Kangerlussuaq
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Kangerlussuaq (; ; da, Søndre Strømfjord), is a settlement in western
Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...
in the
Qeqqata Qeqqata (, da, Centrum, lit=Centre) is a municipality in western Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. The municipality was named after its location in the central-western part of the country. Its population is 9,378 as of January 2020. Th ...
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
located at the head of the fjord of the same name. It is Greenland's main air transport hub and the site of Greenland's largest commercial airport. The airport dates from American settlement during and after
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, when the site was known as Bluie West-8 and then
Sondrestrom Air Base Sondrestrom Air Base, originally Bluie West-8, was a United States Air Force base in central Greenland. The site is located north of the Arctic Circle and from the northeast end of Kangerlussuaq Fjord (formerly known by its Danish name ''Søn ...
. The Kangerlussuaq area is also home to Greenland's most diverse terrestrial fauna, including
muskox The muskox (''Ovibos moschatus'', in Latin "musky sheep-ox"), also spelled musk ox and musk-ox, plural muskoxen or musk oxen (in iu, ᐅᒥᖕᒪᒃ, umingmak; in Woods Cree: ), is a hoofed mammal of the family Bovidae. Native to the Arctic, ...
en, caribou, and
gyrfalcon The gyrfalcon ( or ) (), the largest of the falcon species, is a bird of prey. The abbreviation gyr is also used. It breeds on Arctic coasts and tundra, and the islands of northern North America and the Eurosiberian region. It is mainly a resid ...
s. The settlement's economy and population of 508 is almost entirely reliant on the airport and tourist industry.


Geography

Kangerlussuaq occupies an
alluvial Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluv ...
flatland on the far end of the 190 km long
Kangerlussuaq Fjord Kangerlussuaq Fjord (old spelling: ''Kangerdlugssuaq'', da, Søndre Strømfjord) is a long fjord in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. The fjord is long and between and wide, flowing from the estuary of Qinnguata Kuussua r ...
, straddling both sides of the
Qinnguata Kuussua Qinnguata Kuussua is a river in a valley of the same name in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Its source is a large meltwater outflow from Russell Glacier flowing from the Greenland Ice Sheet. It is the main river in the ...
river estuary. East of Kangerlussuaq there is a confluence of the two major regional rivers, the Qinnguata Kuussua and
Akuliarusiarsuup Kuua Akuliarusiarsuup Kuua ( da, Sandflugtdalen) is a river and valley of the same name in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Its source is the meltwater outflow from Russell Glacier, an outflow of the Greenland ice sheet. The ri ...
. The valley of the latter forms large
quicksand Quicksand is a colloid consisting of fine granular material (such as sand, silt or clay) and water. It forms in saturated loose sand when the sand is suddenly agitated. When water in the sand cannot escape, it creates a liquefied soil that los ...
plains. Both rivers originate from the Russell Glacier. The edge of the glacier is easily accessible and is a major tourist attraction from the town, as is the edge of the
ice sheet In glaciology, an ice sheet, also known as a continental glacier, is a mass of glacial ice that covers surrounding terrain and is greater than . The only current ice sheets are in Antarctica and Greenland; during the Last Glacial Period at La ...
in the
Isunngua Isunngua (old spelling: ''Isúngua'') is a highland in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland, located immediately west of the Greenland Ice Sheet edge. In large part it is covered by the tundra, although in the immediate vicinity ...
highlands to its northeast. Highlands such as
Tarajornitsut Tarajornitsut is an uninhabited tundra highland in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland, within the bounds of Kangaamiut dike swarm. The highland has many lakes, shallow valleys, hills, and wetlands, with plentiful wildlife, such ...
bound Kangerlussuaq from the north and south. To the southeast behind lake
Tasersuatsiaq Tasersuatsiaq (old spelling: ''Taserssuatsiaq'') is a lake in central-western Greenland, in the Qeqqata municipality. It is located southeast of Kangerlussuaq, with a depth of , covering an area of 750ha. During the operating years of the America ...
, which provides fresh water to the town, is the vast highland of Ammalortup Nunaa, the original region artificially populated with 27
muskox The muskox (''Ovibos moschatus'', in Latin "musky sheep-ox"), also spelled musk ox and musk-ox, plural muskoxen or musk oxen (in iu, ᐅᒥᖕᒪᒃ, umingmak; in Woods Cree: ), is a hoofed mammal of the family Bovidae. Native to the Arctic, ...
en. The town is situated about north of the
Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
, and is the starting point for the
Arctic Circle Trail The Arctic Circle Trail is a hiking trail in Greenland. The route covers from the interior settlement of Kangerlussuaq to Sisimiut on the coast. Geography and terrain The entirety of the trail is north of the arctic circle, hence the name. Wh ...
.


