Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to the south-east, and the Atlantic Ocean (Norwegian Sea) to the west. The county was formerly known as Nordlandene amt. The county administration is in the town of Bodø. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen has been administered from Nordland since 1995. In the southern part of the county is Vega, listed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list.
Districts
The county is divided into traditional districts. These are Helgeland in the south (south of the Arctic Circle), Salten in the centre, and Ofoten in the north-east. In the north-west lie the archipelagoes of Lofoten and Vesterålen.
Geography
Nordland is located along the northwestern coast of the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Norway. Due to the large distance to the densely populated parts of Europe, this is one of the least polluted areas in Europe. Nordland extends about from Trøndelag to Troms county. The distance by road from Bindal Municipality in the far south of the county to Andenes on the northern tip of Andøy Municipality in the northern edge of Nordland is roughly .
Nordland has a rugged coastline, with many fjords. From south to north, the main fjords are Bindalsfjord, Vefsnfjorden, Ranfjorden, Saltfjorden-Skjerstadfjorden, Folda, Tysfjorden, Ofotfjorden (the longest) and Andfjorden, which is shared with Troms county. The best-known is perhaps the Vestfjorden, which is not really a fjord, but an open stretch of sea between the Lofoten island group and the mainland. The Raftsundet strait, with its famous branch Trollfjorden, is the shortest waterway connecting Lofoten and Vesterålen. The continental shelf is very narrow west of Andenes, nowhere else in Norway is the deep ocean only a few kilometres from shore. Saltstraumen whirlpool is just south-east of Bodø, and Moskenstraumen is located in southern Lofoten.
Steep mountains near the sea and an almost flat lowland area in between the mountains and the sea (Strandflaten, coastal brim) is very typical for the long coastline in Nordland, and Strandflaten often continues out from the shore, the result is numerous islands (skerries), of which Helgeland have thousands; these islands are usually mountainous, but with smaller or larger strandflate areas. The southern part of Norway's largest island (apart from Svalbard), Hinnøya is in Nordland, as is the third-largest island, Langøya. In the fjords, the coastal brim is much less developed: There might be a more gradual slope, with hills, towards the mountains, or no lowland at all. There are often valleys at the head of fjords (the fjord is an extension of the valley), usually with a river at the centre of the valley. Mo i Rana, Mosjøen, and Rognan are situated in such valleys.
Norway's second-largest glacier, Svartisen, the second-largest lake, Røssvatnet, and the second-deepest fjord, Tysfjorden (897 m) are all located in Nordland. The largest river (waterflow) is Vefsna which forms the Laksforsen waterfall.
The Saltfjellet mountain range forms a natural border between Helgeland and Salten, and is where the Arctic Circle cuts through the county. The western part of this mountain range is dominated by steep mountains and fjord inlets, with glaciers stretching towards the sea, while the eastern part of the mountains is more gentle and rounded, with some forested valleys, and is well suited for hiking. The interior of Nordland, towards the border with Sweden, is dominated by the Kjølen Mountains (Scandinavian Mountains). The highest mountain in Nordland is Oksskolten in Okstindan range, the second-highest is Suliskongen in Fauske Municipality, and the third is Storsteinfjellet in Narvik Municipality. Stetinden in Narvik has been voted as Norway's national mountain.
There are many glaciers in the mountains, like Blåmannsisen, Okstindbreen, the Sulitjelma Glacier, and Frostisen—7 of the 15 largest glaciers in continental Norway are located in Nordland.
Geology
In the geological past, a collision with Greenland pushed long slices of the seabed on top of the existing bedrock, today forming the bedrock from Dovrefjell and Trollheimen south of Trondheim stretching north in Trøndelag and through Nordland to just north of Tromsø. This Cambrian—Silurian bedrock, much of it mica schist, is by far the largest area in Norway with soft bedrock rich in nutritions good for plant growth. It forms the bedrock in the fjord areas, while the islands off the coast and some of the easternmost areas along the border with Sweden are made up of hard bedrock (usually granite). In some areas, as in Hamarøy Municipality and Sørfold Municipality, the bedrock is a mix of soft bedrock and hard granite.
Much of the Lofoten mountains are of precambrian eruptive origin and 3.5 billion years old, among the oldest on earth. The youngest rock in Norway is on Andøya, also known for its fossils of dinosaurs and other life forms. As the land was depressed by the ice sheet in the ice age, substantial areas in the lowest altitudes was beneath the surface of the sea for thousands of years acquiring marine deposits. Due to post-glacial rebound, this is now dry land, reaching above sea level today in Saltdal, in Narvik and Brønnøysund, and to in Lofoten and Vesterålen. Limestone is very common in Nordland, with many caves throughout the county, such as Grønligrotta in Rana. There are more caves in Rana Municipality than any other area in northern Europe. In August 2006 the Tjoarvekrajgge cave in Sørfold Municipality was explored and verified as the longest cave in Scandinavia long); Raggejavreraige in Tysfjord is the deepest in Scandinavia and Svarthamarhola in Fauske Municipality has the largest cavity. There are more than 900 caves in Nordland, one of these have a high waterfall. Marble is found in several locations. Fauske is sometimes referred to as the marble capital, and has exported marble worldwide (one customer being the UN building in New York City).
