Longyearbyen · 78.22 N 15.63 E

Svalbard Wire

Est. 2026

Everything said about Svalbard, in one place

Wednesday 30 October 2024Before the Wire, which starts 26 October 2026Updated 23:59

Daylight on 30 October: none, polar night, day 5. Polar night, day 5 of 112. The sun returns 15 February.

Polar night, day 5 of 112. The sun returns 15 February.

Svalbard Wire starts on 26 October 2026. Pages before that date show the history of the island.

History

The island's past

This week in history, 31 October

1932

A Soviet steamer runs aground on the way to Barentsburg

The Dutch owners sold Barentsburg to the Soviet state company Arktikugol in 1932. That autumn the steamer Tawaritsch Stalin, bringing workers and machinery for the Soviet mine, ran aground at the mouth of Isfjorden and was pulled off by a Soviet ship and British trawlers.

History Store norske leksikon

From the timeline, The modern town

1993

UNIS is founded

University studies on Svalbard, UNIS, were established in 1993. It is the world's northernmost institution for education and research.

History Store norske leksikon

The timeline by era

  1. 1596Discovery and whaling, 3 entries
  2. 1715Hunting and expeditions, 4 entries
  3. 1905The coal town, 6 entries
  4. 1920The Svalbard Treaty, 4 entries
  5. 1941War and rebuilding, 4 entries
  6. 1975The modern town, 3 entries
  7. 2015The present transition, 6 entries

Open the history of Svalbard, 30 entries in 7 eras