Longyearbyen

Longyearbyen is the largest settlement on Svalbard and its capital. It has about 1,700 inhabitants, most of them Norwegians and some Russians.

Geography

Longyearbyen is located at 78°13′N 15°33′E / 78.217°N 15.550°E / 78.217; 15.550. The Governor of Svalbard resides there. Due to its location far north of the polar circle, it is polar night from mid-October to mid-February and polar day from mid-April to mid-August. Longyearbyen has an arctic tundra climate (see Geography of Norway).

History and present day facilities

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Main road in Longyearbyen

The settlement was founded in 1906 by John Munroe Longyear, main owner of the Arctic Coal Company of Boston. "Byen" is Norwegian for "the city". It was destroyed by the Germans in 1943 and rebuilt after World War II, with the old foundations still visible in some places.

Until the early 1990s the coal mining industry was the major employer in Longyearbyen. The daily life circled only around the mining business. Today, the community offers a wide range of activities and facilities. There is a swimming hall, a climbing wall, a big sports hall, a grocery store, three pubs, three hotels, one church, several tourists shops, a cinema (Sundays) and one night club.

Mining and research

Mining is still a major part of the community employing about half the residents. However, research activities and tourism are growing steadily each year due to its excellent infrastructure. The research includes ionospheric and magnetospheric facilities such as the EISCAT radar, the Auroral station and a magnetometer belonging to the IMAGE chain.

In 1993, the University Centre In Svalbard (UNIS) was opened. It is a cooperation of all four Norwegian universities which provides lectures in geophysics, arctic biology, geology and arctic technology as well as bachelor, master and PhD positions. In all it has about 300 students per year but with the erection of the new Research Centre an increase of this number is intended. Students of UNIS usually live in Nybyen, an arrangement of 6 renovated mining barracks.

Tourism

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Longyearbyen in summer

Most of the tourists come in the spring and summer. The spring is very popular since Spitsbergen is one of the few places in Norway where you can drive a snowmobile in the terrain without special permission. However, due to strict enviromental laws not all of the main island Spitsbergen is accessible. From February until November several tour operators provide a wide range of guided trips.

This is the world's most northern settlement which is easily reached, as there is an airport just outside the town, Svalbard Airport. The airport served 9,000 passengers in 2004. There are regular flights to and from Tromsø and Oslo, Norway.

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