Svalbard and Jan Mayen Islands
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Svalbard (sometimes referred to as Spitzbergen) |
| Gevernment type | NA |
| Capital |
name: Longyearbyen
geographic coordinates: 78 13 N, 15 33 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
| Flag description | the flag of Norway is used |
| Currency | Norwegian krone (NOK) |
| Internet country code | .sj |
| Ports and terminals | Barentsburg, Longyearbyen, Ny-Alesund, Pyramiden |
| Agriculture products | opium, wheat, fruits, nuts; wool, mutton, sheepskins, lambskins |
| Industries | small-scale production of textiles, soap, furniture, shoes, fertilizer, cement; handwoven carpets; natural gas, coal, copper |
| Geography |
| Location | Northern Europe, islands between the Arctic Ocean, Barents Sea, Greenland Sea, and Norwegian Sea, north of Norway |
| Coordinates | 78 00 N, 20 00 E |
| Continent | Arctic Region |
| Area |
total: 61,020 sq km
land: 61,020 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Spitsbergen and Bjornoya (Bear Island) |
| Boundaries | 0 km |
| Coastline | 3,587 km |
| Climate | arctic, tempered by warm North Atlantic Current; cool summers, cold winters; North Atlantic Current flows along west and north coasts of Spitsbergen, keeping water open and navigable most of the year |
| Terrain | wild, rugged mountains; much of high land ice covered; west coast clear of ice about one-half of the year; fjords along west and north coasts |
| Natural resources | coal, iron ore, copper, zinc, phosphate, wildlife, fish |
| Natural hazards | ice floes often block the entrance to Bellsund (a transit point for coal export) on the west coast and occasionally make parts of the northeastern coast inaccessible to maritime traffic |
| People |
| Population | 2,701 (July 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | Norwegian 55.4%, Russian and Ukrainian 44.3%, other 0.3% (1998) |
| Religions | Sunni Muslim 80%, Shi'a Muslim 19%, other 1% |
| Languages | Norwegian, Russian |
