Svalbard

Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, constituting the northernmost part of Norway. It is located about 400 miles north of mainland Europe, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The group of islands range from 74° to 81° north latitude (inside the Arctic Circle), and from 10° to 35° east longitude. Spitsbergen is the largest island, followed by Nordaustlandet and Edgeøya. The administrative center is Longyearbyen, and other settlements include the active Russian mining community of Barentsburg, the abandoned Russian mining settlement of Pyramiden (which was founded by the Swedish), the research community of Ny-Ålesund, and the Swedish mining outpost of Sveagruva. The archipelago is administered by the Governor of Svalbard, whose authority is granted by the Norwegian government.