Sjuøyane

Area map

Sjuøyane

Sjuøyane(English:Seven Islands) is the northernmost part of theSvalbardarchipelago north of mainlandNorway,and some 20 km north of the eastern major islandNordaustlandet.The islands are the northernmost landmass reachable by normal means, being 1024.3 kilometers (637 mi / 553 nm) south of theNorth Pole.In comparison,Robert Falcon Scottstarted his ill-fatedTerra Nova Expedition1374 km (742 Nm) from theSouth Pole.Many of the islands are named afterEnglishexplorers, most notablyCaptain Nelson.

Geography

As the name implies, this is regarded as a group of seven islands (including several islets and skerries), of which the three larger ones are:

• Phippsøya
• Martensøya
• Parryøya

And the four smaller:

• Nelsonøya
• Waldenøya
• Tavleøya
• Vesle TavleøyawithRossøya

Rossøya, more askerrythan an island, is at 80°49’44 "the northernmost land of Svalbard and thus ofNorway.Ice conditions are often difficult, but they are often earlier accessible than other parts of Svalbard further southeast because of the influence of the last drops of theGulf Stream.Sjuøyane belong to theNordaust-Svalbard Nature Reserve.

History

Sjuøyane were first marked on a map by the Dutchman Hendrick Doncker (1663). Pieter Goos (1666) and other cartographers soon followed.Cornelis Gilesand Outger Rep (c. 1710) were the first to put the islands in their correct position. The islands may have been sighted as early as 1618, as anEnkhuizenwhaler is said to have seen the islands this year. As map-makers often lagged years behind the actual discoveries of the archipelago, this claim may very well be true, although evidence is lacking.

See also

• List of islands in the Arctic Ocean
• List of islands of Norway
• Queen Victoria Sea

References

• Conway, W. M. 1906.No Man’s Land: A History of Spitsbergen from Its Discovery in 1596 to the Beginning of the Scientific Exploration of the Country.Cambridge: At the University Press.
• Norwegian Polar Institute:Place names in Norwegian polar areas
• Norwegian Polar Institute Sjuøyane website page:http://cruise-handbook.npolar.no/en/northeast_reserve/sjuoyane.html