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 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

Active research stations

Station name	Location	Operating country	Year established	Summer population	Winter population
Abisko Scientific Research Station	Abisko, Sápmi	Sweden	1903	12	12
Adam Mickiewicz University Polar Station	Petuniabukta, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	2011
Alomar Observatory[2]	Andøya Space, Andøya, Svalbard	Norway	1994
Arctic Yellow River Station	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	China	2003	25
AWIPEV Arctic Research Station (Jean Corbel Station)	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	France  Germany	2003	40
Barrow Observatory[3]	Point Barrow, Alaska	United States	1973	2	2
Canadian High Arctic Research Station[4] (CHARS) campus	Cambridge Bay, Nunavut	Canada	2019	26	26
E. K. Fyodorov Hydrometeorological Observatory (ex Chelyuskin Polar Station)[5]	Cape Chelyuskin, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union	1932
Chetyrokhstolbovoy Polar Station[6]	Medvezhyi Islands, Sakha	Russia  Soviet Union	1933
Churchill Northern Studies Centre[7] (CNSC)	Churchill, Manitoba	Canada	1976	88
Czech Arctic Research Station[8]	Longyearbyen and Petuniabukta, Svalbard, Norway	Czech Republic	2014	4	2
Daneborg	Wollaston Foreland, Greenland	Denmark	1944		12
Danmarkshavn	Dove Bay, Greenland	Denmark	1906		6
Dirigibile Italia Arctic Station	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	Italy	1997	7
Dr. Neil Trivett Global Atmosphere Watch Observatory	Alert, Nunavut	Canada	1986
Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station	Devon Island, Nunavut	Canada	2001	9	9
Himadri[9]	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	India	2008	8
Igloolik Research Centre[10]	Igloolik, Nunavut	Canada	1975	22	10
IndARC[11]	Kongsfjorden, Svalbard, Norway	India	2014
International Biological Station Lena-Nordenskiöld[12]	Tiksi, Sakha	Russia	1995
Iqaluit Research Centre[13][14]	Iqaluit, Nunavut	Canada	1978	20	10
Kevo Research Station[15]	Kevo	Finland	1958	12	7
Kilpisjärvi Biological Station[16][17]	Kilpisjärvi	Finland	1964
Kiruna Atmospheric and Geophysical Observatory[18] [19]	Kiruna	Sweden	1957
Kluane Lake Research Station[20]	Kluane Lake, Yukon	Canada	1961	35
Koldewey Station	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	Germany	1991
Labytnangi Ecological Research Station[21]	Labytnangi, Yamalo-Nenets	Russia  Soviet Union	1954	25
McGill Arctic Research Station[22]	Axel Heiberg Island, Nunavut	Canada	1960	12	0
Mestersvig	Scoresby Land, Greenland	Denmark	1956	40	2
Mývatn Research Station	Mývatn	Iceland	1975
Netherlands Arctic Station, Univ Groningen[23]	Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Norway	Netherlands	1995
Nicolaus Copernicus University Polar Station	Kaffiøyra, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	1975	2	0
Station Nord	Princess Ingeborg Peninsula, Greenland	Denmark	1952	25	5
Northeast Science Station[24]	Chersky, Sakha	Russia  Soviet Union	1977	65	5
Ny-Ålesund[25]	Spitsbergen, Svalbard	Norway	1967	117	35
Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory[26][27] (PEARL)	Eureka, Nunavut	Canada	1993
Polish Polar Station	Hornsund, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	1957		10
Prima Polar Station[28]	Cape Baranov, Bolshevik Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia  Soviet Union	1986
Samoylov Station[29]	Lena Delta Wildlife Reserve, Sakha	Russia	1998	16	8
Sermilik Station	Ammassalik Island, Greenland	Denmark	1970	10	0
Sodankylä Arctic Research Centre[30]	Sodankylä	Finland	1949	30	20
Stanisław Baranowski Spitsbergen Polar Station	Werenskioldbreen, Svalbard, Norway	Poland	1971
Summit Station	Near summit of the Greenland ice sheet, Greenland	United States	1989	50	5
Thule Research Station[31]	Pituffik, Greenland	Denmark	1995	10
Toolik Field Station[32]	Toolik Lake, Alaska	United States	1975	175
Troynoy Island Polar Station[33]	Izvestiy TSIK Islands, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union	1953	5	0
Tundra Ecosystem Research Station[34][35] (TERS)	Daring Lake, Northwest Territories	Canada	1994	30	0
University of Copenhagen Arctic Station	Qeqertarsuaq, Greenland	Denmark	1906	39
Ward Hunt Island Observatory Research Station[36]	Ward Hunt Island, Nunavut	Canada	1957	9	0
Western Arctic Research Centre[37]	Inuvik, Northwest Territories	Canada[38]	1964	34
Whapmagoostui-Kuujjuarapik Research Complex[39]	Whapmagoostui, Quebec	Canada	1971	28
White Sea Biological Station[40] (WSBS MSU)	Chupa, Republic of Karelia	Russia  Soviet Union	1938	180	50
Villum Research Station[41]	Station Nord, North Greenland	Denmark	1990	14
Vize Island Arctic Research Station	Vize Island, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union	1945		0
Zackenberg Station	Wollaston Foreland, Greenland	Denmark	1997	25	0
Zeppelin	Zeppelinfjellet, Svalbard	Norway	1990

