See also: Beaufort

The sea of Beaufort is part of the Arctic Ocean and extends on a surface from approximately 450.000 km ² in north from the coasts from the Alaska (the United States), Yukon and Territoires of the North-West (Canada) and in the west of the Arctic islands of this last territory. Its northern border is determined by a line connecting Point Barrow in Alaska and Lands End on the island of Prince-Patrick (traced line disputed between Canada and the United States). It was not really explored for the first time in 1914 by Canadian Vilhjalmur Stefansson. It draws its name from the English hydrograph Sir Francis Beaufort.

The River Mackenzie as several rivers of less importances are thrown in the sea of Beaufort. It shelters many colonies of marine birds and constitutes a migratory road and an important place of reproduction for the boreal whales and the bélougas. It remains relative with the variation of trade route. It is perpetually covered with an ice-barrier which breaks only the summer, during 2 to 5 months.

It gives to the east on the Golfe of Amundsen, beginning of the Passage of the North-West towards the Atlantic Ocean

The sea of Beaufort contains in its basement of broad reserves of Pétrole and Gaz. These reserves were explored as from the years 1960, but are exploited only since 1986, date on which the first oil Plate-forme was brought into service. However, in order not to obstruct the reproduction and the migration of the whales, the exploitation of these reserves is authorized only during the winter months.

The North-West of the Arctic could contain until a quarter of hydrocarbon world reserves, whose exploitation would be facilitated or made possible by the Climate warming. This prospect revives the frontier quarrel between Canada and the USA on the layout of their maritime border at sea of Beaufort. The Canadian position is that it must follow the parallel 141e, whereas the USA asserts a border with équidistance coasts.

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