ARCTIC STATION

The Qeqertarsuaq station, located 1 km from the city, was founded in 1906 by botanist Morten Pedersen Porsild. The idea of creating an Arctic research centre in Greenland was supported by famous explorers from the northern polar regions such as Knud Rasmussen, Mylius-Erichsen and Fridtjof Nansen. Morten Porsild was from the beginning the Chief Scientist of the Arctic Station and lived there for nearly 40 years until his return to Denmark in 1946. The University of Copenhagen became the owner of the research base in 1953. While only biologists had access to the station from 1953 to 1978, it now includes other natural sciences and the station has been modernized over time. Its mission is to promote academic research in the Arctic without omitting any aspect of environmental science, particularly in the context of global warming. Environmental studies in Arctic regions are generally very expensive and also overwhelmed by complex logistics and security issues. It is therefore a major concern of the Faculty of Science and the management of the Arctic Station to create and maintain a modern research centre located in an area where botany, zoology, geographical and geological phenomena are easily accessible. In addition, the vegetation in the vicinity of the station is unique in Greenland with 212 of the 513 flower species recorded on the ice island.