Labrador Sea

Labrador Sea is an arm of the North Atlantic Ocean between Labrador and Greenland. Water depths in the centre of Labrador Sea are around 3 km and it is flanked by continental shelves to the SW, NW and NE. It connects to the north with Baffin Bay through the Davis Strait.

Related Topics:
North Atlantic - Ocean - Labrador - Greenland - Continental shelves - Baffin Bay - Davis Strait

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The Labrador Sea probably formed by sea-floor spreading that started around 61 million years ago and stopped about 40 million years ago. There is an earlier history of basin formation on all margins.

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During the ice age, the north American ice sheet repeatedly collapsed sending armadas of icebergs into Labrador Sea. Rocks that melted from the icebergs today form a layer of drop stones (glacial erratics) on the bottom of Labrador Sea.

Related Topics:
Ice age - Glacial erratic

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One of the world's largest turbidite channels runs N-S in the middle of Labrador Sea. Turbidite avalanches run down this channel for many hundreds of kilometres, many of them ending in very deep water off New England.

Related Topics:
Turbidite - New England

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