Borden Island

Borden Island

Borden Island, Northwest Territories and Nunavut
Borden Island Show map of Northwest Territories Borden Island Show map of Nunavut Borden Island Show map of Canada
Geography
Location	Northern Canada
Coordinates	78°30′03″N 111°13′12″W
Archipelago	Queen Elizabeth Islands Arctic Archipelago
Area	2,795 km^2 (1,079 sq mi)
Length	94 km (58.4 mi)
Width	82 km (51 mi)
Administration
Canada
Territory	Nunavut; Northwest Territories
Demographics
Population	Uninhabited

Borden Island is an uninhabited, low-lying island in the Queen Elizabeth Islands of northern Canada.^[1] Split between Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, it is the northernmost point of the latter.

Some features and history

With an area of 2,795 km² (1,079 sq mi) in size, 93.9 kilometres (58.3 mi) long and 82 kilometres (51 mi) wide, Borden is the 171st largest island in the world, and Canada's 30th largest island. It lies north of Mackenzie King Island and is similarly split between the Northwest Territories (larger portion) and Nunavut, with the border running along the 110th meridian west.^[2]

The first known sighting of the island was by Vilhjalmur Stefansson in 1916, it was originally described as a single landmass.^[3] However, in 1947, during an aerial survey by the Royal Canadian Air Force the island was found to be two islands divided by Wilkins Strait.^[4]

Naming

The island is named for Robert Borden, Prime Minister of Canada 1911–1920.^[5]

References

1. "Borden Island". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
2. "Mackenzie King Island | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
3. Stefansson, Vilhjalmur (1922). The Friendly Arctic: The Story of Five Years in Polar Regions. New York: Macmillan.
4. Thomson, Don W., Skyview Canada: A Story of Aerial Photography in Canada, R.B.W. Ltd: Ottawa, Canada, 1975, p. 130
5. "Canadian Leaders - Sir Robert Borden". Canada and the First World War. Retrieved September 19, 2021.

Further reading

• Geological Survey of Canada, John Adams, and Heather Penney. The 1956 June 3 Arctic Margin Earthquake Off Borden Island, Northwest Territories. Open file (Geological Survey of Canada), 2693. 1993.

Borden Island, shown at the northeast of the map.

External links

• Borden Island in the Atlas of Canada – Toporama; Natural Resources Canada