Hudson Bay
Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of 1,230,000 km2 (470,000 sq mi). It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast of Nunavut, but politically entirely part of Nunavut. It is an inland marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. The Hudson Strait provides a connection between the Labrador Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the northeast, while the Foxe Channel connects the Hudson Bay with the Arctic Ocean in the north. It drains a very large area, about 3,861,400 km2 (1,490,900 sq mi), that includes parts of southeastern Nunavut, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec, all of Manitoba, and parts of the U.S. states of North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Montana. Hudson Bay's southern arm is called James Bay.
| Hudson Bay | |
|---|---|
| |
Hudson Bay, Canada | |
Hudson Bay Location of Hudson Bay within Canada | |
| Location | Canada |
| Coordinates | 60°N 86°W |
| Type | Bay |
| Etymology | Henry Hudson |
| Ocean/sea sources | Arctic Ocean |
| Catchment area | 3,861,400 km2 (1,490,900 sq mi) |
| Basin countries | Canada and the United States |
| Max. length | 1,370 km (850 mi) |
| Max. width | 1,050 km (650 mi) |
| Surface area | 1,230,000 km2 (470,000 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 100 m (330 ft) |
| Max. depth | 270 m (890 ft) |
| Max. temperature | 8 to 27 °C (46 to 81 °F) |
| Min. temperature | −51 to −29 °C (−60 to −20 °F) |
| Frozen | middle of December to middle of June |
| Islands | ≈ 1,500 |
| Settlements | Rankin Inlet, Arviat, Puvirnituq, Churchill |
| References | |
The Eastern Cree name for Hudson and James Bay is Wînipekw (Southern dialect) or Wînipâkw (Northern dialect), meaning muddy or brackish water. Lake Winnipeg is similarly named by the local Cree, as is the location for the city of Winnipeg.