The Norwegian Polar Institute (in Norwegian

Norwegian language

Norwegian is a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Norway, where it is the official language. Together with Swedish and Danish, Norwegian forms a continuum of more or less mutually intelligible local and regional variants .These Scandinavian languages together with the Faroese language...

: Norsk Polarinstitutt) is Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

's national institution for polar research. It is run under the auspices of the Norwegian Ministry of Environment. The institute organizes expeditions to the Arctic

Arctic

The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...

 and Antarctic

Antarctic

The Antarctic is the region around the Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica and the ice shelves, waters and island territories in the Southern Ocean situated south of the Antarctic Convergence...

 regions and runs a research station at Ny-Ålesund

Ny-Ålesund

Ny-Ålesund is one of the four permanent settlements on the island of Spitsbergen in the Svalbard archipelago. It is located on the Brøgger peninsula at Kongsfjorden...

. Its offices are in Tromsø

Tromsø

Tromsø is a city and municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.Tromsø city is the ninth largest urban area in Norway by population, and the seventh largest city in Norway by population...

 and Svalbard

Svalbard

Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic, constituting the northernmost part of Norway. It is located north of mainland Europe, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The group of islands range from 74° to 81° north latitude , and from 10° to 35° east longitude. Spitsbergen is the...

, together with a research station in Queen Maud Land

Queen Maud Land

Queen Maud Land is a c. 2.7 million-square-kilometre region of Antarctica claimed as a dependent territory by Norway. The territory lies between 20° west and 45° east, between the British Antarctic Territory to the west and the Australian Antarctic Territory to the east. The latitudinal...

, and employs approximately 150 persons. It has the responsibility to enforce international treaties regarding Antarctic activities by Norwegian citizens or corporations.

The institute was founded as Norges Svalbard- og Ishavsundersøkelser by Adolf Hoel

Adolf Hoel

Adolf Hoel was a Norwegian geologist and polar researcher. He was the leading Norwegian researcher at Svalbard in the early 20th century, and in 1928 founded Norges Svalbard- og Ishavsundersøkelser, which became the Norwegian Polar Institute in 1948. The mineral hoelite is named in his honour...

 in 1928.

Directors

• 1948 - 1957 Harald Ulrik Sverdrup
• 1957 - 1960 Anders K. Orvin
  Anders K. Orvin
  Anders Kristian Orvin was a Norwegian geologist and explorer. The Orvin Mountains in Queen Maud Land in Antarctica are named after him....
  
  
• 1960 - 1983 Tore Gjelsvik
  Tore Gjelsvik
  Tore Gjelsvik was a Norwegian geologist and polar explorer. He headed the Norwegian Polar Institute from 1960 to 1983, and played an important role in the Norwegian resistance during World War II.-Personal life:...
  
  
• 1983 - 1991 Odd Rogne
• 1991 - 1993 Nils Are Øritsland
  Nils Are Øritsland
  Nils Are Øritsland was a Norwegian polar researcher in zoophysiology and ecology.He was director of the Norwegian Polar Institute from 1991 to 1993.- Biography :...
  
  
• 1993 - 2005 Olav Orheim
  Olav Orheim
  Olav Orheim is a Norwegian glaciologist. He served as director of the Norwegian Polar Institute from 1993 to 2005. He was appointed associate professor in glaciology at the University of Bergen in 1989. Orheim was a central participant in the establishment of the research station Troll in Queen...
  
  
• 2005 - Jan-Gunnar Winther

Greenhouse gases research

Atmospheric levels of the main greenhouse gas have set another new peak in a sign of the industrial rise of Asian economies led by China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. The Norwegian Polar Institute has stated that in 2008 "the levels already in January are higher than 2007" .

External links

• Homepage of the Norwegian Polar Institute (English)