Inactive research stations

Station name	Location	Operating country	Year established	Year deactivated	Status
Begichev Polar Station	Maly Begichev Island, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Polar Station[42]	Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island. Sakha	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Brønlundhus	Peary Land, Greenland	Denmark	1947		Transformed into a museum
Buor-Khaya Polar Station[43]	Buor-Khaya Gulf, Sakha	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Centrumsø Research Station	Centrum Lake, Greenland	Denmark	1954		Abandoned
Dye 3	Four different locations in southern Greenland	United States	1971	1991
Ernst Krenkel Observatory	Heiss Island, Arkhangelsk Oblast	Soviet Union	1956	1980
Golomyanniy Island Polar Station[44][45]	Sredniy Island, off Severnaya Zemlya	Russia  Soviet Union	1954
Heiberg Polar Station[46]	Heiberg Islands, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union	1940	1995
Isachsen Station	Ellef Ringnes Island, Nunavut	Canada	1948	1978
Izluchin Polar Station	Komsomolets Island, Severnaya Zemlya, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Kap Harald Moltke	Peary Land, Greenland	Denmark	1972
Kigilyakh Research Station[47]	Kigilyakh Peninsula, Bolshoy Lyakhovsky Island, New Siberian Islands	Russia  Soviet Union
Kolyuchin Polar Station	Kolyuchin Island, Chukotka	Russia  Soviet Union		1990s	Abandoned
Lavrentiya Research Station	Lavrentiya, Chukotka	Russia  Soviet Union
NEEM Camp	Northern Greenland ice sheet, Greenland	Denmark	2008	2015
North Ice	Northern Greenland ice sheet, Greenland	United Kingdom	1952	1954
Peschanny Polar Station	Cape Unslicht, Bolshevik Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Popov Polar Station[48]	Bely Island, Yamalo-Nenets	Russia  Soviet Union	1933	2001
Preobrazheniya Polar Station	Preobrazheniya Island, Sakha	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Provideniya Research Station	Provideniya, Chukotka	Russia  Soviet Union
Resolute Nunavut Station[49]	Resolute, Nunavut	Canada	1947
Russky Island Arctic Station[50]	Russky Island, Nordenskiöld Archipelago, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union	1935	1999
Samuila Polar Station	Samuila Island, Komsomolskaya Pravda Islands, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Solnechny Polar Station[51]	Solnechny Bay, Bolshevik Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia  Soviet Union	1952		Abandoned
Stolbovoy Meteorological Station[52]	Stolbovoy Island, Sakha	Russia  Soviet Union			Abandoned
Tuktoyaktuk Station[53]	Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories	Canada		1997
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		1996
Ushakov Island Polar Station	Ushakov Island, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union	1954	1980s
Vavilov Meteorological Station[54]	October Revolution Island, Severnaya Zemlya	Russia  Soviet Union	1974	1988
Willem Barents Biological Station[55]	Meduza Bay, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union
Wrangel Island Cape Blossom Station[56]	Cape Blossom, Wrangel Island, Chukotka	Russia  Soviet Union
Wrangel Island Ushakovskoye Station[57]	Ushakovskoye, Wrangel Island, Chukotka	Russia  Soviet Union
Yenisei Ecological Station[58]	Mirnoye, Turukhansky District, Krasnoyarsk Krai	Russia  Soviet Union

Drifting ice stations

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