Thursday 12 February 2026Before the Wire, which starts 26 October 2026Updated 23:59
Polar night, day 109 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, 9 February
1920
The Svalbard Treaty was concluded on 9 February 1920. Negotiations had begun in Paris in 1919 on Norwegian initiative, as part of the peace settlement after the First World War. Before that, Svalbard had been no man's land.
History Store norske leksikon
From the timeline, The coal town
1989
For a long time Longyearbyen was a company town, where the mining company ran most of the activity and the infrastructure. In 1989 the typical community services were split off into their own companies.
History Store norske leksikon
The timeline by era
Svalbard