North Ice, Greenland, One Of Earth’s Coldest Places
Silvan Leinss/Wikimedia CommonsA glaciologist trekking across the Greenland Ice Sheet.
North Ice was a British research station established in 1952 during the British North Greenland Expedition. Situated on the inland ice of northern Greenland, it was one of the most remote and coldest inhabited locations on Earth during its operation.
The primary objective of the expedition was to conduct scientific studies in glaciology, meteorology, and geology to better understand the Arctic environment. North Ice was the main base for these research activities.
On Jan. 9, 1954, North Ice recorded a temperature of minus 87 degrees Fahrenheit, the coldest that had ever been reported in North America at that time. Its frigid climate is attributed to the station’s high latitude and elevation — and the expansive ice sheet that creates a unique microclimate.
Following the conclusion of the expedition in 1954, North Ice was abandoned. The data collected during its brief operation, however, has been instrumental in advancing the scientific understanding of polar climates and glaciology.
