Canadian Geographical Facts

Total Area of Canada

The total area of Canada is 9 984 670 square kilometres. Of this, 9 093 507 square kilometres is land and 891 163 square kilometres is fresh water. Canada’s area is the second largest in the world (after Russia which has a total area of 17 075 000 square kilometres). On Canadian territory, the longest distance North to South (on land) is 4 634 kilometres from Cape Columbia on Ellesmere Island, Nunavut to Middle Island in Lake Erie, Ontario. The longest distance East to West is 5 514 kilometres from Cape Spear, Newfoundland and Labrador, to the Yukon Territory – Alaska boundary.

Boundary

The total length of the Canada-United States boundary is 8890 kilometres.

Landmass and Freshwater

Approximately 40% of Canada’s landmass and freshwater is north of 60 degrees North latitude. Between them, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut contains 9.2% of the world’s total freshwater. The area of Canada north of the treeline is 2 728 800 square kilometres or 27.4% of the total area of the country.

Earthquakes

Canada’s largest, and one of the world’s greatest earthquakes, happened on the 22nd of August 1949, off the Queen Charlotte Islands (53°62′ N 133°27′ W). The magnitude was 8.1 and it was widely felt. Some damage occurred on the Queen Charlotte Islands. One of most destructive Canadian earthquakes happened on the 18th of November 1929, in the Atlantic Ocean, south of Newfoundland. The magnitude was 7.2 and it was widely felt. Twenty-seven people were drowned and much damage was caused by a tsunami on the Burin Peninsula of the island of Newfoundland.

The Great Lakes

The Great Lakes – Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario – are the largest group of freshwater lakes in the world. They have a total surface area of 245 000 square kilometres, of which about one third is in Canada. Lake Michigan is entirely within the USA.

Coastline

Canada has the world’s longest coastline: 202 080 kilometres.

Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls (on the Niagara River) is acknowledged as one of the world’s greatest cataracts because of its height and its estimated mean annual flow of 6000 cubic metres per second.

Non-polar Ice Field

The largest non-polar ice field in the world can be found in the St. Elias Mountains, Yukon Territory. It covers an area of 40 570 square kilometres of which 16 900 square kilometres are located in Canada, the remainder being in Alaska.

Trans-Canada Highway

The Trans-Canada Highway length (using the Perth-Peterborough-Parry Sound route) is 7604 kilometres. It is the longest national highway in the world.

Alaska Highway

The fastest-built highway is the Alaska Highway which runs from Dawson Creek, British Columbia to Fairbanks, Alaska. All 2451 kilometres of this highway were built in less than a year (1942 to 1943). Fireweed, the floral emblem of Yukon Territory, is a common sight along the Alaska Highway.

Dempster Highway

The northernmost highway is the Dempster Highway found mainly in Yukon Territory. It is the only public highway above the Arctic Circle that is open year-round. It runs from near Dawson, Yukon, to Inuvik, Northwest Territories; a distance of 720 kilometres.

Hailstorm

At the time it happened, the most expensive natural catastrophe in terms of property damage was a violent hailstorm that struck Calgary on September 7, 1991. Insurance companies paid about $400 million to repair over 65 000 cars, 60 000 homes and businesses, and a number of aircraft.

Tornado

The Regina Tornado of June 30, 1912, rated as F4 (winds of 330 to 416 kilometres per hour) was the most severe tornado so far known in Canada. It killed 28 people, injured hundreds and demolished much of the downtown area.

Most Severe Flood

The most severe flood in Canadian history occurred on October 14 to 15, 1954 when Hurricane Hazel brought 214 millimetres of rain in Toronto region in just 72 hours.

Manitoulin Island

The world’s largest island in a freshwater lake is Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron, 2765 square kilometres.

Mount Logan

The highest mountain in Canada is Mount Logan, Yukon Territory, 5959 metres.

Baffin Island

The largest island in Canada is Baffin Island, Nunavut, 507 451 square kilometres.

Della Falls

The highest waterfall in Canada is Della Falls, British Columbia, 440 metres high.

Chilko Lake

The highest major lake (over 100 square kilometres) in Canada is Chilko Lake, British Columbia. Its elevation is 1171 metres and area is 158 square kilometres.

Bay of Fundy

The world’s highest tide is in the Bay of Fundy at Burntcoat Head, Nova Scotia. The mean large tide range is 16.1 metres.

Eureka

The lowest tide in Canada is at Eureka, Ellesmere Island, Nunavut. The tidal range is about 0.1 metres.

Mackenzie River

The longest river is the Mackenzie River, Northwest Territories-Alberta-British Columbia, whose length is 4 241 kilometres. It is the river system with the largest drainage area: 1 805 200 square kilometres.

Great Bear Lake

The largest lake wholly in Canada is Great Bear Lake, Northwest Territories, 31 328 square kilometres.

Great Slave Lake

The deepest lake is Great Slave Lake, Northwest Territories, 614 metres deep.

Largest Hydro-electric Power Development

The largest hydro-electric power development in Canada is the James Bay project in Quebec, which started producing electricity in 1982; its eight dams and 198 dikes contain five reservoirs covering 11 900 square kilometres (half the size of Lake Ontario). The combined output of its generating stations is 15 237 megawatts.

Only Walled City

The only walled city north of Mexico is Québec; it was also the first city in North America to be placed on UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites list.

SOURCE: Atlas of Canada