- Boothia Peninsula
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〚after Sir Felix Booth (1775-1850), London distiller & promoter of Arctic expeditions〛peninsula in Nunavut, Canada: its N tip is the northernmost point of the North American mainland
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Peninsula, Nunavut, Canada.Almost an island, it is the northernmost point of the North American mainland, reaching 71°58′ N, and was formerly the location of the north magnetic pole. With an area of 12,483 sq mi (32,330 sq km), it extends into the Arctic Ocean and is separated from Baffin Island by the Gulf of Boothia and from Prince of Wales Island by the Franklin Strait. It was discovered in 1829 by James Clark Ross, who named it Boothia Felix for Sir Felix Booth, the expedition's financier. It is sparsely populated.* * *
northernmost portion of mainland North America, reaching latitude 71°58′ N, in Kitikmeot region, Nunavut territory, Canada. It was discovered in 1829 by the British explorer James (later Sir James) Ross (Ross, Sir James Clark), who named it Boothia Felix in honour of Sir Felix Booth (the expedition's financier); in 1831 Ross established the first location of the north magnetic pole on the peninsula's western coast (the pole has since migrated farther northward). Other explorers, notably Sir John Franklin (Franklin, Sir John) and Roald Amundsen (Amundsen, Roald), visited Boothia Peninsula in later years. The peninsula is a tundra-covered plateau with an area of some 12,480 square miles (32,330 square km) and a width of 120 miles (195 km). It extends 170 miles into the Arctic Ocean to a point just south of Somerset Island. The peninsula is sparsely populated; Taloyoak (Talurruaq; pop. [2006] 809) is the largest settlement.* * *
Universalium. 2010.
