Jungfraujoch is an underground

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

situated near the

Jungfraujoch The Jungfraujoch (German language, German: lit. "maiden saddle") is a Saddle (landform), saddle connecting two major Four-thousander, 4000ers of the Bernese Alps: the Jungfrau and the Mönch. It lies at an elevation of above sea level and is dir ...

, in the canton of

Valais Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...

, a few metres from the border with the canton of

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

. At above sea level, it is the terminus of the

Jungfrau Railway The Jungfrau Railway (, , JB) is a mountain rack railway in the Bernese Alps, Switzerland, connecting Kleine Scheidegg in the Bernese Oberland to the Jungfraujoch, across the Valais border. It is the highest railway in Switzerland and Europe, ru ...

and the highest railway station in Switzerland and Europe. The Jungfrau Railway runs from

Kleine Scheidegg The Kleine Scheidegg () is a mountain pass at an elevation of , situated below and between the Eiger and Lauberhorn peaks in the Bernese Oberland region of Switzerland. The name means "minor watershed", as it only divides the two arms of the L ...

in the

Bernese Oberland The Bernese Oberland (; ; ), sometimes also known as the Bernese Highlands, is the highest and southernmost part of the canton of Bern. It is one of the canton's five administrative regions (in which context it is referred to as ''Oberland'' witho ...

, through the Jungfrau Tunnel (inside the

Eiger The Eiger () is a mountain of the Bernese Alps, overlooking Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland, just north of the main watershed and border with Valais. It is the easternmost peak of a ridge crest that extends ...

and

Mönch The Mönch (, German: "monk") at is a mountain in the Bernese Alps, in Switzerland. Together with the Eiger and the Jungfrau, it forms a highly recognisable group of mountains, visible from far away. The Mönch lies on the border between the ...

) and crosses the border between the two cantons shortly before the terminus. The station is located east of the Jungfraujoch, less than 300 metres away, below the

Sphinx A sphinx ( ; , ; or sphinges ) is a mythical creature with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the wings of an eagle. In Culture of Greece, Greek tradition, the sphinx is a treacherous and merciless being with the head of a woman, th ...

ridge. The Jungfraujoch itself is a snow saddle constituting the lowest point of the ridge between the Jungfrau and the

. A complex of tunnels connects the railway station to the Top of Europe building, overlooking the

Aletsch Glacier The Aletsch Glacier (, ) or Great Aletsch Glacier () is the largest glacier in the Alps. It has a length of about (2014), a volume of (2011), and covers about (2011) in the eastern Bernese Alps in the Switzerland, Swiss canton of Valais. The A ...

on the south side, and an

elevator An elevator (American English) or lift (Commonwealth English) is a machine that vertically transports people or freight between levels. They are typically powered by electric motors that drive traction cables and counterweight systems suc ...

to the summit of the Sphinx, the peak overlooking the saddle from the east. At the Sphinx are enclosed and open viewing platforms, with views over both sides of the Jungfraujoch and the surrounding peaks. A scientific observatory, the

Sphinx Observatory The Sphinx Observatory is an astronomical observatory located above the Jungfraujoch in Switzerland. It is named after the ''Sphinx'', a rocky summit on which it is located. At above mean sea level, it is one of the highest observatories in the ...

, is also located here. Also accessed via the tunnels is the Ice Palace, a series of ice caverns beneath the glacier, and the Alpine Sensation, which presents a display on the tourist development of the Alps and the history of the Jungfrau Railway. Administratively, the station is situated in the municipality of Fieschertal in the

canton of Valais Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...

, albeit very close to the border with the municipality of Lauterbrunnen in the

canton of Bern The canton of Bern, or Berne (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. The bear is the heraldic symbol of the c ...

. The cantonal border follows the watershed between the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...

and

Aare The Aare () or Aar () is the main tributary of the High Rhine (its discharge even exceeds that of the latter at their confluence) and the longest river that both rises and ends entirely within Switzerland. Its total length from its source to i ...

river

basins Basin may refer to: Geography and geology * Depression (geology) ** Back-arc basin, a submarine feature associated with island arcs and subduction zones ** Debris basin, designed to prevent damage from debris flow ** Drainage basin (hydrology), ...

(and thus between the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...

and

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

catchments, respectively) across the Jungfraujoch above the station. The station is served by trains of the

Jungfrau railway The Jungfrau Railway (, , JB) is a mountain rack railway in the Bernese Alps, Switzerland, connecting Kleine Scheidegg in the Bernese Oberland to the Jungfraujoch, across the Valais border. It is the highest railway in Switzerland and Europe, ru ...

, which run from

, where they connect with services from

Interlaken Interlaken (; lit.: ''between lakes'') is a Swiss town and municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern. It is an important and well-known tourist destination in the Bernese Oberland region of the Swiss ...

Lauterbrunnen Lauterbrunnen () is a village and Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli (administrative district), Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Canton of Bern, Bern in Swi ...

, Wengen and

Grindelwald Grindelwald is a village and Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli (administrative district), Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Bern (canton), Berne. In additio ...

via the Bernese Oberland railway and the Wengernalp railway. The following passenger trains operate:

References

External links

* *
Jungfraujoch station on the Jungfrau Railway web site
Railway stations in the canton of Valais Railway stations in Switzerland opened in 1912 {{Switzerland-railstation-stub

See also

References

External links