Meet Russia's Northernmost Point – Franz Josef Land

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August 30 marks the 150th anniversary of the discovery of Russia's northernmost archipelago, Franz Josef Land. The territory, sheltered by ancient glaciers and permafrost, consists of over 200 islands bisected by straits.
The Franz Josef Archipelago was discovered quite by accident in 1873 by a group of Austrian explorers. Therefore, the northern land is named after the Austrian Emperor who ruled at that time.
Although the Russian Empire flag was first raised on the archipelago in 1901, Franz Josef Land was officially incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1926 as part of the Arkhangelsk region. The USSR established the polar station, an airfield, and an observatory on the archipelago for Soviet expeditions to the North Pole.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, many of the land's sites were abandoned, but today, the world's northernmost post office "Arkhangelsk 163100" and the world's northernmost meteorological station - the Ernst Krenkel Observatory - work there.
Since 2012, the territory of Franz Josef Land has been part of the Russian Arctic National Park. Polar bears and walruses are the masters there, and huge colonies of migrating seabirds nest on rocky slopes and cliffs.
Take a look at Sputnik's photo gallery covering the enigmatic beauty of Russia's northernmost point!
CC0 / Oona Räisänen / Franz Josef Land location
Franz Josef Land location - Sputnik Africa
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Franz Josef Land location
© Sputnik . Ilya Timin / Go to the mediabank

Landscape of Bell Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

Landscape of Bell Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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Landscape of Bell Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Valery Melnikov / Go to the mediabank

A polar bear with her cub near the Franz Josef Land archipelago in the Barents Sea.

A polar bear with her cub near the Franz Josef Land archipelago in the Barents Sea. - Sputnik Africa
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A polar bear with her cub near the Franz Josef Land archipelago in the Barents Sea.

© Sputnik . Ilya Timin / Go to the mediabank

Iceberg and yacht "Alter Ego" off an island of Franz Josef Land archipelago.

Iceberg and yacht "Alter Ego" off an island of Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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Iceberg and yacht "Alter Ego" off an island of Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Pavel Lvov / Go to the mediabank

Complex of buildings of the polar station in Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

Complex of buildings of the polar station in Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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Complex of buildings of the polar station in Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Vera Kostamo / Go to the mediabank

A polar bear at the polar station on the shore of Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

A polar bear at the polar station on the shore of Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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A polar bear at the polar station on the shore of Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Ilya Timin / Go to the mediabank

A walrus rookery on the shore of an island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

A walrus rookery on the shore of an island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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A walrus rookery on the shore of an island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Pavel Lvov / Go to the mediabank

An island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

An island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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An island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Vera Kostamo / Go to the mediabank

Arctic fox on an island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

Arctic fox on an island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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Arctic fox on an island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Ilya Timin / Go to the mediabank

Brosh Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

Brosh Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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Brosh Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Pavel Lvov / Go to the mediabank

Complex of buildings at the polar station Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

Complex of buildings at the polar station Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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Complex of buildings at the polar station Tikhaya Bukhta (Bay) on Gukera Island in the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Ilya Timin / Go to the mediabank

Little auks on an ice floe off the coast of an island of the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

Little auks on an ice floe off the coast of an island of the Franz Josef Land archipelago. - Sputnik Africa
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Little auks on an ice floe off the coast of an island of the Franz Josef Land archipelago.

© Sputnik . Vladimir Astapkovich / Go to the mediabank

Franz Josef Land in the Arctic Ocean.

Franz Josef Land in the Arctic Ocean. - Sputnik Africa
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Franz Josef Land in the Arctic Ocean.

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