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Davis Strait is a northern arm of the
Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
that lies north of the
Labrador Sea The Labrador Sea (French: ''mer du Labrador'', Danish: ''Labradorhavet'') is an arm of the North Atlantic Ocean between the Labrador Peninsula and Greenland. The sea is flanked by continental shelves to the southwest, northwest, and northeast. It ...
. It lies between mid-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 ...
and
Baffin Island Baffin Island (formerly Baffin Land), in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, is the largest island in Canada and the fifth-largest island in the world. Its area is , slightly larger than Spain; its population was 13,039 as of the 2021 Canadia ...
in
Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the '' Nunavut Act'' and the '' Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act'' ...
, Canada. To the north is
Baffin Bay Baffin Bay (Inuktitut: ''Saknirutiak Imanga''; kl, Avannaata Imaa; french: Baie de Baffin), located between Baffin Island and the west coast of Greenland, is defined by the International Hydrographic Organization as a marginal sea of the Arc ...
. The strait was named for the English explorer John Davis (1550–1605), who explored the area while seeking a
Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the ...
. By the 1650s it was used for whale hunting.


Extent

The
International Hydrographic Organization The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) is an intergovernmental organisation representing hydrography. , the IHO comprised 98 Member States. A principal aim of the IHO is to ensure that the world's seas, oceans and navigable waters ...
defines the limits of the Davis Strait as follows:
''On the North.'' The Southern limit of
Baffin Bay Baffin Bay (Inuktitut: ''Saknirutiak Imanga''; kl, Avannaata Imaa; french: Baie de Baffin), located between Baffin Island and the west coast of Greenland, is defined by the International Hydrographic Organization as a marginal sea of the Arc ...
70°_North_between_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_...
_and_Baffin_Island.html" ;"title="70th_parallel_north.html" ;"title="he parallel of 70th parallel north">70° North between
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 ...
and Baffin Island">Baffin Land]. ''On the East.'' The Southwest coast of Greenland. ''On the South.'' The parallel of 60th parallel north, 60° North between Greenland and Labrador. ''On the West.'' The Eastern limit of the Northwestern Passages South of 70° North he East coast of Baffin Island to East Bluff, its Southeastern extremityand of
Hudson Strait Hudson Strait (french: Détroit d'Hudson) links the Atlantic Ocean and Labrador Sea to Hudson Bay in Canada. This strait lies between Baffin Island and Nunavik, with its eastern entrance marked by Cape Chidley in Newfoundland and Labrador and ...
_line_from_East_Bluff,_the_Southeast_extreme_of_Baffin_Island_(),_to_Point_Meridian,_the_Western_extreme_of_Lower_Savage_Islands,_along_the_coast_to_its_Southwestern_extreme_and_thence_a_line_across_to_the_Western_extreme_of_Resolution_Island_(Nunavut).html" ;"title="Lower_Savage_Islands.html" ;"title=" line from East Bluff, the Southeast extreme of Baffin Island (), to Point Meridian, the Western extreme of Lower Savage Islands"> line from East Bluff, the Southeast extreme of Baffin Island (), to Point Meridian, the Western extreme of Lower Savage Islands, along the coast to its Southwestern extreme and thence a line across to the Western extreme of Resolution Island (Nunavut)">Resolution Island, through its Southwestern shore to Hatton Headland, its Southern point, thence a line to Cape Chidley, Labrador ()].


Geology

The Davis Strait is underlain by complex geological features of buried
graben In geology, a graben () is a depressed block of the crust of a planet or moon, bordered by parallel normal faults. Etymology ''Graben'' is a loan word from German, meaning 'ditch' or 'trench'. The word was first used in the geologic conte ...
s (basins) and
ridge A ridge or a mountain ridge is a geographical feature consisting of a chain of mountains or hills that form a continuous elevated crest for an extended distance. The sides of the ridge slope away from the narrow top on either side. The line ...
s, formed by strike-slip faulting of the Ungava Fault Zone during
Paleogene The Paleogene ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene; informally Lower Tertiary or Early Tertiary) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period million years ago ( Mya) to the beginning o ...
times about 45 million to 62 million years ago. The strike-slip faulting transferred plate-tectonic motions in the Labrador Sea to Baffin Bay. It is the world's broadest strait.


Depth

With a water depth of between one and two thousand meters the
strait A strait is an oceanic landform connecting two seas or two other large areas of water. The surface water generally flows at the same elevation on both sides and through the strait in either direction. Most commonly, it is a narrow ocean chan ...
is substantially shallower than the
Labrador Sea The Labrador Sea (French: ''mer du Labrador'', Danish: ''Labradorhavet'') is an arm of the North Atlantic Ocean between the Labrador Peninsula and Greenland. The sea is flanked by continental shelves to the southwest, northwest, and northeast. It ...
to the south.


Tides

The strait is famous for its fierce tides that can range from , which discouraged many earlier explorers.


Oil and gas

US Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and ...
has estimated that at least 13% of the world's undiscovered oil deposits and 30% of the world's undiscovered gas pockets are located in the Arctic, with the seas around Greenland potentially holding large amounts of
natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbon d ...
and lesser amounts of
crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...
and
natural gas liquids Natural-gas condensate, also called natural gas liquids, is a low-density mixture of hydrocarbon liquids that are present as gaseous components in the raw natural gas produced from many natural gas fields. Some gas species within the raw natu ...
. This has led Greenland's minister and provincial council to offer a large number of off-shore concessions to potential hydrocarbon (oil and gas) extraction. The largest concessions areas are located in seas west of Greenland, primarily the Davis Strait and
Baffin Bay Baffin Bay (Inuktitut: ''Saknirutiak Imanga''; kl, Avannaata Imaa; french: Baie de Baffin), located between Baffin Island and the west coast of Greenland, is defined by the International Hydrographic Organization as a marginal sea of the Arc ...
, but with several smaller concessions in the
Greenland Sea The Greenland Sea is a body of water that borders Greenland to the west, the Svalbard archipelago to the east, Fram Strait and the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Norwegian Sea and Iceland to the south. The Greenland Sea is often defined a ...
in the east also.


References


Further reading

* Boertmann, David. ''Mapping of Oil Spill Sensitive Areas in the Davis Strait, West Greenland A Review of Biological Data in Relation to Oil Spill Sensitivity Mapping, with an Identification of Data Gaps''. Copenhagen, Denmark: Greenland Environmental Research Institute, 1992. * Crawford, R. E. ''Life History of the Davis Strait Greenland Halibut, with Reference to the Cumberland Sound Fishery''. Winnipeg: Dept. of Fisheries and Oceans, 1992. * * * * * * Ross, W. Gillies. ''Arctic Whalers, Icy Seas Narratives of the Davis Strait Whale Fishery''. Toronto, Canada: Irwin Pub, 1985.


External links


June 2005 satellite photograph of Davis Strait
from
MODIS The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) is a satellite-based sensor used for earth and climate measurements. There are two MODIS sensors in Earth orbit: one on board the Terra ( EOS AM) satellite, launched by NASA in 19 ...
, showing meltwater ponds {{Authority control Bodies of water of Baffin Island Canada–Greenland border International straits Straits of Canada Straits of Greenland Straits of Qikiqtaaluk Region Seas of Canada Seas of Greenland Geography of North America