At a first glance, the city of Utqiagvik might seem like any other arctic city. It’s unsurprisingly cold, with permafrost prevalent throughout most of the year, as well as gloomy, with Utqiagvik being one of the cloudiest places on Earth. Though the climate is unforgiving, the city has over 4000 citizens, with the majority of people being Alaskan Native. They are also one of the northernmost public communities in the world as Utqiagvik is located far up north, making it the northernmost city in the United States. And people of Utqiagvik are definitely proud of it, as their motto is “The Northernmost American City”.
Utqiagvik is the northernmost city in the United States
Image credits: Unknown
Previously known as Barrow, the city of Utqiagvik is the economic center of the North Slope Borough. Some people help out with oil field operations, others rely on government work, while the rest rely on tourism. And you might ask yourself why would anyone come to a place so far in the North with such an unforgiving climate?
Well, like other arctic cities, Utqiagvik experiences quite a few natural phenomena related to the sun and day-night cycle. One of the most prominent events is the midnight sun.
Like many other areas in the Arctic Circle, Utqiagvik experiences the phenomenon known as the midnight sun
Image credits: Daniel Case
Midnight sun occurs in the summer months in the Arctic circle. At that time the sun up for 24 hours of the day, meaning that at midnight, the sun is visible (if the weather is good). During this time, many Arctic cities host various events and festivals to attract tourists that want to experience the magical moment of seeing the sun at nighttime.
Image credits: Joseph
However, midnight sun isn’t the only occurrence that makes Utqiagvik stand out. Unlike other Alaskan cities, Utqiagvik is located so far north, that during the winter months it experiences an unusually long polar night. A night that lasts 65 days!
As midnight sun occurs in spring-summer, by winter the city goes dark
Image credits: weatherchannel
In 2018, the sun set for the last time that year on November 18. With it, the city descended into the long night and will only see the sunrise on January 23. And even then the sun will only brush against the horizon and fully return only about a week later.
The polar night lasts 65 days, with only mere hours of civil twilight to provide any natural light
Image credits: mark_tarello
During the first half of the polar night the amount of twilight decreases and around Christmas, on the winter solstice, civil twilight in Utqiagvik lasts for only 3 hours.
The citizens will see the sun again only by the end of January
Image credits: Floyd Davidson
That means that while the city won’t be completely plunged into darkness, the amount of light is very minimal. Thankfully, the residents of the city are used to the extended periods of darkness and after welcoming the sun back in January can look forward to the midnight sun.
Image credits: U.S. Department of Energy
18Kviews
Share on FacebookNope I could never handle that. No sun for over 2 months! We practice daylight savings here and I hate that as well.
Oh, you're still practicing? We've had it for years now where I live. :-P :-D
Load More Replies...Not only no but hell no! I had a bout of seasonal depression just reading about it.
I'd only be able to sleep and cry after a month.
Load More Replies...I live in Sweden where we also have very long summer days and very long winter nights. It screws with your circadian cycle like you can’t believe. In the winter, I got to work in the dark and come home in the dark. It’s damn depressing.
I've worked on rotating shifts as well as long term graveyard shift. I know the problems.
Load More Replies...30 Days of Night (*Hartnett) 😉. I love Barrow because of that movie.
Load More Replies...As a person who live in tropical country with too much sunny days (which is hot af and can melt you down), Being in this city with 65 days of darkness, cold and greyish sky sounds great to me!
US city Utqiagvik - Did Svedes, Norvegers, Danes or Islanders name it? And the US Americans never bothered changing it? Sounds like something from Ikea
It says "formerly known as "Barrow". So yeah, they did change it. Just not the way you'd expect it. ♥
Load More Replies...I live a few hundred yards from where Sir John Barrow (1st Lord of the Admiralty) was born and grew up john-barro...77da88.jpg
His birthplace and childhood home now - it was a sweet-shop for many years - now a bit of a small museum - the lower course of the wall at the front still in place - As were the original leaded front windows til a few years ago john-barro...65e67a.jpg
Load More Replies...I'm curious to know how this lack of sunlight affects the psychological development for the inhabitants of the community.
I would actually love this! Although it's not rainy days and just darkness. Pluviophile- A lover of rain; someone who finds joy & peace of mind during rainy days. I can only handle so many sunny days before a depressing feeling comes. I'm the opposite of most people lol. I prefer cloudy days over sunny days and I'm a perfectly happy person also.
I think that was the inspiration for the vampire movie, 30 Days of Night.
I have been to Utqiagvik (when it was called Barrow) in the summer..it was freezing and the weather changed literally every five minutes..I can't imagine what it's like in the constant darkness! (I live in Fairbanks, and that's bad enough!)
This would really screw up their sleep schedule. They must set alarms, no sunlight to wake them up in the morning!
It can even cause insomnia when it's not dark during the night. I think there was a movie about it with Al Pacino who played a detective and got a case in Alaska and couldn't sleep because of the light.
Load More Replies...Nope I could never handle that. No sun for over 2 months! We practice daylight savings here and I hate that as well.
Oh, you're still practicing? We've had it for years now where I live. :-P :-D
Load More Replies...Not only no but hell no! I had a bout of seasonal depression just reading about it.
I'd only be able to sleep and cry after a month.
Load More Replies...I live in Sweden where we also have very long summer days and very long winter nights. It screws with your circadian cycle like you can’t believe. In the winter, I got to work in the dark and come home in the dark. It’s damn depressing.
I've worked on rotating shifts as well as long term graveyard shift. I know the problems.
Load More Replies...30 Days of Night (*Hartnett) 😉. I love Barrow because of that movie.
Load More Replies...As a person who live in tropical country with too much sunny days (which is hot af and can melt you down), Being in this city with 65 days of darkness, cold and greyish sky sounds great to me!
US city Utqiagvik - Did Svedes, Norvegers, Danes or Islanders name it? And the US Americans never bothered changing it? Sounds like something from Ikea
It says "formerly known as "Barrow". So yeah, they did change it. Just not the way you'd expect it. ♥
Load More Replies...I live a few hundred yards from where Sir John Barrow (1st Lord of the Admiralty) was born and grew up john-barro...77da88.jpg
His birthplace and childhood home now - it was a sweet-shop for many years - now a bit of a small museum - the lower course of the wall at the front still in place - As were the original leaded front windows til a few years ago john-barro...65e67a.jpg
Load More Replies...I'm curious to know how this lack of sunlight affects the psychological development for the inhabitants of the community.
I would actually love this! Although it's not rainy days and just darkness. Pluviophile- A lover of rain; someone who finds joy & peace of mind during rainy days. I can only handle so many sunny days before a depressing feeling comes. I'm the opposite of most people lol. I prefer cloudy days over sunny days and I'm a perfectly happy person also.
I think that was the inspiration for the vampire movie, 30 Days of Night.
I have been to Utqiagvik (when it was called Barrow) in the summer..it was freezing and the weather changed literally every five minutes..I can't imagine what it's like in the constant darkness! (I live in Fairbanks, and that's bad enough!)
This would really screw up their sleep schedule. They must set alarms, no sunlight to wake them up in the morning!
It can even cause insomnia when it's not dark during the night. I think there was a movie about it with Al Pacino who played a detective and got a case in Alaska and couldn't sleep because of the light.
Load More Replies...
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