History

While Inuit hunters certainly visited Kangerlussuaq, there appears never to have been a settlement at the location. Kangerlussuaq was founded at the east end of Kangerlussuaq fjord as
Bluie West-8 Sondrestrom Air Base, originally Bluie West-8, was a United States Air Force base in central Greenland. The site is located north of the Arctic Circle and from the northeast end of Kangerlussuaq Fjord (formerly known by its Danish name ''Sønd ...
on 7 October 1941, under the supervision of Colonel Bernt Balchen of the
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
(USAAF). Following the fall of Denmark to
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
in
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, US forces assumed security for Greenland, building several bases including
Bluie Bluie was the United States military code name for Greenland during World War II. It is remembered by the numbered sequence of base locations identified by the 1941 United States Coast Guard South Greenland Survey Expedition, and subsequently us ...
West-1 to the south in
Narsarsuaq Narsarsuaq (lit. ''Great Plan'';''Facts and History of Narsarsuaq'', Narsarsuad Tourist Information old spelling: ''Narssarssuaq'') is a settlement in the Kujalleq municipality in southern Greenland. It had 123 inhabitants in 2020. There is a thri ...
and Bluie West-8 at the Kangerlussuaq fjord. The base briefly came under Danish control in 1950, but following mounting concerns about the
Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
threat, a new agreement saw the United States reopen Bluie West-8 under the name of
Sondrestrom Air Base Sondrestrom Air Base, originally Bluie West-8, was a United States Air Force base in central Greenland. The site is located north of the Arctic Circle and from the northeast end of Kangerlussuaq Fjord (formerly known by its Danish name ''Søn ...
on 27 April 1951. It served as one of the Distant Early Warning Line bases and a supply station for similar early warning facilities. Following the fall of the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
, the usefulness of the base was greatly diminished and the last
U.S. Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...
personnel left the base on 30 September 1992. The base subsequently came under Greenlandic Home Rule and was renamed using the
Kalaallisut Kalaallisut may refer to: * Greenlandic language * West Greenlandic West Greenlandic ( da, vestgrønlandsk), also known as Kalaallisut, is the primary language of Greenland and constitutes the Greenlandic language, spoken by the vast majority of ...
dialect of the West Greenland Inuit. This site and Bluie West-1 in Narsarsuaq remain Greenland's best-equipped airports. Almost all of the permanent structures in the town were built during the American occupation of the site.


Climate

The climate in Kangerlussuaq is
subarctic The subarctic zone is a region in the Northern Hemisphere immediately south of the true Arctic, north of humid continental regions and covering much of Alaska, Canada, Iceland, the north of Scandinavia, Siberia, and the Cairngorms. Generally, ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''Dfc''), bordering on
tundra climate The tundra climate is a polar climate sub-type located in high latitudes and high mountains. undra climate https://www.britannica.com/science/tundra-climateThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2019 It is classified as ET according to Köppen ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''ET'') and unusually for somewhere this far north (In the arctic circle), a cold-semi-arid climate (
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...
''BSk''), with the area receiving very little rainfall. In July 2012 a gust of warm air resulted in glacier meltwater which wiped out a key crossing of the Watson River.


Population

The population of Kangerlussuaq dropped significantly after the liquidation of the Sondrestrom Air Base. Since then it has increased by more than 80%, although it has begun dropping again in recent years.


Transport


Air

As the only civilian airport in Greenland large enough to support large long-range airplanes such as
Boeing 747 The Boeing 747 is a large, long-range wide-body airliner designed and manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in the United States between 1968 and 2022. After introducing the 707 in October 1958, Pan Am wanted a jet times its size, t ...
s,
Kangerlussuaq Airport Kangerlussuaq Airport ( kl, Mittarfik Kangerlussuaq, da, Søndre Strømfjord Lufthavn) is an airport in Kangerlussuaq, a settlement in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland. Alongside Narsarsuaq Airport, it is one of only two ...
is Greenland's most important transport hub. Hotel Kangerlussuaq operates at the airport.


