The Land of Greenland Greenland is the world’s largest island ¼ size of US It is bordered by: Atlantic Ocean Arctic Ocean Greenland Sea Baffin Bay Labrador Sea More than three times the size of the U.S. state of Texas, Greenland extends about 1,660 miles (2,670 km) from north to south and more than 650 miles (1,050 km) from east to west at its widest point. Two-thirds of the island lies within the Arctic Circle, and the island’s northern extremity extends to within less than 500 miles (800 km) of the North Pole. Greenland is separated from Canada’s Ellesmere Island to the north by only 16 miles (26 km). The nearest European country is Iceland, lying about 200 miles (320 km) across the Denmark Strait to the southeast. Greenland’s deeply indented coastline is 24,430 miles (39,330 km) long, a distance roughly equivalent to the Earth’s circumference at the Equator. A submarine ridge no deeper than 600 feet (180 metres) connects the island physically with North America. Structurally, Greenland is an extension of the Canadian Shield, the rough plateau of the Canadian north that is made up of hard Precambrian rocks. <img alt="Greenland: Ilulissat Icefjord [Credit: Joe Capra—Scientifantastic (A Britannica Publishing Partner)]" src="http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/05/171305-003-B6E5E729.jpg" width="100" height="56"><img alt="Kangerdlugssuaq Glacier [Credit: John Sonntag—NASA/Wallops]" src="http://media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/01/97001-003-074BD1B0.jpg" width="100" height="73">Greenland’s major physical feature is its massive ice sheet, which is second only to Antarctica’s in size. The Greenland Ice Sheet has an average thickness of 5,000 feet (1,500 metres), reaches a maximum

Mountains indented by fjords run along the coasts of the country FJORDS: long, narrow deep inlets of the sea between mountains Especially west and east

Greenland also has many hot springs Geo-thermally heated ground water from the Earth’s crust

Most of Greenland’s interior (80%) is covered by thick, ancient ice that presses the central bedrock below sea level 2nd largest ice sheet on Earth Greenland bedrock at current elevation above sea level Waters are surrounded by ice bergs Its ice has been retreating due to global warming Has a predominantly arctic climate with an average temperature below 50 degrees F Precipitation in Greenland is generally all snow The Greenland Ice Sheet is a vast body of ice covering roughly 80% of the surface of Greenland. See also: Earth & Climate Global Warming Ice Ages Climate Oceanography Snow and Avalanches Geography It is the second largest ice body in the world, after the Antarctic Ice Sheet. The ice sheet is almost 2,400 kilometres long in a north-south direction, and its greatest width is 1,100 kilometres at a latitude of 77° N, near its northern margin. The ice sheet, consisting of layers of compressed snow from more than a hundred thousand years, contains in its ice today's most valuable record of past climates. In the past decades, scientists have drilled ice cores up to three kilometres deep. With the ice cores, scientist have obtained information on (proxies for) temperature, ocean volume, precipitation, chemistry and gas composition of the lower atmosphere, volcanic eruptions, solar variability, sea-surface productivity, desert extent and forest fires. This variety of climatic proxies is greater than in any other natural recorder of climate, such as tree rings or sediment layers. The Greenland Ice Sheet has experienced record melting in recent years and is likely to contribute substantially to sea level rise as well as to possible changes in ocean circulation in the future. For more information about the topic Greenland ice sheet, read the full article at Wikipedia.org, or see the following related articles:

http://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/nasa-data-reveals-mega-canyon-under-greenland-ice/ Greenland has an arctic climate with average temperatures that do not exceed 10° C (50° F) in the warmest summer months. In the southern part of the country and the innermost parts of the long fjords, the temperature can, however, rise to more than 20° C (68° F) in June, July or August The air is generally very dry in Greenland in relation to many other countries, and because of this low humidity the low temperatures do not feel as cold as you might expect. On the other hand, the dry air means that you must drink more water than normal. The low humidity also means that you can see further than you are probably used to. Mountain crests that appear to be close are usually further away than you think and this should be borne in mind when planning a hike.

It is impossible to grow crops and only during the short summer season do short grass, flowers, and lichens grow Because Greenland is north of the tree line, little vegetation can thrive LICHENS: hardy, moss-like plants