Tanquary Fiord is a

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Förden and East Jutland Fjorde, Germany, ...

on the north coast of the Arctic Archipelago's Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada. It is located in the Quttinirpaaq National Park and extends in a north-westerly direction from

Greely Fiord Greely Fiord is a natural inlet in the west of Ellesmere Island, Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut in the Arctic Archipelago. To the south lies the Cañon Fiord Cañon Fiord is a natural inlet in the west of Ellesmere Island, Nunavut in the Ar ...

History

Radiocarbon dating methods suggest that between 10,000 and 4,100 BP, deglaciation occurred, followed by a period of glacial readvance and the formation of ice shelves until 2,400 BP. Until 1,400 BP, a period of glacial retreat occurred, and since then glacial readvance and nearby

ice rise An ice rise is a clearly defined elevation of the otherwise very much flatter ice shelf, typically dome-shaped and rising several hundreds of metres above the surrounding ice shelf . An ice rise forms where the ice shelf touches the seabed due t ...

s have marked the area. Radiocarbon analysis of charcoal undertaken by the

Geological Survey of Canada The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC; french: Commission géologique du Canada (CGC)) is a Canadian federal government agency responsible for performing geological surveys of the country, developing Canada's natural resources and protecting the e ...

has shown that

Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...

were present at Tanquary Fiord around 1070 BP at the latest.

Geography

The head of the Tanquary Fiord is the convergence point of four river valleys, three of which end in a

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...

and one in a

river delta A river delta is a landform shaped like a triangle, created by deposition of sediment that is carried by a river and enters slower-moving or stagnant water. This occurs where a river enters an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, or (more ra ...

. Carbon dating findings show that the fjord was free of

glacial ice A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

approximately 6,500 years ago. In the past 40 years, the terminal points of side

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...

s have receded. Tanquary Fiord has 65 frost-free days per year (enough to grow

lettuce Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. Lettuce is most often used for salads, although it is also seen in other kinds of food, ...

), which is remarkable for its latitude. Summer temperatures of have been recorded.

Human activity

In 1963, the

Defence Research Board Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC; french: Recherche et développement pour la défense Canada, ''RDDC'') is a special operating agency of the Department of National Defence (DND), whose purpose is to provide the Canadian Armed Forces ...

began 'Operation Tanquary' in the area, with a focus on oceanography. The operation concluded in 1972. As the fjord is in a remote location, there is little human habitation. A Warden Station is staffed by Parks Canada during the summer months, and Tanquary Fiord Airport is located nearby. It is possible to reach the area via charter aircraft, or increasingly, via

icebreaker An icebreaker is a special-purpose ship or boat designed to move and navigate through ice-covered waters, and provide safe waterways for other boats and ships. Although the term usually refers to ice-breaking ships, it may also refer to smaller ...

cruise ships. In 1947, a

meteorological station A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include tempera ...

was installed at

Eureka Eureka (often abbreviated as E!, or Σ!) is an intergovernmental organisation for research and development funding and coordination. Eureka is an open platform for international cooperation in innovation. Organisations and companies applying th ...

, about southwest of the fiord. The Fiord was named by Explorer Donald Baxter MacMillan in honor of his friend and fellow explorer Maurice Cole Tanquary.MacMillan, Donald, Four Years in the White North, Harper Brothers Publishers, 1918, pg. 353. See also the Crocker Land Expedition.

References

{{Fjords of Nunavut Ellesmere Island Bodies of water of Baffin Bay Fjords of Qikiqtaaluk Region