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26-526: The settlement of Tasiilaq is located about 15 km to the east of the mouth of the fjord. This fjord, whose Greenlandic name 'Sermilik' means 'place with glaciers' is located at the southern end of King Christian IX Land , west of Ammassalik Fjord . It is one of the largest fjords in the southeastern coast of Greenland. Its waters are fed by the Helheim Glacier , Fenris Glacier and Midgard Glacier among others. The fjord stretches inland in

52-406: A tundra climate ( ET ), with long, cold and snowy winters and short, cool drier summers. From time to time, Tasiilaq is affected by piteraqs . On 6 February 1970 the worst piteraq ever documented hit Tasiilaq, causing heavy damage and nearly ruining the town. Tasiilaq is twinned with: Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles , and the most northerly of

78-439: A local helicopter hub with flights to several villages in the region: Isortoq , Kuummiit , Sermiligaaq , and Tiniteqilaaq . In the summer, the cargo boats of Royal Arctic Line connect Tasiilaq with Kulusuk , providing an ad hoc alternative for the helicopter flights of Air Greenland. In summer main activities involve: ice cave tours, ice climbing , glacier hikes, boat trips, whale watching and kayaking. Tasiilaq has

104-657: A roughly northern direction and splits into two branches at its head —at the southern limit of Schweizerland , the western one being the Helheim Fjord and the right one the Ningerti . Sermilik's mouth is located between Kitak Island and Cape Tycho Brahe in the Denmark Strait area of the Atlantic Ocean. Kangersivartikajik is the next fjord to the east along the coast. Near the fjord's entrance on

130-524: Is visible at local midnight , and at least once the centre is not visible at local noon . Directly on the Arctic Circle these events occur, in principle, exactly once per year: at the June and December solstices , respectively. However, because of atmospheric refraction and mirages , and also because the sun appears as a disk and not a point, part of the midnight sun is visible, on the night of

156-594: Is located approximately 106 km (66 mi) south of the Arctic Circle , on the southeastern coast of Ammassalik Island , on the shore of a natural harbour in Tasiilaq Fjord , named Kong Oscars Havn by Alfred Gabriel Nathorst in 1883. The fjord is an inlet of the long Ammassalik Fjord emptying into the North Atlantic to the east of the town. The large Sermilik Fjord lies further to

182-571: Is not fixed and currently runs 66°33′50.2″ north of the Equator . Its latitude depends on the Earth's axial tilt , which fluctuates within a margin of more than 2° over a 41,000-year period, owing to tidal forces resulting from the orbit of the Moon . Consequently, the Arctic Circle is currently drifting northwards at a speed of about 14.5 m (48 ft) per year. The word arctic comes from

208-454: Is the main location where East Greenlandic is spoken. There are no roads far outside Tasiilaq. The longest is a 3 km (1.9 mi) narrow gravel road to the hydro power plant. Transport to further places is by helicopter or boat. Air Greenland operates helicopter services from Tasiilaq Heliport to neighboring Kulusuk Airport (24 km (15 mi) away), which offers connections to Nuuk , and to Iceland . The heliport serves as

234-608: The Arctic Ocean , the Scandinavian Peninsula , North Asia , Northern America , and Greenland. The land within the Arctic Circle is divided among eight countries: Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, the United States ( Alaska ), Canada ( Yukon , Northwest Territories , and Nunavut ), Denmark (Greenland), and Iceland (where it passes through the small offshore island of Grímsey ). The climate north of

260-472: The Dorset culture . The Norse would have been familiar with the area as the first landmark on the voyage between Iceland's Snæfellsnes peninsula and Greenland. Thule migrations passed through the area in the fifteenth century, finding the southeastern coast uninhabited. Due to back migrations to the more densely populated western coast, the southeastern coast was deserted for another two hundred years –

286-625: The Greek word ἀρκτικός ( arktikos : "near the Bear , northern") and that from the word ἄρκτος ( arktos : " bear "). The Arctic Circle is the southernmost latitude in the Northern Hemisphere at which the centre of the Sun can remain continuously above or below the horizon for twenty-four hours; as a result, at least once each year at any location within the Arctic Circle the centre of the Sun

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312-526: The Arctic Circle is generally cold, but the coastal areas of Norway have a generally mild climate as a result of the Gulf Stream , which makes the ports of northern Norway and northwest Russia ice-free all year long. In the interior, summers can be quite warm, while winters are extremely cold. For example, summer temperatures in Norilsk , Russia will sometimes reach as high as 30 °C (86 °F), while

338-604: The Arctic Circle with about 5,000 inhabitants. The largest such community in Canada is Inuvik in the Northwest Territories , with 3,137 inhabitants. Download coordinates as: The Arctic Circle is roughly 16,000 km (9,900 mi) in circumference. The area north of the Circle is about 20,000,000 km (7,700,000 sq mi) and covers roughly 4% of Earth's surface. The Arctic Circle passes through

