| Kangerlussuaq | |
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| Myers Avenue with church and congress centre | |
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Kangerlussuaq
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| Coordinates: | |
| State | Kingdom of Denmark |
| Constituent country | Greenland |
| Municipality | Qeqqata |
| Founded | 1941 |
| Government[1] | |
| • Mayor | Albrecht Kreutzmann |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 556 |
| Time zone | UTC-03 |
| Postal code | 3910 |
Kangerlussuaq (Danish: Søndre Strømfjord) is a settlement in western Greenland in the Qeqqata municipality, located at the head of a fjord of the same name. It is Greenland's main air transport hub, being the site of Greenland's largest commercial airport.
Kangerlussuaq is the Greenlandic word for 'Big Fjord'. Kangerlussuaq was also known as Bluie West Eight and Sondrestrom Air Base during its time as an American military base. The Kangerlussuaq area is also home to Greenland's most diverse land-based wildlife (such as muskoxen, caribou and gyrfalcons). The combination of these two factors has made Kangerlussuaq a significant tourist centre for most of the year. The settlement's economy and population of 556[2] is now almost completely reliant on the airport and tourist industry.
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Kangerlussuaq occupies an alluvial flatland on the far end of the 190 km long[3] Kangerlussuaq Fjord, straddling both sides of the Qinnguata Kuussua river estuary. East of Kangerlussuaq there is a confluence of Qinnguata Kuussua and Akuliarusiarsuup Kuua, the two major regional rivers. The valley of the latter forms large quicksand plains. Both rivers take their source in the Russell Glacier. The edge of the glacier is easily accessible, and is a major tourist attraction in Kangerlussuaq, as is the ice sheet edge in the Isunngua highlands, to the northeast of Russell Glacier.[4]
Highlands such as Tarajornitsut with numerous flat ridges oriented east-west bound Kangerlussuaq from the north and the south. To the south-east, behind lake Tasersuatsiaq (which provides fresh water to the town)[5] is the vast highland of Ammalortup Nunaa,[4] the original region artificially populated with 27 muskoxen.[6]
Kangerlussuaq, originally known as Bluie West Eight was founded on 7 October 1941, at the east end of Kangerlussuaq fjord, under the supervision of Colonel Bernt Balchen of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). While Inuit hunters certainly visited Kangerlussuaq there appears never to have been an Inuit settlement there.
Following the fall of Denmark to Germany in World War II, US forces assumed security for Greenland, building several bases, the largest of which were Bluie West One in Narsarsuaq in southern Greenland and Bluie West Eight, at the Kangerlussuaq fjord.
The base briefly came under Danish control in 1950, but following mounting concerns about the Cold War threat, a new agreement saw the United States reopen Bluie West Eight up under the name of Sondrestrom Air Base on 27 April 1951.
It served as one of the Distant Early Warning Line bases and a supply station for similar early warning facilities. Following the fall of the Soviet Union the usefulness of the base was greatly diminished and the last U.S. Air Force personnel left the base on 30 September 1992. The base subsequently came under Greenlandic Home Rule control and was given its first Greenlandic name, Kangerlussuaq. This site and Bluie West One in Narsarsuaq remain Greenland's best-equipped airports. Almost all of the permanent structures in the town were built during the American occupation of the site.
The population of Kangerlussuaq dropped significantly after liquidation of the Sonderstrom Air Base. Since then it has doubled in size, remaining stable in the last decade, slightly increasing over time.[7]
As the only civilian airport in Greenland large enough to support large long-range airplanes such as Boeing 747s, Kangerlussuaq Airport is Greenland's most important transport hub. Hotel Kangerlussuaq operates at the airport.
Kangerlussuaq Fjord is navigable in its entire length. Cruise ships, such as Norway's Hurtigruten[8] and supply ships of Royal Greenland navigate the fjord, mooring at the Kangerlussuaq port, west of Kangerlussuaq Airport.[9]
A gravel road connects Kangerlussuaq with the ice sheet, initially serving as venue for car endurance experiments. Since then it is mainly used for tourist purposes.[10]
Construction of a road to Sisimiut (170 km) has been discussed for several years without resolution.[11] The cost estimates have been between 250-500 MDKK, depending on road quality, but it has been considered expensive, and therefore the plans are delayed.
The climate in Kangerlussuaq is polar continental, with the area receiving very little rainfall.[12]
| Climate data for Kangerlussuaq, Greenland (1961-1990) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | −14.5 (5.9) |
−16.4 (2.5) |
−12.4 (9.7) |
−2.2 (28.0) |
7.6 (45.7) |
13.9 (57.0) |
16.3 (61.3) |
13.4 (56.1) |
7.5 (45.5) |
−1.8 (28.8) |
−7.6 (18.3) |
−11 (12.2) |
−0.6 (30.92) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −24.4 (−11.9) |
−26.7 (−16.1) |
−24 (−11.2) |
−13.3 (8.1) |
−2.5 (27.5) |
3.3 (37.9) |
4.8 (40.6) |
3.0 (37.4) |
−1.4 (29.5) |
−9.8 (14.4) |
−16.4 (2.5) |
−20.8 (−5.4) |
−10.68 (12.77) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 5 (0.2) |
4 (0.16) |
5 (0.2) |
6 (0.24) |
8 (0.31) |
15 (0.59) |
24 (0.94) |
33 (1.3) |
18 (0.71) |
14 (0.55) |
11 (0.43) |
7 (0.28) |
150 (5.91) |
| Source: Danish Meteorological Institute[13] | |||||||||||||
There is an ionospheric and atmospheric research facility known as the Sondrestrom Upper Atmospheric Research Facility, situated at about 15 km (9.3 mi) west of Kangerlussuaq. It is commonly known around the town as Kellyville. It is operated by the SRI International for the U.S. National Science Foundation and the Danish Meteorological Institute. This facility is host to more than 20 instruments, the majority of which provide unique and complementary information about the arctic upper atmosphere. The centerpiece instrument of the facility is an L band incoherent scatter (IS) radar with a 32 m (105 ft) fully steerable antenna. It has been operational since the ionospheric radar was transported from Alaska to Kangerlussuaq in 1983 and it continues to be in high demand by the scientific communities.[14]
Kangerlussuaq has also hosted the Greenland Space Science Symposium in May 2007. The selection of Greenland as a place for the symposium celebrated the rich history of Greenland in using scientific instruments to provide a window into the geospace system.
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