Climate
The largest area of Nordland, including fjord areas, inland areas and highlands below the treeline, the area is dominated by the boreal climate (Dfc), but an atypical oceanic variant with relatively mild winters, lack of permafrost, and often with autumn as wettest season. Towns with this climate include Mosjøen, Mo i Rana, Rognan, Fauske and Narvik. Along the coast and on islands (including Vega) along the southern and middle part of Nordland is a warmer, temperate oceanic climate (Cfb) with winter mean temperature above and a four-month long summer. This includes Brønnøysund, Sandnessjøen and some islands north to Skrova. Just inland of this is a narrow area with coldest winter month mean temperature just below but still a four-month long summer, this area has a humid continental climate (Dfb), and includes the county seat Bodø.
On the outer islands from Myken in Rødøy Municipality in the south and north including most of Lofoten and Vesterålen, the summers become slightly shorter; winter months are still relatively mild (above ; some areas above like Værøy Municipality and Bø Municipality), making this an area with subpolar oceanic climate (Cfc). Towns within this area includes Leknes, Stokmarknes, Sortland and Andenes.
The strongest climate gradient in Nordland is seen in winter, as the interior inland away from the fjords, as well as mountains, have much colder winters than the coast. Large fjords bring with them significant oceanic moderation in winter temperatures to the surrounding land area, as seen in Fauske Municipality and Narvik Municipality. Temperatures will generally drop as elevation increases by . Snow cover can persist all year at altitudes above to . Annual snow accumulation can exceed in the mountains, this is the main reason for the many glaciers in Nordland. With mountains in almost all areas, alpine tundra is common in Nordland.
Easterly winds give dry, sunny weather (the air must climb the Kjølen mountains), with warmth in summer and cold, clear air in winter. Southwesterly winds are common, bringing moist and mild air from the Atlantic Ocean. Autumn and winter is the wettest season along the coast of Nordland, while April–June on average is the driest. The strongest winds occur in late autumn and winter, as the Atlantic low-pressure systems are strongest then. High-pressure weather can occur in all seasons, and in summer this brings 24-hour sunshine north of the Arctic Circle.
Lurøy Municipality , west of Saltfjell, averages precipitation annually; the wettest location in North Norway and in the world at such high latitude. Some of the wettest areas along the coast (a narrow band) north to Glomfjord fulfills the climatic criteria for a temperate rainforest. East of the mountains, upper part of Saltdal Municipality has an annual precipitation less than .
Many locations in Nordland have recorded what Norwegians know as "tropical nights" when the overnight low does not fall below . The warmest night ever recorded in Norway was 29 July 2019 at Sømna-Kvaløyfjellet in Sømna Municipality near Brønnøysund with overnight low .
The warmest temperature recorded in Nordland is recorded 27 July 2019 at Mosjøen Airport, this is also a tie with the national high for July. On the same day, Laksfors south of Mosjøen recorded but this recording was not approved due to too much vegetation and gravel near the weather station. Also on the same day, Saltdal Municipality recorded , this is the warmest temperature ever recorded in Norway north of the Arctic Circle.
The warmest month recorded in Nordland was July 2014 with mean at Mosjøen airport and Mo i Rana airport, while the warmest average daily high was at Laksfors with the same month. The coldest low ever recorded in Nordland is on 30 December 1978 in Svenningdal valley in Grane Municipality.
Research using sediment in lakes near the Okstind Glacier has shown that the summer climate in Nordland was up to warmer 9,000 to 6,000 years ago, and then slowly cooled—it was warmer 2,000 years before present (see Holocene climatic optimum). This research also concluded that the eastern Okstind Glacier did not melt completely during this warm period, the first glacier in Norway known to have survived since the Ice age.
Light
The light conditions vary considerably from north to south; Andenes in the north will have midnight sun from 22 May to 20 July, and the sun is below the horizon from 28 November to 16 January (Narvik daylight). In Bodø, the sun is above the horizon from 3 June to 8 July. Helgeland is situated south of the Arctic Circle; at the winter solstice the sun is above the horizon approximately 3 hours a day (Mosjøen daylight). There is not a true midnight sun in Helgeland, although the upper part of the sun disc will be above the horizon all night in June as far south as Mosjøen. With the transitional period with a short dusk included, there are three full months (from early May to early August) without darkness in Nordland.
In Laukvik is the polarlightcenter, with lots of information about the Aurora Borealis (polarlight).
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov DecBodø sunrise & sunset, 15. of the month 10:18 - 14:05 08:16 - 16:18 06:24 - 18:02 05:16 - 20:51 03:06 - 22:56 Midnight sun 01:40 - 00:30 04:27 - 21:43 06:20 - 19:34 08:02 - 17:33 09:04 - 14:29 11:18 - 12:37Average sunhours in Bodø 8 43 114 159 219 221 172 167 98 54 16 0.4Source: Almanakk for Norge; University of Oslo, 2010. Sunhours:Norwegian Meteorologicial Institute. Note: The very low sun is blocked by mountains in December and the first week of January. In mid-July, the sun sets after midnight due to daylight savings.
Wildlife