Svalbard is an archipelago situated between 74˚ N to 81˚ N, the same latitude as the northern part of Greenland. The archipelago consists of nine islands from Bear Island in the south to Rossøya in the north. The North Pole is approximately 1000 km of packed drift-ice north, and it is another 1000 km south to the North Cape of mainland Norway.

Spitsbergen is the main island in the archipelago and the only island with a permanent population. Longyearbyen, at 78˚15’N, is the northernmost settlement in the world with normal family life year round and a wide range of facilities. The “capital” of Svalbard has about 1900 inhabitants and is the largest and oldest existing settlement in the archipelago. The main industry is mining, but tourism and scientific research are also two important businesses.
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There are four other settlements on Spitsbergen:
Ny Ålesund, an international research base northwest of Longyearbyen
Svea, a settlement for the employees in Sveagruva, the main Norwegian mining area in the archipelago.
Barentsburg, a Russian mining settlement, consisting of 550 inhabitants, southwest of Longyearbyen
Hornsund, a Polish research base in the southern part of Spitsbergen

Climate

The climate of Svalbard is arctic, with a mean annual air temperature of about -6˚C at sea level and as low as -15 ˚C in the high mountains. The Gulf Stream keeps the west coast of Svalbard open to sea traffic during the summer months and makes this one of the northernmost ice-free zones in the world. The natural conditions in the eastern part of Svalbard are dominated by very cold sea drifts, flowing from Siberia. Because of this, the wide zone of the ice pack often prevents access to the eastern coast in the middle of the summer.
During the summer, the temperature usually stays above zero, + 6˚ C being the average. There is very little precipitation, but the humid air from the sea often causes fog and light drizzle. The winters are mild for this latitude, with February being the coldest month (-15 ˚C as the average).

The border-zone between mild maritime air from the ocean to the south and the cold arctic air from the Polar Basin occurs around Svalbard. This border zone at times is very active with cyclones generating unstable, often stormy weather. The weather can change extremely fast and the local conditions can vary dramatically.

Svalbard enjoys the midnight sun from the 19th of April to the 23rd of August, and the sun retreats from the 27th October to the 15th February. The “Arctic Night” lasts from the 14th of November to the 29th of January; during this time the sun is lower than 6 degrees below the horizon and we experience night-time conditions 24-hours a day.

Nature and Animals

The nature on Svalbard is fragile and a small disturbance can have long-term effects. In order to protect and preserve the nature and animals on Svalbard, almost 65% of the archipelago has been protected. These protected areas have been designated as national parks, national reserves, a bird sanctuary and a protected geotopical area.

Approximately 60% of the archipelago is covered by glaciers. Permafrost covers the entire area of Svalbard. The permafrost can go down to 500 meters and only the upper 2-3 meters thaw out in summer. However, there are some particularly hardy plants which cling to the soil in the coastal regions.

Svalbard is unique in many ways. Geologically, the island is one of the most interesting areas in the world.  It is a place where a great variety of geology can be studied and where much can be learned about the development of tectonic features and sedimentary environments through time as well as the phenomenon of continental drift.

There are only three terrestrial mammals on Svalbard: Svalbard reindeer, arctic fox and a small population of sibling voles, but there are a number of marine mammals: polar bear, seals, walrus and whales. The bird life of Svalbard is impressive with three million pairs of seabirds breeding in the region. More then 200 bird species have been recorded in the area.

History

• 1596 - Willem Barentsz discovered Svalbard
• 1600-1750 - International whaling
• 1700-1800 - Russian hunting
• 1800-1900 - Norwegian hunting
• 1906 - John M. Longyear started the first coal mine in Longyearbyen
• 1920 - The Svalbard Treaty
• 1925 - Norway got the sovereignty of Svalbard