Torngat Mountains

Torngat Mountains
Folded rocks of the Torngat Mountains
Highest point
Peak	Mount Caubvick (Mont D'Iberville)
Elevation	1,652 m (5,420 ft)
Coordinates	58°53′01″N 63°42′57″W / 58.88361°N 63.71583°W / 58.88361; -63.71583
Dimensions
Area	30,067 km2 (11,609 sq mi)
Geography
Country	Canada
States/Provinces	Labrador and Quebec
Range coordinates	59°25′N 64°30′W / 59.42°N 64.5°W / 59.42; -64.5Coordinates: 59°25′N 64°30′W / 59.42°N 64.5°W / 59.42; -64.5
Parent range	Arctic Cordillera

The Torngat Mountains are a mountain range on the Labrador Peninsula at the northern tip of Newfoundland and Labrador and eastern Quebec. They are part of the Arctic Cordillera. The mountains form a peninsula that separates Ungava Bay from the Atlantic Ocean.

The Torngat Mountains have a substantial geographical extent. About 56% of the range is located in Quebec, 44% is in Labrador, and the remainder, less than 1%, is located on Killiniq Island in Nunavut. At least 2% of the mountain chain is under water, and poorly surveyed. The Torngat Mountains cover 30,067 square kilometres (11,609 sq mi), including lowland areas and extend over 300 km (186 mi) from Cape Chidley in the north to Hebron Fjord in the south. The Torngat Mountains have the highest peaks of eastern continental Canada.

The highest point is Mount Caubvick (also known as Mont D'Iberville) at 1,652 m (5,420 ft). There are no trees in the Torngat Mountains because the mountains lie in an arctic tundra climate and are therefore above the tree line.

Permafrost is continuous on the Quebec side of the border, and it is extensive but discontinuous on the eastern Atlantic side. The terrain is over 300 m (984 ft) above sea level and is predominantly rocky desert.

Precambrian gneisses that comprise the Torngat Mountains are among the oldest on Earth and have been dated at roughly 3.6 to 3.9 billion years old. Geologists recognize the gneisses of the Torngats as a part of the Canadian Shield or Laurentian Upland, which, composing the very old North American Craton, split from the continent of Rodinia roughly 750 million years ago to form the geologic core of North America.