Kulusuk Island
Encyclopedia
Kulusuk Island is an island in the Sermersooq
municipality on the southeastern shore of Greenland
. It is an outlying island in the Ammassalik archipelago of islands on the coast of the North Atlantic. The island is home to Kulusuk
, the fourth-largest settlement on the entire eastern coast of Greenland. The island is small, 8 km (5 mi) from north to south and 11 km (6.8 mi) from west to east.
To the northeast the island is separated from the Apusiaajik Island
by the Ikaasaartik Strait
. In the north, the Torsuut Tunoq
sound separates it from the small, uninhabited Akinaaq island, ultimately linking it to the Ammassalik Fjord in the northwest. To the south and east the island shores are washed by the icy waters of the North Atlantic, through which flows the East Greenland Current
.
A group of tiny skerries
surrounds the coastline in the west, as well as in the north in the vicinity of the village. From north to south, the western skerries are: Sitte, Puullortuluk, Ittitalik, Ittive, and Saattit.
, at 676 m (2,217.8 ft)topping a wide mountain massif in the southeast, directly above the Kulusuk Airport
. Qalorujoorneq has three ridges. Its southeastern ridge extends to the southeastern promontory on the island, with two distinct peaks: Saajat at 603 metres (1,978 ft) and Kangeq at 280 metres (919 ft).
in the heart of the island directly west of the western wall of Qalorujoorneq. Its northern shore is situated just shy of the shallow saddle in the northwestern ridge of the mountain, directly above the airport. During the brief summer a stream flows to the west, to then turn north through the depression in the center of the island, to join the second-largest lake on the island, serving as a water reservoir for the settlement. The reservoir empties into a smaller pond on the edge of the village just south of the coastal scarp. The outflow from the reservoir leads to the west, through a series of smaller interior lakes, draining into Tiivtingaleq bay. All lakes and streams are frozen during winter.
Sermersooq
Sermersooq is a new municipality in Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. It is home to Nuuk , the capital of Greenland, and is the most populous municipality in the country, with 21,232 inhabitants as of January 2010...
municipality on the southeastern shore of Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. It is an outlying island in the Ammassalik archipelago of islands on the coast of the North Atlantic. The island is home to Kulusuk
Kulusuk
Kulusuk is a settlement in the Sermersooq municipality in southeastern Greenland, located on an island of the same name. The settlement population of 286 is quite uncommon for an Inuit settlement in Greenland with many Danes choosing to live there, due to the airport...
, the fourth-largest settlement on the entire eastern coast of Greenland. The island is small, 8 km (5 mi) from north to south and 11 km (6.8 mi) from west to east.
Geography
The island is hilly throughout, with several distinct mountains dominating the eastern and southern coast. The southernmost point is the Naujaangivit cape ( − a name often extended to the settlement or the island) under the Isikajia mountain (336 m (1,102.4 ft)).To the northeast the island is separated from the Apusiaajik Island
Apusiaajik Island
Apusiaajik Island is an uninhabited island in the Sermersooq municipality on the southeastern shore of Greenland. It is an outlying island in the Ammassalik archipelago of islands on the coast of the North Atlantic....
by the Ikaasaartik Strait
Ikaasaartik Strait
Ikaasaartik Strait is a strait in the Sermersooq municipality, on the southeastern coast of Greenland.- Geography :The strait separates Kulusuk Island in the southwest from Apusiaajik Island in the northeast...
. In the north, the Torsuut Tunoq
Torsuut Tunoq
Torsuut Tunoq is a sound on the southeastern coast of Greenland. It is an inner waterway of the North Atlantic.- Geography :...
sound separates it from the small, uninhabited Akinaaq island, ultimately linking it to the Ammassalik Fjord in the northwest. To the south and east the island shores are washed by the icy waters of the North Atlantic, through which flows the East Greenland Current
East Greenland Current
The East Greenland Current is a cold, low salinity current that extends from Fram Strait to Cape Farewell . The current is located off the eastern coast of Greenland along the Greenland continental margin. The current cuts through the Nordic Seas and through the Denmark Strait...
.
Promontories
| Name | Direction | Latitude N | Longitude W |
|---|---|---|---|
| Noorajik | Northwestern Cape | 65°33′55″ | 37°13′30″ |
| (none) | Northern Cape | 65°35′09″ | 37°07′40″ |
| Kangeq | Southeastern Cape | 65°32′10″ | 37°01′20″ |
| Naujaangivit | Southern Cape | 65°31′07″ | 37°10′58″ |
Coast
The coast of most of the island is mostly undeveloped, with the mountain walls and slopes falling directly into the ocean. In the west there are several small peninsulas and bays. The largest of the latter is Tiivtingaleq bay to the southwest of the settlement, host to a small harbour used both in all seasons as a starting point for hunting trips.A group of tiny skerries
Skerry
A skerry is a small rocky island, usually defined to be too small for habitation. It may simply be a rocky reef. A skerry can also be called a low sea stack....
surrounds the coastline in the west, as well as in the north in the vicinity of the village. From north to south, the western skerries are: Sitte, Puullortuluk, Ittitalik, Ittive, and Saattit.
Mountains
The island is hilly, and unlike its immediate neighbours, not glaciated, albeit covered with ice for more than half of the year. The highest point on the island is the summit of QalorujoorneqQalorujoorneq
Qalorujoorneq is a high mountain in southeastern Greenland, located in the eastern part of Kulusuk Island, to the southeast of the Kulusuk Airport. It is the highest mountain on the island.- Topography :- Walls :...
, at 676 m (2,217.8 ft)topping a wide mountain massif in the southeast, directly above the Kulusuk Airport
Kulusuk Airport
Kulusuk Airport is an airport in Kulusuk, a settlement on an island of the same name off the shore of the North Atlantic in the Sermersooq municipality in southeastern Greenland.- Airlines and destinations :- Bottlenecks :...
. Qalorujoorneq has three ridges. Its southeastern ridge extends to the southeastern promontory on the island, with two distinct peaks: Saajat at 603 metres (1,978 ft) and Kangeq at 280 metres (919 ft).
Lakes
There is one larger lake on the island, Qalorujoornep Tasia, located in a post-glacial cirqueCirque
Cirque may refer to:* Cirque, a geological formation* Makhtesh, an erosional landform found in the Negev desert of Israel and Sinai of Egypt*Cirque , an album by Biosphere* Cirque Corporation, a company that makes touchpads...
in the heart of the island directly west of the western wall of Qalorujoorneq. Its northern shore is situated just shy of the shallow saddle in the northwestern ridge of the mountain, directly above the airport. During the brief summer a stream flows to the west, to then turn north through the depression in the center of the island, to join the second-largest lake on the island, serving as a water reservoir for the settlement. The reservoir empties into a smaller pond on the edge of the village just south of the coastal scarp. The outflow from the reservoir leads to the west, through a series of smaller interior lakes, draining into Tiivtingaleq bay. All lakes and streams are frozen during winter.