NORWAY, Svalbard. January 2017.
Spitsbergen.
Spitsbergen is the largest and only permanently populated Island of the Svalbard archipelago in northern Norway. Situated north of mainland Europe, Svalbard is about midway between continental Norway and the North Pole. Svalbard is the northernmost settlement in the world with a permanent civilian population, which are not only researchers. The islands were first taken into use as a whaling base in the 17th and 18th centuries, after which they were abandoned. Coal mining started at the beginning of the 20th century, and several permanent communities were established. Now tourism is on the rise.