Svalbard, Barentsburg - description, history, climate, culture and interesting facts

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:47

Svalbard is one of the most interesting places on earth, a kind of unique area. It is often referred to as the "polar desert". Many people know these places as the “polar bear archipelago.”

General Description

Regardless of the naming option, Svalbard and the village of Barentsburg located on its territory is a rare place in the world that has remained unpolluted at the moment. Everything is interesting here, including climatic features.

So, the weather in Svalbard in Barentsburg pleases with a wonderful polar summer. These days the sun shines around the clock. Moreover, the intensity of its rays is the same both at noon and at midnight.

The archipelago got its name back in 1956. Then the traveler from Holland Barents called the islands "sharp mountains", in the translation of Svalbard. From that moment they appeared on the maps of Europe. Some peoples call this unique land in their own way. So, the Norwegians adopted the name Svalbard.

Today, two states dominate the territory of the archipelago - Russia and Norway. Moreover, the Russian Federation has a special position in Svalbard and Barentsburg.

Important to notethat due to the significant presence of Russia in this region, until the end of the 20th century, the state maintained difficult relations with Norway. This happened due to the huge number of Russian citizens in these lands.

Strategic area of the Arctic

The Arctic is a special region on the planet, especially for Russia. The high strategic interest is due to the fact that about a quarter of the planet's hydrocarbon reserves are concentrated here. In addition, as the glacier melts, Russia will discover additional shipping routes.

Of course, in order to fully explore and develop any region, even with a rather harsh climate, it becomes necessary to form a network of large and small settlements. On their basis, logistics networks are created both by water and by air. Often in Barentsburg on Svalbard, workers serving strategic facilities stay on vacation.

Extraction of various resources

In Svalbard, the Barentsburg mine is now the main mine under development, with at least tens of billions of tons of high-calorific hard coal. For comparison, it is worth noting that on the entire Russian territory, its reserves are only five times larger.

The presence of resources here is not limited to this. So, on the territory of the Barentsburg mine of the Svalbard archipelago, there are deposits of some semi-precious stones.

Russia is not only actively developing this direction in the present, but also does not stopintelligence activities. Work in this direction made it possible to discover oil in the subsoil of the island. Its presence has been carefully concealed from its Norwegian neighbors for many years.

Fishing industry

The village of Barentsburg, located on Svalbard, has also become famous as a fishing area. Fish species such as herring and catfish, halibut and cod, sea bass and flounder are caught here. Currently, relevant projects are being developed to build narrowly focused factories in the region, specializing in the processing of algae and the processing of fish caught.

Interesting facts about the region

The city of Barentsburg, like the entire Svalbard archipelago, is a special place on the planet. Experts have compiled a selection of interesting facts about these places:

The archipelago is a visa-free zone, that is, to travel to these parts there is no need to obtain a visa when it comes to direct flights, without the need for transfers. Otherwise, a transit Schengen is enough.
On the territory of the islands they move in the summer on boats, and in the winter - on snowmobiles. Other transport is not relevant here.
According to local traditions, people must take off their shoes when entering the premises.
There are about 3 thousand inhabitants and about 4 thousand bears in the region. This is one of the few places on Earth where the number of bears outnumbers people.
This is the largest area on the map of Europe where wildlife has been preserved inoriginal, untouched condition. Most of the land in these places is especially protected. This is necessary to preserve its original appearance.
For 127 days a year, the archipelago has a polar day, the remaining 120 days fall on a polar night. It was at this time in Svalbard in Barentsburg that the Pyramid attracts the most tourists who come here from all over the world.
The territory was considered a draw until 1920, when it was assigned to Norway. But the right to economic activity remained with each of the countries in accordance with the treaty.
Each guide here will certainly have weapons of various types and types. It will allow you to protect yourself from sudden bearish aggression. Moreover, in the local hotels and cafes, special cabinets are usually installed that allow you to store weapons.
Today, there are three main names for these islands - Grupmant, Svalbard, Svalbard.

A bit of history

As noted above, until 1920, the territory of the archipelago did not belong to any of the countries of the world. At the same time, an important agreement was signed, according to which the region received a special status. That is, according to the documents, this zone is included in the territory of Norway, but in fact, any country is allowed to conduct economic activities. At the moment, this right is exercised exclusively by the Russian Federation.

According to modern historians, the territory was discovered approximately in the XII century. Pomors did it eithervikings. The official mention in the annals of Norway is dated 1194. The full discovery of the archipelago is attributed to the Dutch traveler Barents. It appeared on the map already in 1596. Barents also named the discovered islands.

After some time, the islands appeared on Russian maps. The Danes and the British claimed their right to the territory. Whaling was actively conducted in these parts. This happened in the XVII-XVIII century.

Mikhail Lomonosov organized several scientific expeditions to the islands. Then scientists only managed to look at them, but it was not possible to organize even a small settlement due to the poor development of science and technology at that time and the severity of the local climate.

At the end of whaling activities, the islands were abandoned for about a century. Only at the end of the 19th century, when a base for scientific expeditions and a full-fledged port were organized in Svalbard, interest in these lands increased again. Later, in 1920, the territory received the official status of Norwegian lands.

The State of the Art

At the moment, the city of Barentsburg, located on the Svalbard archipelago, like this entire island group, retains a purely geopolitical meaning. It is important to simply indicate the presence of Russia on Norwegian territory, which has a special status.

It is not surprising that Barentsburg itself on Svalbard has become a loss-making settlement due to poor business development in these territories. Because ofproblems with the tourist infrastructure, there are rarely visitors from other countries and regions. Even getting to these places from the airport is very difficult.

Now the existing facilities are simply maintained in working condition so as not to lose the status of the Russian Federation in the region, despite the need for constant investments in them from the state.

Recently, several interesting projects have been developed regarding the development of existing settlements. They assume sufficient infrastructure development to generate some profit from these places. But in practice, they are not being implemented yet.

Villages of the archipelago

In total, there are three large villages on the islands. Settlements in Svalbard are Pyramiden, Barentsburg, Grumant. The latter is currently in the status of an abandoned territory. Therefore, guests of the islands can only sail past it. The pyramid, despite the fact that active development is no longer being carried out here, remains a favorite place for tourists. Only Barentsburg retained the status of an operating coal mine.

The population of Barentsburg is estimated at 380-400 people. Almost all of them are miners who serve the mine. People say that living in these places is not easy.

Barentsburg mine

In fact, this mine is a separate complex, characterized by the presence of a fully autonomous supply. In addition to the operating mine, it includesthere is a heliport and a thermal power plant, a port point and other facilities necessary for industrial and social security.

Responsibility for providing everything necessary for the village located here lies with the Arktikugol company. She is also responsible for local auxiliary and housing and communal services, cultural and sports facilities, medical centers and a number of other facilities that are required to create the necessary conditions for the workers of the region.

Another main object of Barentsburg is a local hotel. Several thousand tourists come here every year. It operates not only a souvenir shop, but also a cafe.