Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Svalbard's vital statistics are suitably impressive: 13% vegetation, 27% barren stone and
an astonishing 60% glacier. Svalbard's latitude ranges from 74°N at Bjørnøya in the south
to over 80°N on northern Spitsbergen and Nordaustlandet.
The archipelago is about the size of Ireland and consists mainly of glaciated and eroded
sedimentary layers that were deposited beneath the sea up to 1.2 billion years ago. It's dif-
ficult to imagine but between 300 million and 60 million years ago, Svalbard was lush and
tropical. Rich layers of organic matter built up on the surface, then metamorphosed under
great heat and pressure into coal. Continental drift shifted it to its present polar location,
and most present-day landforms were created during the ice ages of the past two million
years. Its highest points are Newtontoppen (1713m) and Perriertoppen (1712m).
Most of Svalbard's glaciers are retreating: Austre Brøggerbreen has lost almost 20m
since 1977, while Midre Lovenbreen isn't far behind.
The archipelago enjoys a brisk polar-desert climate, with only 200mm to 300mm of pre-
cipitation annually. Although the west coast remains ice-free for most of the summer, pack
ice hovers just north of the main island year-round. Snow and frost are possible at any time
of year; the mean annual temperature is -4°C, and in July it's only 6°C. On occasion,
however, you may experience temperatures of up to 20°C. In January the mean temperat-
ure is -16°C, but temperatures of -30°C aren't uncommon.
In Longyearbyen the midnight sun lasts from 19 April to 23 August, while it never even
peeks above the horizon between 28 October and 14 February.
Wildlife
In addition to polar bears, Svalbard is home to other emblematic Arctic species. The spe-
cies you're most likely to see are the Arctic fox (also known as the polar fox) and Sval-
bard's unusually squat reindeer.
Svalbard's reindeer are genetically akin to their distant Canadian cousins and some have
been found bearing Russian tags, proving that they walked in over the ice. Unlike their
cousins on the mainland, they don't live in herds but in family groups of two to six anim-
als. As they have no predators other than humans they thrive and the estimated population
of around 10,000 is kept constant by an annual cull. Most Svalbard reindeer starve slowly
to death when they're about eight years old, their teeth having been ground to stumps by
the stones and pebbles they mouth along with sprigs of edible matter.
