Cape York (Greenland)

This article is about Cape York (Greenland). For the cape in Australia with the same name, see Cape York Peninsula.
Cape York
Location within Greenland

Cape York is a cape on the northwestern coast of Greenland, in northern Baffin Bay. The cape, located 37 km (23 mi) west-south-west of the Savissivik settlement, delimits the northwestern end of Melville Bay, with the other end commonly defined as Wilcox Head, the western promontory on Kiatassuaq Island.[1]

History

The cape was the one of many places visited in 1894 by Admiral Robert Peary during his second expedition to the Arctic. Cape York was the site of discovery of the Cape York Meteorite. In the Greenlandic language, the name of the settlement Savissivik means 'place of meteorite iron' (savik = iron/knife),[2] alluding to the numerous meteorites from 10,000 years ago that have been found in the area.[3] The meteorite is estimated to have weighed 100 tonnes before it exploded.[3] The iron from the meteorite attracted migrating Inuit from Arctic Canada.[3]

Photographs

Coordinates: 75°54′40″N 66°24′45″W / 75.91111°N 66.41250°W / 75.91111; -66.41250

References

  1. ↑ Upernavik Avannarleq, Saga Map, Tage Schjøtt, 1992
  2. ↑ quarkexpeditions.com
  3. 1 2 3 "Lured by iron meteorite". Suluk (Air Greenland) 4: 6. 2010.
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