Watch: Photographer Captures Norwegian Archipelago Engulfed In Darkness For 4 Months

Our schedule revolves around 24 hours, where the day is divided between sunrise and sunset. This schedule, however, is non-existent in some of the places on Earth. There are places where the nighttime remains for as long as 4 months. One of these places is the Svalbard, a cluster of islands between Norway and the North Pole. According to Ladbible, the average temperatures on Svalbard range from a frosty −13 to −20°C. A photographer named George Cooper has given an insight into this surprising natural phenomenon via an Instagram reel. The reel shows how Svalbard remains in pitch darkness at all times. The people living there had to use torches to find their way while travelling on the roads covered with snow. An Instagram page Visit Norway was also tagged in this post. The caption of the post reads, “In the dark season, which is when we visited, the sun is approaching the horizon every day but still doesn’t quite get above it. It’s a truly surreal experience but an incredible one for sure! Eventually, after four months of darkness, the town of Longyearbyen throws a celebration when daylight finally hits. After experiencing the midnight sun last year in Norway, I knew I had to go back and experience the opposite! And of course, make the sequel to my viral reel”.

A post shared by Visit Norway (@visitnorway)

Social media users appreciated the impressive compilations of the videos and photographs by George.

There are some other interesting facts associated with this place as well. A strange rule prevailing here says that it is illegal to die. It may sound quite bizarre but dying is outlawed in Svalbard. It is because a remote town named Longyearbyen is located on Svalbard and has an extremely cold temperature. Due to this temperature, there are concerns about dormant viruses present in the corpses. It was in 1950 when natives discovered that deceased bodies were not decomposing in the cemeteries. The main reason was the frigid, frosty, and chilly weather. When corpses were reportedly exhumed, traces of live samples of the deadly Spanish Flu viruses were found on them. It is due to the fear of contagious diseases like these, dying has been outlawed here.