McClure Strait


McClure Strait,

arm of the Beaufort Sea, c.170 mi (270 km) long and 60 mi (100 km) wide, Northwest Territories, Canada. It extends W from Viscount Melville Sound, between Melville and Eglinton islands on the north and Banks Island on the south. In 1954, U.S. icebreakers cut through the strait for the first time, opening the last obstacle to the shortest water route across the Canadian arctic region.