Tasersuatsiaq (old spelling: ''Taserssuatsiaq'') is a
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
in central-western
Greenland
Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...
, in the
Qeqqata
Qeqqata (, da, Centrum, lit=Centre) is a municipality in western Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. The municipality was named after its location in the central-western part of the country. Its population is 9,378 as of January 2020. Th ...
municipality. It is located southeast of
Kangerlussuaq
Kangerlussuaq (; ; da, Søndre Strømfjord), is a settlement in western Greenland in the Qeqqata municipality located at the head of the fjord of the same name. It is Greenland's main air transport hub and the site of Greenland's largest commer ...
, with a depth of , covering an area of 750ha. During the operating years of the American base at
Bluie West Eight at Kangerlussuaq the lake was referred to as Lake Ferguson. The lake and the Roklubben Restaurant at its western shore are connected to Kangerlussuaq by a gravel road, one of the very few in Greenland.
Tasersuatsiaq is a source of fresh water for Kangerlussuaq.
Geography
The 2x6km lake is separated from the valleys of
Qinnguata Kuussua
Qinnguata Kuussua is a river in a valley of the same name in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Its source is a large meltwater outflow from Russell Glacier flowing from the Greenland Ice Sheet. It is the main river in the ...
and
Akuliarusiarsuup Kuua
Akuliarusiarsuup Kuua ( da, Sandflugtdalen) is a river and valley of the same name in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Its source is the meltwater outflow from Russell Glacier, an outflow of the Greenland ice sheet. The ri ...
, as well as the Kangerlussuaq settlement in the north by a low
tundra
In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless moun ...
ridge of Qaarsorsuaq. To the west lies the far end of the
Kangerlussuaq Fjord
Kangerlussuaq Fjord (old spelling: ''Kangerdlugssuaq'', da, Søndre Strømfjord) is a long fjord in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. The fjord is long and between and wide, flowing from the estuary of Qinnguata Kuussua r ...
. On the southern and eastern side it is bounded by a vast highland of
Ammalortup Nunaa, the original region artificially populated with 27
muskox
The muskox (''Ovibos moschatus'', in Latin "musky sheep-ox"), also spelled musk ox and musk-ox, plural muskoxen or musk oxen (in iu, ᐅᒥᖕᒪᒃ, umingmak; in Woods Cree: ), is a hoofed mammal of the family Bovidae. Native to the Arctic, i ...
en.
Flora and fauna
The bottom of the lake is covered with
pondweed
Pondweed refers to many species and genera of aquatic plants and green algae:
*''Potamogeton'', a diverse and worldwide genus
*''Elodea'', found in North America
*''Aponogeton'', in Africa, Asia and Australasia
*''Groenlandia'', a genus of aquatic ...
meadows.
Ole Pedersen, Klaus Peter Brodersen (University of Copenhagen); Tropica Aquarium Plants
/ref> Muskoxen and reindeer are common in the area.
References
{{reflist
Kangerlussuaq
Lakes of Greenland