Jan Mayen

(territory of Norway)

Geography

Location: Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the Norwegian Sea, northeast of Iceland

Map references: Arctic Region

Area:
total area: 373 sq km
land area: 373 sq km
comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 124.1 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 10 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 4 nm

International disputes: none

Climate: arctic maritime with frequent storms and persistent fog

Terrain: volcanic island, partly covered by glaciers; Beerenberg is the highest peak, with an elevation of 2,277 meters

Natural resources: none

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 0%
forest and woodland: 0%
other: 100%

Irrigated land: 0 sq km

Environment:
current issues: NA
natural hazards: dominated by the volcano Beerenberg; volcanic activity resumed in 1970
international agreements: NA

Note: barren volcanic island with some moss and grass

People

Population: no permanent inhabitants; note - there are personnel who man the LORAN C base and the weather and coastal services radio station

Government

Names:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Jan Mayen

Digraph: JN

Type: territory of Norway

Capital: none; administered from Oslo, Norway, through a governor (sysselmann) resident in Longyearbyen (Svalbard)

Independence: none (territory of Norway)

Economy

Overview: Jan Mayen is a volcanic island with no exploitable natural resources. Economic activity is limited to providing services for employees of Norway's radio and meteorological stations located on the island.

Electricity:
capacity: 15,000 kW
production: 40 million kWh
consumption per capita: NA kWh (1992)

Transportation

Highways:
total: NA
paved: NA
unpaved: NA

Ports: none; offshore anchorage only

Airports:
total: 1
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 1

Communications

Telephone system: NA telephones
local: NA
intercity: NA
international: NA

Radio:
broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
radios: NA
note: radio and meteorological station

Television:
broadcast stations: NA
televisions: NA

Defense Forces

Note: defense is the responsibility of Norway