| Location | Northern Europe, islands between the Arctic Ocean, Barents Sea, Greenland Sea, and Norwegian Sea, north of Norway |
| Geographic coordinates | 78 00 N, 20 00 E |
| Map references | Arctic Region |
| Area | total: 62,045 sq km land: 62,045 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Spitsbergen and Bjornoya (Bear Island) |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than West Virginia |
| Land boundaries | total: 0 km |
| Coastline | 3,587 km |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: extends to depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
| 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 | rugged mountains; much of the upland areas are ice covered; west coast clear of ice about half the year; fjords along west and north coasts |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Newtontoppen 1,717 m lowest point: Arctic Ocean 0 m |
| Natural resources | coal, iron ore, copper, zinc, phosphate, wildlife, fish |
| Land use | agricultural land: 0% (2018 est.) other: 100% (2018 est.) |
| 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 |
| Geography - note | northernmost part of the Kingdom of Norway; consists of nine main islands; glaciers and snowfields cover 60% of the total area; Spitsbergen Island is the site of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, a seed repository established by the Global Crop Diversity Trust and the Norwegian Government |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