Sea

Kangerlussuaq Fjord is navigable in its entire length. There is a seaport at Kangerlussuaq, west of Kangerlussuaq Airport. It is fairly shallow and suitable for small ships only, mainly used by supply ships of the
Royal Arctic Line Royal Arctic Line A/S (RAL) or Royal Arctic is a seaborne freight company in Greenland, wholly owned by the Government of Greenland. It was formed in 1993, and is headquartered in Nuuk. History Royal Arctic Line A/S was spun off as a company se ...
, and unusable in winter. Cruise ships, such as Norway's
Hurtigruten ''Hurtigruten'' (), formally Kystruten Bergen-Kirkenes ("coastal route Bergen-Kirkenes"), is a Norwegian public coastal route transporting passengers that travel locally, regionally and between the ports of call, and also cargo between ports no ...
, navigate the fjord, anchoring outside the port. They go to Kangerlussuaq mainly to exchange passenger by air, because the travel time to and from Greenland is too long for many passengers. Plans were approved in 2018 to build a new deep port, around west of the present one, together with a road to it.


Road

Kangerlussuaq has the largest road network outside any settlement in Greenland (not counting streets inside the settlement). A gravel road through
Isunngua Isunngua (old spelling: ''Isúngua'') is a highland in the Qeqqata municipality in central-western Greenland, located immediately west of the Greenland Ice Sheet edge. In large part it is covered by the tundra, although in the immediate vicinity ...
connects Kangerlussuaq with the ice sheet, initially serving as venue for car endurance experiments. Since then it has been mainly used for tourist purposes. There are plans to construct a road to
Sisimiut Sisimiut (), formerly known as Holsteinsborg, is the capital and largest city of the Qeqqata municipality, the second-largest city in Greenland, and the largest Arctic city in North America.The term 'city' is loosely used to describe any popula ...
() as of 2017. The cost estimates have been between 250 and 500 million Danish kroner (DKK), depending on road quality, and therefore the plans are delayed. The drive time would be much longer than the fly time, and there are also considerations to move the main hub of Air Greenland to
Nuuk Airport Nuuk Airport ( kl, Mittarfik Nuuk; da, Godthåb Lufthavn; is an airport serving Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. The airport is a technical base and focus city for Air Greenland, the flag carrier airline of Greenland, linking the capital with s ...
, closing Kangerlussuaq airport. A road to Sisimiut with a low quality, aimed to
off-road vehicle An off-road vehicle, sometimes referred to as an overland or adventure vehicle, is considered to be any type of vehicle which is capable of driving on and off paved or gravel surface. It is generally characterized by having large tires with de ...
s was built 2020-2021, at a cost of 25 million DKK. There are hopes that the road will be rebuilt to a proper paved road in future.


Scientific research

From 1982 to 2018 there was an
ionospheric The ionosphere () is the ionized part of the upper atmosphere of Earth, from about to above sea level, a region that includes the thermosphere and parts of the mesosphere and exosphere. The ionosphere is ionized by solar radiation. It plays a ...
and
atmospheric An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A s ...
research facility known as the Sondrestrom Upper Atmospheric Research Facility, situated at about west of Kangerlussuaq. It was commonly known around the town as Kellyville. It was operated by
SRI International SRI International (SRI) is an American nonprofit scientific research institute and organization headquartered in Menlo Park, California. The trustees of Stanford University established SRI in 1946 as a center of innovation to support economic d ...
for the U.S.
National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States government that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National I ...
and the
Danish Meteorological Institute The Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI; da, Danmarks Meteorologiske Institut) is the official Danish meteorological institute, administrated by the Ministry of Energy, Utilities and Climate. The institute makes weather forecasts and observati ...
. The facility was host to more than 20 instruments, the majority of which provide unique and complementary information about the
arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
upper atmosphere. The centerpiece instrument of the facility was an
L band The L band is the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) designation for the range of frequencies in the radio spectrum from 1 to 2 gigahertz (GHz). This is at the top end of the ultra high frequency (UHF) band, at the lower en ...
incoherent scatter Incoherent scattering is a type of scattering phenomenon in physics. The term is most commonly used when referring to the scattering of an electromagnetic wave (usually light or radio frequency) by random fluctuations in a gas of particles (most o ...
(IS) radar with a fully steerable antenna. It was transported from
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
to Kangerlussuaq in 1983.


References


External links

* * {{Authority control Populated places established in 1941 Populated places in Greenland Populated places of Arctic Greenland 1941 establishments in Greenland