Norway 1

Visiting Norway

September 4, 2013

Norway 2
Norway
In July of 2013 I was invited to visit the country of Norway. So I began a study on the country hoping I will one day soon get to visit there. Norway is a small country in Northern
Europe, sharing borders with Sweden, Finland, and Russia. It also borders the North Sea, the
North Atlantic Ocean, and the Barents Sea. Covering 125,182 square miles, Norway is slightly larger than the state of New Mexico. Extending 1,089 miles, it has the greatest length of any
European country. Its width, however, is only 267 miles. The majority of its border is coastline, with 13,624 miles bordered by water, compared to only 1,581 miles of land border. Norway has a diverse selection of geographical features, including mountains, glaciers, fjords, and of course, miles of coastline. Over 90% of Norway is covered by vast mountain ranges, leaving less than 10% arable land. Norway’s mountain ranges typically run north-south, and form borders between Norway’s districts. Terrain in the mountains is generally composed of plateaus, lakes, and peaks. The lake areas provide a perfect spot for their diverse flora and fauna. Glaciers are responsible for the erosion that formed the majority of the mountains.
Europe’s largest glacier, Austfonna, is located in Norway, and has a glacier front of 200 kilometers. In all, more than 2600 square kilometers of Norway’s surface area is covered by glaciers. Many visitors to Norway enjoy guided glacier walking. Adventurers, however, must be
Norway 3 alert and aware, and cautious of such dangers as crevasses or avalanches. The western part of Norway is famous for its fjords. A fjord is formed when an iceberg retreats, allowing water to flow in and fill the u-shaped valley it leaves behind. Fjords are some of the most beautiful and dramatic landscape features on earth. Norway is home to some of the longest, deepest, and most beautiful fjords in the world. The Sognafjord is the longest, with a length of 204 kilometers. In some places, it is more than 1300 meters deep, and the surrounding mountains reach another 1300 feet above. The western edge of Norway is home to some of the longest and most rugged coastlines in the world. The coastal region of Norway also includes more than 50,000 islands located off its coastline. The climate in Norway varies greatly from one area to another. In the winter, along the coast, the mean temperature remains above freezing, while the lower inland areas record much lower temperatures, averaging 17 degrees below zero (Celsius). The lowest recorded temperature in Norway was fifty one degrees below zero (Celsius). This was recorded on
January 1, 1886. Winter temperatures of forty degrees below zero celsius are not uncommon in the areas of Norway with lower elevation. In the springtime, the inland areas warm faster than the coastal areas, and conversely, in the autumn, these same areas lose heat more quickly. In the summer, the highest temperature ever recorded was twenty-two degrees Celsius. This was
Norway 4

recorded on June 20, 1970. As with temperatures, precipitation in Norway varies from area to area. The largest amounts of precipitation are received several miles inland from the western coast, and mostly during the autumn and winter months. Toward the eastern side of Norway, most of the precipitation occurs during the summer, with spring and winter being the driest. Norway averages 28.7 inches of precipitation per year. In an average month, there are 13 days during which measurable precipitation occurs. On average, March is the driest month, with only 9 days during which measurable precipitation occurs. Norway’s capital city is Oslo, and is located in the southeast of the country. It is centrally located in the heart of Scandinavia. Oslo