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November/December 2000 issue	In this issue Table of Contents Editor’s Notebook The Inside Story Feature: Alert, Nunavut À la carte Curious by nature Reverberations

On Alert | Northern Shortcut | Alert facts | Alert in brief | Links

Origin of name: From the British ship, Alert, the first to land on the northern shores of Ellesmere Island (commanded by Sir George Nares).

Claim to fame: The world’s most northerly permanently inhabited location

Geographical coordinates: 82° 30’ 00" N - 62° 22' 00" W

Distance from the North Pole: 817 kilometres

Distance from Canada’s northernmost point: 40 kilometres

Distance from Point Pelee, Ont., Canada’s southernmost point: 4,572 kilometres

Distance north from the nearest Inuit community: 800 kilometres

CFS Alert motto: Inuit Nunangata Ungata, meaning "Beyond the Inuit lands"

Here comes the sun: From April 8 to September 5, the sun rises to approximately 30 degrees above the horizon at noon and dips to 16 degrees above the horizon at midnight, leaving no nighttime. From October 10 to March 1, there is no direct sunlight.

Military personnel: Alert is considered a "hardship" post, which means that postings vary from three to six months. No family is allowed.

Downsizing: Since 1998, CFS Alert has been a remotely operated facility and the staff has been significantly decreased, from 215 to 74, seven of whom are directly employed in operations.

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