Location of some of the major research stations in the Arctic

A number of governments maintain permanent research stations in the Arctic. Also known as Arctic bases, polar stations or ice stations, these bases are widely distributed across the northern polar region of the earth.

Historically few research stations have been permanent. Most of them were temporary, being abandoned after the completion of the project or owing to lack of funding to continue the research. Some of these were military or intelligence stations (listening posts) created as a result of the proximity of the U.S. and Soviet Union to each other's landmass across the polar region.

Ice stations are constructed on land or on ice that rests on land, while others are drifting ice stations built on the sea ice of the high latitudes of the Arctic Ocean.^[1]

Research stations

Station name	Location	Operating country	Year opened	Year closed
Abisko Scientific Research Station	Abisko, Sápmi	Sweden	1903	Active
Adam Mickiewicz University Polar Station	Petuniabukta, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	2011	Active
Alomar Observatory[2]	Andøya Space, Andøya, Svalbard	Norway	1994	Active
Arctic Yellow River Station	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	China	2003	Active
AWIPEV Arctic Research Station (Jean Corbel Station)	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	France Germany	2003	Active
Barrow Observatory[3]	Point Barrow, Alaska	United States	1973	Active
Begichev Polar Station	Maly Begichev Island, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Polar Station[4]	Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island. Sakha	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Brønlundhus	Peary Land, Greenland	Denmark	1947	Transformed into a museum
Buor-Khaya Polar Station[5]	Buor-Khaya Gulf, Sakha	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Canadian High Arctic Research Station[6] (CHARS) campus	Cambridge Bay, Nunavut	Canada	TBA	Active
Centrumsø Research Station	Centrum Lake, Greenland	Denmark	1954	Abandoned
Chelyuskin Polar Station[7]	Cape Chelyuskin, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	1932	Active
Chetyrokhstolbovoy Polar Station[8]	Medvezhyi Islands, Sakha	Russia Soviet Union	1933	Active
Churchill Northern Studies Centre[9] (CNSC)	Churchill, Manitoba	Canada	1976	Active
Czech Arctic Research Station[10]	Longyearbyen and Petuniabukta, Svalbard, Norway	Czech Republic	2014	Active
Daneborg	Wollaston Foreland, Greenland	Denmark	1944	NA
Danmarkshavn	Dove Bay, Greenland	Denmark	1906	Active
Dirigibile Italia Arctic Station	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	Italy	1997	Active
Dr. Neil Trivett Global Atmosphere Watch Observatory	Alert, Nunavut	Canada	1986	Active
Dye 3	Four different locations in southern Greenland	United States	1971	1991
Ernst Krenkel Observatory	Heiss Island, Arkhangelsk Oblast	Soviet Union	1956	1980
Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station	Devon Island, Nunavut	Canada	2001	Active
Golomyanniy Island Polar Station[11][12]	Sredniy Island, off Severnaya Zemlya	Russia Soviet Union	1954	NA
Heiberg Polar Station[13]	Heiberg Islands, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	1940	1995
Himadri[14]	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	India	2008	Active
Igloolik Research Centre[15]	Igloolik, Nunavut	Canada	1975	Active
IndARC[16]	Kongsfjorden, Svalbard, Norway	India	2014	Active
International Biological Station Lena-Nordenskiöld[17]	Tiksi, Sakha	Russia	1995	Active
Iqaluit Research Centre[18][19]	Iqaluit, Nunavut	Canada	1978	Active
Isachsen Station	Ellef Ringnes Island, Nunavut	Canada	1948	1978
Izluchin Polar Station	Komsomolets Island, Severnaya Zemlya, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Kevo Research Station[20]	Kevo	Finland	1958	Active
Kap Harald Moltke	Peary Land, Greenland	Denmark	1972	NA
Kigilyakh Research Station[21]	Kigilyakh Peninsula, Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island, New Siberian Islands	Russia Soviet Union	NA	NA
Kilpisjärvi Biological Station[22][23]	Kilpisjärvi	Finland	1964	Active
Kiruna Atmospheric and Geophysical Observatory[24] [25]	Kiruna	Sweden	1957	Active
Kluane Lake Research Station[26]	Kluane Lake, Yukon	Canada	1961	Active
Koldewey Station	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	Germany	1991	Active, part of APIWEV station
Kolyuchin Polar Station	Kolyuchin Island, Chukotka	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned in the 1990s
Labytnangi Ecological Research Station[27]	Labytnangi, Yamalo-Nenets	Russia Soviet Union	1954	Active
Lavrentiya Research Station	Lavrentiya, Chukotka	Russia Soviet Union	NA	NA
McGill Arctic Research Station[28]	Axel Heiberg Island, Nunavut	Canada	1960	Active
Mestersvig	Scoresby Land, Greenland	Denmark	1956	Active
