that mining was discontinued in 1980. Traditional Inuit hunting activities still dominate the region's life, along with adventure tourism.
See also
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- [http://www.nfb.ca/film/Across_Arctic_Ungava/ Across Arctic Ungava (1949)]. An online documentary from the National Film Board of Canada.
{{Bays of Nunavut}}
{{Authority control}}