2023 Spitsbergen in Depth

KVITØYA The western part of this island is only 39 miles (62 km) from Victoria Island in Franz Josef Land, which is part of the Russian Arctic. By this definition, this remote outpost is technically closer to the Russian Arctic than it is to Nordaustlandet (50 miles/81 km), though Victoria Island is geologically and geographically part of the Svalbard archipelago, but was omitted by mistake in the Spitsbergen Treaty. LILLIEHÖÖK GLACIER In 2005, nearly 100 years after his great- great-grandfather conducted scientific investigations here, Prince Albert II of Monaco returned to Lilliehöök Glacier to honor his ancestor’s memory. Here, you can take a Zodiac cruise amid labyrinths of sparkling icebergs, and witness breathtaking panoramas of ice. You may even spot bearded seals hauled out on the floes.

LONGYEARBYEN Home to 2,400 people, the administrative capital of Svalbard is situated on the southern side of Adventfjorden. The settlement was founded in 1905 by John Munroe Longyear, the majority owner of the Arctic Coal Company of Boston. Today as much as ever, this is a true frontier town. MOFFEN ISLAND This island is designated as a protected sanctuary for walrus, which are only viewed from the ship—have your binoculars ready! MONACO GLACIER Prince Albert I of Monaco, a pioneer of oceanography, led an expedition to Svalbard in 1906. His team used sophisticated photographic techniques to understand the shape and position of several glacier fronts. Monaco Glacier honors the expedition, the prince and the principality over which he reigned. While touring the glacier front by Zodiac cruise,

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