Inussullissuaq Island

Inussullissuaq

Aerial view of Inussullissuaq Island
Inussullissuaq Island (Greenland)
Geography
Location	Greenland
Coordinates	74°24′50″N 57°0′0″W / 74.41389°N 57.00000°W / 74.41389; -57.00000Coordinates: 74°24′50″N 57°0′0″W / 74.41389°N 57.00000°W / 74.41389; -57.00000
Archipelago	Upernavik Archipelago
Length	1.9 km (1.18 mi)
Width	6.3 km (3.91 mi)
Country
Greenland
Municipality	Qaasuitsup

Inussulissuaq Island (old spelling: Inugsuligssuaq) is a small uninhabited island in the Melville Bay region of the Upernavik Archipelago in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. The name of the island means "a large cairn" in the Greenlandic language.

Geography

Inussulissuaq Island is located in the northern part of Inussulik Bay, approximately 6 km (3.7 mi) south of Kiatassuaq Island, and 8.5 km (5.3 mi) west of the mainland Sanningassorsuaq Peninsula.^[1] There is a small freshwater lake on the southern coast. The highest point on the island is an unnamed summit at 560 m (1,840 ft).^[1]

Promontories

Left: western cape. Right: eastern cape

History

Inussullissuaq Island has never been permanently inhabited due to its small size. In 1930 it briefly served as a polar station for Knud Rasmussen,^[2] the Greenlandic polar explorer and anthropologist. The station was named Bjørne Borg (or Bjørneborg, a bear castle). Its ruins can still be found on the island.^[2]

Settlement

Kullorsuaq is the closest settlement to the island, located on an island of the same name to the north of Kiatassuaq Island, 19.6 km (12.2 mi) away. In the south, the Nuussuaq village on the southern coast of Nuussuaq Peninsula is located 33.4 km (20.8 mi). The island is accessible only by boat, and thus the distances to reach it are longer due to the need to navigate around the Kiatassuaq Island and Nuussuaq Peninsula, respectively.

References

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