Norway

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AC member since 1996


Active Polar Icebreakers

1

Coordinates

Oslo: 59.9139° N, 10.7522° E
Tromsø: 69.6492° N, 18.9553° E

Population

Norway: 5.5 million
Northern Norway: 480,000

Land Area

Norway: 385,000 km2
Northern Norway: 185,000 km2

Coastline

25,148 km

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In Norway, the Arctic is considered everything north of the Arctic Circle, despite the arguably minimal variation between the areas north and south of 66°34N. In terms of its foreign policy engagement, Norway distinguishes between the extreme Arctic (referring to the North Pole and the uninhabited areas in the so-called High Arctic) and the more hospitable and populated parts of Northern Norway and Svalbard, deemed the “High North” or “nordområdene” in Norwegian.

The landmass of the two northern counties (Nordland and Troms ogFinnmark) accounts for a third of the landmass of mainland Norway (totalling approximately 100,000 km² out of approximately 300,000 km²). Svalbard and Jan Mayen archipelagos add another 85,000 km². The climate in North Norway—with the exception of Svalbard—does not vary significantly from the southern part of the country, as in the case of some Arctic countries.

The average temperature in Tromsø, the largest city in the north, oscillates between -4 °C (25 °F) in January and 12 °C (54 °F) in July . The North Norwegian coast is ice free and, due to the Gulf Stream, experiences less extreme temperatures than cities further south in for example Canada or the United States. Longyearbyen in Svalbard, on the other hand, experiences more arctic-like conditions, with -13 °C (9 °F) in March and only 8 °C (46 °F) in July. Climate change has especially affected the ecological conditions on Svalbard, as the summer sea ice has gradually receded. This has an adverse impact on plant and animal life, not only on Svalbard, but also in mainland Norway. Changes related to the tree-line, movements of fish stocks and agricultural yield, challenge the ability of local communities to adapt and sustain their livelihoods in the north to a greater extent than elsewhere in Norway.

This page was updated on 1 August 2022. If we have missed anything, please contact info@thearcticinstitute.org.