Fury and Hecla Strait facts for kids
Fury and Hecla Strait is a narrow (from 2 to 20 km (1.2 to 12.4 mi) wide) Arctic seawater channel located in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. Situated between Baffin Island to the north and the Melville Peninsula to the south, it connects Foxe Basin on the east with the Gulf of Boothia on the west. Water flow in the strait is sometimes westerly and sometimes easterly – there are diurnal and semidiurnal components to the flows; tidal and subtidal effects also play a role. The strait provides Arctic Ocean drainage for Hudson Bay via Foxe Basin.
The Strait is named after the Royal Navy ships HMS Fury and HMS Hecla, which encountered the strait in 1822 during an expedition led by Sir William Edward Parry. Both ships became stuck in ice in October 1821, and remained immobile for eight months. During this time, the expedition learned of the strait from the native Inuit. Two men from the expedition set out with four Inuit on sled to assess the strait. Captain Parry would later accompany another trip to the strait.
In 1948, USS Edisto and USCGC Eastwind succeeded in crossing the strait from east to west, and HMCS Labrador succeeded in crossing the strait from west to east in 1956.
Fury and Hecla Strait is the site of an unexplained phenomenon called "The Ping", described as "acoustic anomalies" whose "sound[s] scare sea animals". It is heard in the Fury and Hecla Strait. It is being investigated by Canadian military authorities.
In August 2016, David Scott Cowper and son, Freddy Cowper, aboard M/V Polar Bound became the first vessel to transit Fury and Hecla Strait from east to west during their successful Route-7 West Northwest Passage.
See also
In Spanish: Estrecho del Fury y del Hecla para niños
