Nansen Land is a

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

in far northwestern

Greenland Greenland is an autonomous territory in the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark. It is by far the largest geographically of three constituent parts of the kingdom; the other two are metropolitan Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Citizens of Greenlan ...

. It is a part of the

Northeast Greenland National Park Northeast Greenland National Park (, ) is the world's largest national park and the 10th largest protected area (the only larger protected areas consist mostly of sea). Established in 1974, the Northeast Greenland national park expanded to its p ...

. The

Arctic wolf The Arctic wolf (''Canis lupus arctos''), also known as the white wolf, polar wolf, and the Arctic grey wolf, is a Subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of grey wolf native to the High Arctic tundra of Canada's Queen Elizabeth Islands, from Me ...

is present in the peninsula. The northern shore facing the Lincoln sea slopes evenly and is fertile for the area, being the northernmost limit of certain plant species.

History

Nansen Land was named after Arctic explorer

Fridtjof Nansen Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 1861 – 13 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, humanitarian and co-founded the ...

(1861–1930) at the time of

Knud Rasmussen Knud Johan Victor Rasmussen (; 7 June 1879 – 21 December 1933) was a Greenlandic-Danish polar explorer and anthropologist. He has been called the "father of Eskimology" (now often known as Inuit Studies or Greenlandic and Arctic Studies) ...

's Thule expeditions. American geologist William E. Davies called the wider range north of J.P. Koch Fjord and Frederick E. Hyde Fjord the "Nansen-Jensen Alps", with the westernmost foothills in Nansen Land, stretching past the De Long Fjord area across

Roosevelt Land Roosevelt Land () is a peninsula in far northern Greenland. It is a part of the Northeast Greenland National Park.Google Maps The territory was named by Robert Peary after US President Theodore Roosevelt (1858 – 1919). Geography Roosevelt Land ...

and the

Roosevelt Range The Roosevelt Range or Roosevelt Mountains () is a mountain range in Northern Greenland. Administratively this range is part of the Northeast Greenland National Park. Its highest peak is the highest point in Peary Land. Located about from the N ...

, and reaching all the way to Johannes V. Jensen Land in the east.W. E. Davies, ''Landscape of Northern Greenland'' 1972

Geography

Nansen Land is located to the northeast of

Freuchen Land Freuchen Land is a peninsula in far northwestern Greenland. It is a part of the Northeast Greenland National Park. History Freuchen Land was named after Arctic explorer Peter Freuchen (1886–1957), who took part in the 1906–1908 Denmark exp ...

, east of Sverdrup Island, and west of

Borup Island Borup Island (), also known as West Jensen Island, is an uninhabited island of the Lincoln Sea in Peary Land, far northern Greenland. The island was formerly named after Danish zoologist Adolf Severin Jensen (1866 - 1953), professor at the Univer ...

and

Amundsen Land Amundsen Land () or Amundsenland, is a peninsula in central North Greenland. It is a part of the Northeast Greenland National Park.Google Maps The territory was named after Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen (1872 – 1928). Geography Amundsen Lan ...

. The westernmost headland is

Cape Payer A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used thr ...

and the northernmost headland is

Cape Mohn A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used thr ...

, the northern end of an island at the entrance of

De Long Fjord De Long Fjord is a fjord system in Peary Land, northern Greenland. To the northwest, the fjord opens into the Lincoln Sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is part of the Northeast Greenland National Park. The fjord is named after arctic explorer George W ...

, separated from Nansen Land by a narrow sound. The peninsula is bounded to the west by the

Mascart Sund Mascart is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Éleuthère Mascart (1837–1908), French physicist * Jean Mascart (1872–1935), French astronomer and mathematician See also * Cape Mascart, on Adelaide Island Adelaide Island ...

, to the southwest by the J.P. Koch Fjord and to the east by the

Brainard Sund Brainard may refer to: * 99928 Brainard, asteroid within Sol system Places * Brainard, California: ** Modern Brainard, California ** Early name of Bracut, California * Hartford–Brainard Airport (in Hartford, Connecticut area), for small aircraf ...

() and

Thomas Thomsen Fjord Thomas may refer to: People * List of people with given name Thomas * Thomas (name) * Thomas (surname) * Saint Thomas (disambiguation) * Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) Italian Dominican friar, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church * Thomas the A ...

, a branch of the De Long Fjord system. The peninsula is cut by faults roughly from east to west. To the southeast lies the

Hans Tausen Ice Cap Hans Tausen Ice Cap () is an ice cap in Peary Land, northern Greenland. Administratively it is part of the Northeast Greenland National Park. Age Ice cores show it is around 3500–4000 years old. It formed since the Holocene climatic optimum ...

and to the south the

Sirius Pass Sirius Passet is a Cambrian Lagerstätte in Peary Land, Greenland. The Sirius Passet Lagerstätte was named after the Slædepatruljen Sirius, Sirius sledge patrol that operates in North Greenland. It comprises six places in Nansen Land, on the eas ...

, a broad valley connecting J.P. Koch Fjord in the west and Brainard Sund in the east in the area where the peninsula is attached to the mainland and its

ice cap In glaciology, an ice cap is a mass of ice that covers less than of land area (usually covering a highland area). Larger ice masses covering more than are termed ice sheets. Description By definition, ice caps are not constrained by topogra ...

.Geology of Nansen Land
/ref> Northwestern Nansen Land is deeply indented on its

Lincoln Sea Lincoln Sea (; ) is a body of water in the Arctic Ocean, stretching from Cape Columbia, Canada, in the west to Cape Morris Jesup, Greenland, in the east. The northern limit is defined as the great circle line between those two headlands. It is co ...

shore. The main indentations are

Jewell Fjord Jewell Fjord, also known as "Jewell Inlet", is a fjord in Peary Land, northern Greenland. To the northwest, the fjord opens into the Lincoln Sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is part of the Northeast Greenland National Park. History The fjord is name ...

and

Gardiner Fjord Gardiner may refer to: Places Settlements ;Canada * Gardiner, Ontario ;United States * Gardiner, Maine * Gardiner, Montana * Gardiner (town), New York ** Gardiner (CDP), New York * Gardiner, Oregon * Gardiner, Washington * West Gardiner, ...

. The interior is mountainous and partly

glaciated A glacier (; or ) is a persistent body of dense ice, a form of rock, that is constantly moving downhill under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires d ...

GoogleEarth Google Earth is a web mapping, web and computer program created by Google that renders a 3D computer graphics, 3D representation of Earth based primarily on satellite imagery. The program maps the Earth by superimposition, superimposing satelli ...

Elevations reaching are found in the central part of the peninsula.''Prostar Sailing Directions 2005 Greenland and Iceland Enroute,'' p. 95

Bibliography

*H.P. Trettin (ed.), ''Geology of the Innuitian Orogen and Arctic Platform of Canada and Greenland.'' 1991

References

External links

Palaeomagnetism of three dyke swarms in Nansen Land, north Greenland (83° N)The Earliest Annelids: Lower Cambrian Polychaetes from the Sirius Passet Lagerstätte, Peary Land, North GreenlandGreenland Pilot
Peninsulas of Greenland Peary Land {{greenland-geo-stub