Prince William Sound

 

large, irregular, islanded inlet of the Gulf of Alaska, S Alaska, E of the Kenai peninsula. It has many bays and good harbors; the large Columbia Glacier flows into Columbia Bay, in the N central portion. Shipping is focused at the port of Valdez, which is the southern terminus of the trans-Alaskan pipeline linked to Prudhoe Bay. Access to the interior of the sound is by highway and railroad. Fishing, forestry, and some mining are prevalent activities in the area. Valdez and Cordova are the largest towns on the sound. On Mar. 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez hit a reef nearby and spilled 11 million gallons of oil into Prince William Sound. Clean-up efforts ensued; however, much of the region's wildlife was killed or endangered as a result of the environmental disaster.

Prince William Sound is a sound of the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located on the east side of the Kenai Peninsula. Its largest port is Valdez, at the southern terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. Other settlements on the sound, which contains numerous small islands, include Cordova and Whittier.

Most of the land surrounding Prince William Sound is part of the Chugach National Forest, the second largest national forest in the U.S. Prince William Sound is ringed by the steep and glaciated Chugach Mountains. The coastline is convoluted, with many islands and fjords, several of which contain tidewater glaciers.

Legend has it^{[citation needed]} that George Vancouver named it in 1778 for the then-Prince William, who later became King William IV.

A 1964 tsunami, a result of the Good Friday Earthquake, killed a number of Chugach villagers in the coastal village of Chenega, as well as destroying the town of Valdez.

In 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on Bligh Reef after leaving Valdez, resulting in the Exxon Valdez oil spill. The spill resulted in massive damage to the environment.

Gallery

On the sound looking towards Columbia Glacier	Cove in southwestern Prince William Sound	Overlooking Prince William Sound	Alpine trees on Prince William Sound
Prince William Sound, looking toward Shoup Glacier

Coordinates: 60°35′13″N, 147°01′09″W

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