Longyearbyen - Norway - 2015
We had a 3-hour flight from Oslo to Longyearbyen.
Longyearbyen is the main settlement on Spitsbergen Island, the biggest island in the Svalbard Archipelago.
About 1000km north of the Norwegian mainland, Svalbard is part of Norway.
It is the most northerly settlement in the world with a population more than 1000 people.
Spitsbergen means pointed mountain peaks. They are prominent on this island. The otherSvalbard islands have flatter, eroded mountains.
It is the 36th largest island in the world.
With a population just over 2000, Longyearbyen was settled to support nearby coal mines.
Most of the coal mining has finished and now tourism, local administration and a small University Arctic Research Centre
are the main activities in Longyearbyen.
Our hotel in Longyearbyen, The Radisson Blu Polar Hotel, the most northerly hotel in the world.
Despite its isolation, Longyearbyen had a fibre-optic cable link with the Norwegian mainland and the Internet connection was very fast.
The Svalbard Seed Vault
Seed collections were first stored in this vault in an abandoned coal-mine in 2008.
Spitsbergen was considered ideal because it lacked tectonic activity and had permafrost, which aids preservation.
Being 130 metres above sea level the site will keep dry even if the ice caps melt.
The seeds are stored in four-ply sealed envelopes, then placed into plastic tote containers on metal shelving racks.
A feasibility study prior to construction determined that the vault could, for hundreds of years, preserve most major food crops' seeds.
Some, including those of important grains, could survive far longer, possibly thousands of years.
The University Centre and Museum in Spitsbergen
After spending most of the day looking around Longyearbyen, at 4pm we boarded the Sea Adventurer for our first Arctic cruise.
We had a 3-hour flight from Oslo to Longyearbyen.
Longyearbyen is the main settlement on Spitsbergen Island, the biggest island in the Svalbard Archipelago.
About 1000km north of the Norwegian mainland, Svalbard is part of Norway.
It is the most northerly settlement in the world with a population more than 1000 people.
Spitsbergen means pointed mountain peaks. They are prominent on this island. The otherSvalbard islands have flatter, eroded mountains.
It is the 36th largest island in the world.
With a population just over 2000, Longyearbyen was settled to support nearby coal mines.
Most of the coal mining has finished and now tourism, local administration and a small University Arctic Research Centre
are the main activities in Longyearbyen.
Our hotel in Longyearbyen, The Radisson Blu Polar Hotel, the most northerly hotel in the world.
Despite its isolation, Longyearbyen had a fibre-optic cable link with the Norwegian mainland and the Internet connection was very fast.
The Svalbard Seed Vault
Seed collections were first stored in this vault in an abandoned coal-mine in 2008.
Spitsbergen was considered ideal because it lacked tectonic activity and had permafrost, which aids preservation.
Being 130 metres above sea level the site will keep dry even if the ice caps melt.
The seeds are stored in four-ply sealed envelopes, then placed into plastic tote containers on metal shelving racks.
A feasibility study prior to construction determined that the vault could, for hundreds of years, preserve most major food crops' seeds.
Some, including those of important grains, could survive far longer, possibly thousands of years.
The University Centre and Museum in Spitsbergen
After spending most of the day looking around Longyearbyen, at 4pm we boarded the Sea Adventurer for our first Arctic cruise.
