The Shishmaref Inlet is a coastal lagoon on the Chukchi Sea

Chukchi Sea

Chukchi Sea is a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean. It is bounded on the west by the De Long Strait, off Wrangel Island, and in the east by Point Barrow, Alaska, beyond which lies the Beaufort Sea. The Bering Strait forms its southernmost limit and connects it to the Bering Sea and the Pacific...

-facing shores of Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

. It is 5 miles in length.

The location of the Shishmaref Inlet is SW 17 mi. to the SW from Sarichef Island

Sarichef Island

Sarichef Island is a long and narrow coastal island on the Chukchi Sea-facing coast of Alaska. It is located at the mouth of the Shishmaref Inlet, Kotzebue-Kobuk LowSarichef Island is in length. The highest point on the island is above sea level....

, at the mouth of the Serpentine River, Kotzebue-Kobuk Low

Nome Census Area, Alaska

Nome Census Area is a census area located in the state of Alaska, United States. As of the 2000 census, the population was 9,196. It is part of the unorganized borough and therefore has no borough seat. Its largest community by far is the city of Nome....

.

This lagoon was named Shishmaref Bay in 1816 by explorer Lt. Otto von Kotzebue

Otto von Kotzebue

Otto von Kotzebue was a Baltic German navigator in Russian service....

, of the Imperial Russian Navy

Imperial Russian Navy

The Imperial Russian Navy refers to the Tsarist fleets prior to the February Revolution.-First Romanovs:Under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, construction of the first three-masted ship, actually built within Russia, was completed in 1636. It was built in Balakhna by Danish shipbuilders from Holstein...

, after Capt. Lt. Gleb Shishmaryov

Gleb Shishmaryov

Gleb Semyonovich Shishmaryov was a rear admiral of the Imperial Russian Navy. He is reputed for having surveyed the then little-known coast of Alaska as navigator...

 who accompanied him on his exploration.

The Inuit

Inuit

The Inuit are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic regions of Canada , Denmark , Russia and the United States . Inuit means “the people” in the Inuktitut language...

name of this lagoon has not been reported.