Mývatn Research Station	Mývatn	Iceland	1975	Active
NEEM Camp	Northern Greenland ice sheet, Greenland	Denmark	2008	2015
Netherlands Arctic Station, Univ Groningen[29]	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	Netherlands	1995	Active
Nicolaus Copernicus University Polar Station	Kaffiøyra, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	1975	Active
Station Nord	Princess Ingeborg Peninsula, Greenland	Denmark	1952	Active
North Ice	Northern Greenland ice sheet, Greenland	United Kingdom	1952	1954
Northeast Science Station[30]	Chersky, Sakha	Russia Soviet Union	1977	Active
Ny-Ålesund[31]	Spitsbergen, Svalbard	Norway	1967	Active
Peschanny Polar Station	Cape Unslicht, Bolshevik Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory[32][33] (PEARL)	Eureka, Nunavut	Canada	1993	Active
Polish Polar Station	Hornsund, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	1957	Active
Popov Polar Station[34]	Bely Island, Yamalo-Nenets	Russia Soviet Union	November 1, 1933	March 2001
Preobrazheniya Polar Station	Preobrazheniya Island, Sakha	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Prima Polar Station[35]	Cape Baranov, Bolshevik Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Active
Provideniya Research Station	Provideniya, Chukotka	Russia Soviet Union	NA	NA
Resolute Nunavut Station[36]	Resolute, Nunavut	Canada	1947	NA
Russky Island Arctic Station[37]	Russky Island, Nordenskiöld Archipelago, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	1935	1999
Samoylov Station[38]	Lena Delta Wildlife Reserve, Sakha	Russia	1998	Active
Samuila Polar Station	Samuila Island, Komsomolskaya Pravda Islands, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Sermilik Station	Ammassalik Island, Greenland	Denmark	1970	Active
Sodankylä Arctic Research Centre[39]	Sodankylä	Finland	NA	NA
Solnechny Polar Station[40]	Solnechny Bay, Bolshevik Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia Soviet Union	1952	Abandoned
Stanisław Baranowski Spitsbergen Polar Station	Werenskioldbreen, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	1971	Active
Stolbovoy Meteorological Station[41]	Stolbovoy Island, Sakha	Russia Soviet Union	NA	Abandoned
Summit Station	Near summit of the Greenland ice sheet, Greenland	United States	April 1989	Active
Thule Research Station[42]	Pituffik, Greenland	Denmark	1995	Active
Toolik Field Station[43]	Toolik Lake, Alaska	United States	1975	Active
Troynoy Island Polar Station[44]	Izvestiy TSIK Islands, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	1953	Active
Tuktoyaktuk Station[45]	Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories	Canada	NA	1997
Tundra Ecosystem Research Station[46][47] (TERS)	Daring Lake, Northwest Territories	Canada	1994	Active
Tyrtov Island Polar Station	Tyrtov Island, Nordenskiöld Archipelago, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	1940	1975
Uedineniya Polar Station	Uyedineniya Island, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	NA	1996
University of Copenhagen Arctic Station	Qeqertarsuaq, Greenland	Denmark	1906	Active
Ushakov Island Polar Station	Ushakov Island, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	1954	1980s
Vavilov Meteorological Station[48]	October Revolution Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia Soviet Union	1974	1988
Vize Island Arctic Research Station	Vize Island, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	November 1, 1945	NA
Ward Hunt Island Observatory Research Station[49]	Ward Hunt Island, Nunavut	Canada	1957	Active
Western Arctic Research Centre[50]	Inuvik, Northwest Territories	Canada[51]	1964	Active
Whapmagoostui-Kuujjuarapik Research Complex[52]	Whapmagoostui, Quebec	Canada	1971	Active
White Sea Biological Station[53] (WSBS MSU)	Chupa, Republic of Karelia	Russia Soviet Union	1938	Active
Willem Barents Biological Station[54]	Meduza Bay, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	NA	NA
Wrangel Island Cape Blossom Station[55]	Cape Blossom, Wrangel Island, Chukotka	Russia Soviet Union	NA	NA
Wrangel Island Ushakovskoye Station[56]	Ushakovskoye, Wrangel Island, Chukotka	Russia Soviet Union	NA	NA
Yenisei Ecological Station[57]	Mirnoye, Turukhansky District, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia Soviet Union	NA	NA
Villum Research Station[58]	Station Nord, North Greenland	Denmark	1990	Active
Zackenberg Station	Wollaston Foreland, Greenland	Denmark	1997	Active
Zeppelin	Zeppelinfjellet, Svalbard	Norway	1990	Active

Drifting ice stations

• Fletcher's Ice Island, US (1952 - 1978)

In fiction

• Ice Station Zebra (novel), by Alistair MacLean
  • Ice Station Zebra (1968 film)
  • Ice Station Zebra a song by Jack White on Boarding House Reach
• Ice Station, by Matthew Reilly
• Ice Station -- Impossible!, an episode of The Venture Bros.
• Ice Station Santa, an episode of Sam & Max Beyond Time and Space

Gallery