Sunday 9 November 2025Before the Wire, which starts 26 October 2026Updated 23:59
Polar night, day 14 of 111. The sun returns 15 February.
Svalbard Wire starts on 26 October 2026. Pages before that date show the history of the island.
This week in history, 5 November
1962
On 5 November 1962 an explosion in the coal mine at Ny-Ålesund, on the south side of Kongsfjorden on Spitsbergen, killed the whole shift of 21 men. Mining at Ny-Ålesund stopped for good the following year, and criticism of conditions at the state-owned company brought down the Gerhardsen government.
History Store norske leksikon
From the timeline, The coal town
1905
Longyearbyen was laid out in 1905 by the American company Arctic Coal Co. It was first called Longyear City, after the company founder John Munro Longyear.
History Store norske leksikon
The timeline by era
Svalbard