Qaanaaq
Encyclopedia
Qaanaaq is the main town in the northern part of the Qaasuitsup
Qaasuitsup
Qaasuitsup is a new municipality in Greenland, operational from 1 January 2009. As of January 2010 its population is 17,749. The administrative center of the municipality is in Ilulissat...

 municipality in northwestern Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...

. It is one of the northernmost towns
Northernmost cities and towns
This is a list of the northernmost cities and towns in the world.-Larger cities:Northernmost cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants.Northernmost cities with more than 250,000 inhabitants.-See also:*Southernmost cities and towns...

 in the world. The inhabitants of Qaanaaq speak the West Greenlandic language and many also speak Inuktun
Inuktun
Inuktun is the language of approximately 1000 indigenous Inughuit, inhabiting the world's northernmost settlements in Qaanaaq and the surrounding villages in northwestern Greenland. All speakers of Inuktun also speak Standard West Greenlandic and many also speak Danish and a few also English...

. The town has a population of 626 as of 2010. The tallest construction in Greenland, the 378-meter Globecom Tower
Globecom Tower
Globecom Tower is a 378.25 metre tall guyed mast for military longwave transmission at Northmountain on Thule Air Base on Greenland. Globecom Tower, whose design is similar to that of Forestport Tower, is a guyed lattice steel tower with a triangular cross section , which is anchored in three...

 (Radio Mast Thule), is located near the town.

History

The Qaanaaq area in northern Greenland was first settled 2000 BC by the Paleo-Eskimo
Paleo-Eskimo
The Paleo-Eskimo were the peoples who inhabited the Arctic region from Chukotka in present-day Russia across North America to Greenland prior to the rise of the modern Inuit and/or Eskimo and related cultures...

 migrating from the Canadian Arctic. The town of Qaanaaq was founded when the US extended their current airbase at Thule
Thule Air Base
Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport , is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located north of the Arctic Circle and from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland. It is approximately east of the North Magnetic Pole.-Overview:Thule Air Base is the...

 and the former population of Pituffik
Pituffik
Pituffik is a former settlement in northern Greenland, located at the current site of the American Thule Air Base. The former inhabitants were relocated to the present-day town of Qaanaaq...

 was forced to move out 31 km (19 mi) to the north within four days during the height of the Cold War.

Transport

Air Greenland
Air Greenland
Air Greenland A/S is the flag carrier airline of Greenland, jointly owned by the government of Greenland, the SAS Group, and the government of Denmark...

 operates fixed-wing aircraft
Fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is an aircraft capable of flight using wings that generate lift due to the vehicle's forward airspeed. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft in which wings rotate about a fixed mast and ornithopters in which lift is generated by flapping wings.A powered...

 services between Qaanaaq Airport
Qaanaaq Airport
Qaanaaq Airport is an airport located northwest of Qaanaaq, a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northern Greenland. It was established in 1991 to serve Qaanaaq and neighboring communities in light of the fact that Thule Air Base in Pituffik is not open for regular passenger traffic...

 and Upernavik Airport
Upernavik Airport
Upernavik Airport is an airport located northeast of Upernavik, a town in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland, capable of serving STOL aircraft...

, with further connections to Ilulissat Airport
Ilulissat Airport
Ilulissat Airport is an airport located near the shores of Disko Bay, north-east of Ilulissat, a town in the Qaasuitsup municipality in western Greenland. It was built in 1983, replacing the old heliport.- Airlines and destinations :...

 and Qaarsut Airport
Qaarsut Airport
Qaarsut Airport is an airport in Qaarsut, a settlement on the Nuussuaq Peninsula in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northwestern Greenland. It is a primary airport with a gravel runway, capable of serving STOL aircraft of Air Greenland in all seasons...

. Settlement flights operate to Siorapaluk
Siorapaluk
Siorapaluk is a settlement in the Qaanaaq area of the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northern Greenland and is one of the world's northernmost inhabited settlements. It has a population of 68 speaking the Inuktun language of the Polar Inuit as well as Standard West Greenlandic...

, sporadically to Moriusaq
Moriusaq
Moriusaq is a moribund settlement which in 2009 had only 2 remaining inhabitants. It is located in the Qaasuitsup municipality in northern Greenland, approximately to the northwest of the Thule Air Base, and to the southwest of Qaanaaq...

, and to Savissivik
Savissivik
Savissivik is a settlement in the Qaasuitsup municipality, in northern Greenland...

 via Thule Air Base
Thule Air Base
Thule Air Base or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport , is the United States Air Force's northernmost base, located north of the Arctic Circle and from the North Pole on the northwest side of the island of Greenland. It is approximately east of the North Magnetic Pole.-Overview:Thule Air Base is the...

.

Population

With 626 inhabitants as of 2010, Qaanaaq is the largest settlement in the far north of the country. Its population has been relatively stable over the last two decades, increasing by more than 13 percent relative to the 1990 levels.

Climate

Qaanaaq has a polar climate (Köppen "Polar tundra") and hence has long, cold winters. Peak temperatures occur in July and seldom reach over 10ºC.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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