A research team discovers what is probably the northernmost island in the world in Denmark. The leader of the group describes the exciting expedition by helicopter.
Copenhagen – According to their own statements, a research group may have discovered the northernmost island in the world. During an expedition in northern Greenland (Denmark), the experts came across the small island by chance, the University of Copenhagen announced on Friday (27.08.2021).
For a long time, the island of Oodaaq, known since 1978 at the northernmost tip of Greenland, was considered the closest piece of land to the North Pole. But that may now need to be corrected – at least temporarily. The as yet nameless land mass is located 780 meters north of Oodaaq.
“Not a very friendly place”: Discovered the northernmost island in the world in Denmark
The discovery of the as yet unnamed islet, about 30 by 60 meters in size and three to four meters above sea level, was therefore pure coincidence. “We were convinced that the island we were standing on is Oodaaq,” said Research Director Morten Rasch. He had traveled to the north coast of Greenland with a sample collection team.
“We were six people in a small helicopter and when we reached the position of the island of Oodaaq, we couldn’t find it,” Rasch described the situation to the BBC and added that the maps in this part of the world are not very accurate. “So we just started looking for the island. After a couple of very exciting minutes, we landed on a strange, ungreened pile of mud, moraines and gravel, which was surrounded on all sides with ice – not a very friendly place. “
Northernmost island in the world discovered in Denmark: Island hunters help out
But Rasch and his team didn’t land on Oodaaq at all. He only found out about his mistake when he posted pictures and coordinates on the Internet. “A number of American island hunters went nuts and said that could not be true,” said the head of the Department of Earth Sciences and Natural Resource Management. Island hunters are people whose hobby is to discover previously unknown islands.
A check of the coordinates revealed that Oodaaq is actually around 800 meters south of the place where Rasch and his team disembarked. “In reality we discovered a new island further north, a find that makes the Kingdom (Denmark) a little bigger,” says Morton. Greenland is part of Denmark, but it is autonomous.
The world’s northernmost island could soon disappear
The scientist pointed out that the newly discovered island might not last long and assume that it belongs to the category of “islands with a short lifespan”. It consists mainly of small accumulations of mud and gravel – probably the result of a storm. “Nobody knows how long she will be here. In principle, it could disappear as soon as another powerful storm comes, ”said Rasch.
From a scientific point of view, the discovery was “not a big deal,” Rasch told the BBC. “But from a personal point of view it is of course funny to belong to the six people on earth who had dirty boots at the northernmost point of the world.” (Tvd / dpa / AFP)
List of rubric lists: © Morten Rasch / dpa
