Beaufort Sea references the Beaufort Sea in his popular Canadian Folk Song Northwest Passage (song). Beaufort Sea The Beaufort Sea () is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located north of the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, and Alaska, and west of Canada's Arctic islands. The sea is named after Sir Francis Beaufort, a hydrographer. The Mackenzie River, the longest in Canada, empties into the Canadian part of the Beaufort Sea west of Tuktoyaktuk, which is one of the few permanent settlements on the sea shores. The sea, characterized by severe climate, is frozen over most of the year. Historically, only a
USS Beaufort (ATS-2) USS Beaufort (ATS-2) USS "Beaufort" (ATS-2) was an "Edenton"-class salvage and rescue ship acquired by the U.S. Navy in 1972 and maintained in service until struck in 1996. "Beaufort" spent her entire career in the Pacific Ocean, based out of Pearl Harbor and then Sasebo, Japan, and provided salvage and rescue services where needed from the Western Pacific to the North Pacific. The fifth ship to be so named by the Navy, "Beaufort" (ATS-2) was laid down on 19 February 1968 at Lowestoft, England, by Brooke Marine Ltd.; launched on 20 December 1968; sponsored by Mrs. Waldemar F. A. Wendt;