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Inside the Polar Station of Ny Alesund (2)

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Amundsens started his two missions for the North Pole from Ny Alesund. As the North Pole is basically frozen ice that is in constant movement, you can never be 100% sure that you hit target. He failed 1925 on his first mission to fly over the geographical North Pole with a plane, which he had to abandon due to a malfunction. He succeeded on his second attempt with an airship called Norge in 1926. And Ny Ålesund is also connected with his death. In 1928 he started a rescue mission for his Italian friend and co-pilot Umberto Nobile. The plane probably crashed due to fog in the Barents sea and his body was never found. His achievements are celebrated with a central statue on the main square of the village of Ny Alesund.

Every few weeks the engineers send special probes into the sky. For instance for the measurement of the Ozon in the atmosphere above Svalbard. I was there when they also checked a CFH probe, which is only utilized every two months. It’s awfully complicated with a tiny engine and a mirror for detecting the moisture in the stratosphere. There was quite a tense atmosphere before the start, because the functionality and connectivity has to be a-ok. All mistakes could be fatal. All the data the probes are collecting are send via radio transmitter to the computers on base in Ny Alesund. All these data is important to help scientists all over the world to hear our earth breathe. All over Ny Ålesund are very sensitive measuring devices for all kind of studies. Because the atmosphere is cleaner and free from most influences of civilization, the results are also clearer. But eventually even in Ny Ålesund you can see trace of a fire in Indonesia, because streams of air end here from all kind of origins.

Ny Alesund is run by the same Norwegian company, that once did the mining here: Kings Bay. A handful of employees have contracts for a few months or years. They keep all the houses in shape, keep the electricity production running and take care of the food. There are rich three meals every day and snacks in between. The food is fantastic, and as every pirate knows: if you want to avoid a mutiny, you have to keep the moral of the crew in high regards.

The meals start as early as seven in the morning and dinner is already at 4 p.m. But honestly, without daylight everything seems the same. It’s like living in outer space. Kings Bay also runs the planes going back and forth to the polar station. The only way in and out! In the settlement are also a few buildings, that are remainders form the vibrant mining times, with bars and tobacco stores. I think some of the are repurposed or are just waiting for a new purpose.

The people working in Ny Ålesund have a similar working day like everywhere else. Monday to Friday work and the weekend mostly off. Meals on the weekend start a little later and the Ny Ålesunders try to dress nicely for Sunday"s dinner. Social events are important to differentiate the days in the winter, when everyday seems to be the same. Christmas is a very intimate gathering with a candlelit dinner. One of the hang out places for me in Ny Ålesund was the blue house, which is the center of the German polar station. You can go there to rest and read. Some of the German scientists also live there.

The general atmosphere in Ny Ålesund, especially during the polar night, is like a scientific youth camp. You know, that the village is far away from the rest of the world and that makes you think a lot. The darkness, the ice and polar lights are unique things to experience, even if they are hard to capture on film. It’s these kind of adventures that ignite your imagination. Still you are very safe and everything is done to make you feel comfortable. I didn’t have to sacrifice anything, but now I am part of the unique club of Ny Alesunders.


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