Thursday 15 August 2024Before the Wire, which starts 26 October 2026Updated 23:59
Midnight sun, all 24 hours. The sun sets again 25 August.
Svalbard Wire starts on 26 October 2026. Pages before that date show the history of the island.
This week in history, 14 August
1925
Norway formally took over sovereignty on 14 August 1925. Of 74 reported property claims, 40 were approved, spread over 17 companies and private persons, covering 4223 square kilometres.
History Store norske leksikon
From the timeline, Hunting and expeditions
1926
In the 1920s Ny-Ålesund was at the centre of international attention because of expeditions towards the North Pole. The Amundsen, Ellsworth and Nobile flight with the airship Norge started from there in 1926. The mast built for the airship expedition still stands and is counted among the settlement's important cultural monuments.
History Store norske leksikon
Svalbard