364-466: The Arctic Circle, lying 6 km (4 mi) south of the line. Salekhard (51,186) in Russia is the only city in the world located directly on the Arctic Circle. In contrast, the largest North American community north of the Arctic Circle, Sisimiut ( Greenland ), has approximately 5,600 inhabitants. In the United States, Utqiagvik, Alaska (formerly known as Barrow) is the largest settlement north of

390-591: The five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth at about 66° 34' N. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle . The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at which, on the winter solstice (which is the shortest day of the year) in the Northern Hemisphere , the Sun will not rise all day, and on the Northern Hemisphere's summer solstice (which is the longest day of

416-422: The highest hopes of a fortunate result", according to Jason's captain. There followed days of extreme frustration for the party as, prevented by weather and sea conditions from reaching the shore, they drifted southwards with the ice. Most of this time was spent camping on the ice itself—it was too dangerous to launch the boats. By 29 July they were 380 kilometres (240 mi) south of the point where they had left

442-529: The municipality of Sermersooq . With 1,985 inhabitants as of 2020, it is the most populous community on the eastern coast, and the seventh-largest town in Greenland. The Sermilik Station , dedicated to the research of the nearby Mittivakkat Glacier , is located near the town. The people of Saqqaq culture were the first to reach eastern Greenland, arriving from the north, through what is now known as Peary Land and Independence Fjord , to be surpassed by

468-411: The northern summer solstice , at a latitude of about 50 minutes of arc (′) (90 km (56 mi)) south of the Arctic Circle. Similarly, on the day of the northern winter solstice , part of the Sun may be seen up to about 50′ north of the Arctic Circle. That is true at sea level ; those limits increase with elevation above sea level , although in mountainous regions there is often no direct view of

494-458: The region wasn't settled until late eighteenth century, with the village surviving as the only permanent settlement in the nineteenth century. Population increased however from the 1880s, dispersing over several villages in the area. The permanent settlement was founded in 1894 as a Danish trading station. The town was previously known as Ammassalik (old spelling: Angmagssalik ). The official name change took place in 1997. Alcohol consumption

520-416: The ship. On that day they finally reached land, but were too far south to begin the crossing. After a brief rest, Nansen ordered the team back into the boats and to begin rowing north. In the end Nansen finally began his crossing at Umivik Bay . Tasiilaq Tasiilaq , formerly Ammassalik or Angmagssalik and King Oscar Haven , is a town on Ammassalik Island in southeastern Greenland , within

546-516: The true horizon. The largest communities north of the Arctic Circle are situated in Russia, Norway, and Sweden: Murmansk (population 295,374) and Norilsk (178,018) in Russia; Tromsø (75,638) in Norway, Vorkuta (58,133) in Russia, Bodø (52,357) and Harstad (24,703) in Norway; and Kiruna , Sweden (22,841). Rovaniemi (62,667) in Finland is the largest settlement in the immediate vicinity of

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572-483: The west. With 1,985 inhabitants as of 2020, Tasiilaq is one of the fastest-growing towns in Greenland. The migrants are continuing the trend for population growth. Together with Nuuk , it is the only town in the Sermersooq municipality exhibiting stable growth patterns over the last two decades. The population increased by over 37% relative to the 1990 levels, and by over 18% relative to the 2000 levels. Tasiilaq

598-489: The western side there is the island of Qeertartivatsiaq at the mouth of Johan Petersen Fjord and its eastern branch, the Stoklund Fjord . Sermilik is surrounded by jagged mountainous landscape and its coast is mostly very irregular and steep. Initially Fridtjof Nansen had thought that Sermilik would offer a route up to reach the ice cap for his projected westward overland crossing. On 3 June 1888 Nansen's party

624-457: The year), the Sun will not set. These phenomena are referred to as polar night and midnight sun respectively, and the further north one progresses, the more pronounced these effects become. For example, in the Russian port city of Murmansk , three degrees above the Arctic Circle, the Sun does not rise above the horizon for 40 successive days in midwinter. The position of the Arctic Circle

650-463: Was banned by Greenland's self rule authority in Tasiilaq on September 7, 2021, over a two-week period until September 17 following a surge of violence & suicide in the town. Following this prohibition, reports of domestic violence had greatly decreased. Social workers from the town said that "it is only a short term solution, but necessary to put the breaks on alcohol-fueled incidents." Tasiilaq

676-574: Was picked up from the north-western Icelandic port of Ísafjörður by Norwegian sealer Jason . A week later the Greenland coast was sighted, but progress was hindered by thick pack ice . On 17 July, with the coast still 20 kilometres (12 mi) away, Nansen decided to launch the small boats; they were within sight of the Sermilik Fjord, which Nansen had deemed a good place to reach the ice sheet in order to cross it and reach Christianshåb . The expedition left Jason "in good spirits and with

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