linguistic:paraphrasing
Geography

Ellesmere Island is the northernmost island of the Arctic Archipelago in Canada's Far North and one of the world's northernmost land masses. It is exceeded in this regard only by neighbouring Greenland, which extends about 60 km (37 mi) closer to the north pole. Ellesmere's northernmost point, Cape Columbia (at 83°06′41″N 69°57′13″W / 83.11139°N 69.95361°W), is less than 800 km (500 mi) from the north pole, while its southern coasts at 77°N are well within the Arctic Circle.

Ellesmere has the highest and longest mountain ranges in eastern North America and is the most mountainous island in the Arctic Archipelago. It has over half of the archipelago's ice cover, with ice caps and glaciers across 40% of its surface. Its extensive coastline includes some of the world's longest fiords.

To the west, Ellesmere is separated from Axel Heiberg Island by Nansen and Eureka Sounds, the latter of which narrows to 13 km (8.1 mi). Devon Island is to the south across Jones Sound; at the west end of the sound, they are separated by North Kent Island and two channels which narrow to 4 and 10 km (2.5 and 6.2 mi). Greenland is to the east across Nares Strait; the strait narrows to 46 km (29 mi) at Cape Isabella on Smith Sound and further north narrows to 19 km (12 mi) at Robeson Channel. These channels and straits typically freeze over in winter, though winds and currents leave pockets of open water (temporary leads and persistent polynyas) in Nares Strait. To the north of Ellesmere is the Arctic Ocean, with Lincoln Sea to the northeast.