About Svalbard
| Location | Group of islands between 74 - 81 degrees N and 10 - 35 degrees E |
| Area | 63000sq.km, 60% covered by glacier |
| Largest islands | Spitsbergen, Nordaustlandet,Barentsøya,Edgeøya and Prins Karls Forland |
| Settlements | Longyearbyen ( Norwegian administrative centre) 2200 inhabitants |
| Barentsburg (Russian) mining community 350 inhabitants | |
| Ny-Ålesund(Norw/Int research centre) 40 inhabitants | |
| Sveagruva (Norwegian) mining community 250 commuters | |
| Hornsund (Polish) research station 8 inhabitants | |
Important dates
| 1194 | "Svalbardir Fundinn" noted in Islandic texts |
| 1596 | Willem Barentsz discovers Svalbard |
| 1600-1750 | International whaling activities |
| 1700-1800 | Russian all-winter hunting and trapping |
| 1800-1900 | Norwegian all-winter hunting and trapping |
| 1906 | John M Longyear establishes first mine |
| 1916 | Stoe Norske Spitsbergen Kullkompani takes over the mining activity |
| 1920 | The Svalbard Treaty is signed |
| 1925 | Norway is given sovereignity over Svalbard |
| 2006 | Longyearbyen 100 year |
