Northernmost island discovered - 13th September 2021

A minuscule islet, said to be the world's northernmost island, has been discovered by chance, off Greenland's northeastern coast.

Forming part of the realm of Denmark, Greenland is a vast autonomous Arctic territory.

In the early summer, researchers from a Danish-Swiss expedition journeyed to Oodaaq island, found in 1978, by a Danish survey team. At the time, this was officially the most northerly island but, on confirming their coordinates with the Danish officials in charge of registering Arctic islands, it transpired that the expedition was in reality 800 metres further north than Oodaaq.

The yet-to-be-named island is the closest landmass to the North Pole.

The experts had been on a fact-finding mission, intent on identifying the way in which new species adapt to their harsh environmental conditions. Flying in with a small helicopter, the expedition group initially had problems pinpointing their official destination, Oodaaq, as maps of the area typically lack details.

Expedition coordinator Morten Rasch, of the Arctic Station in Greenland, University of Copenhagen, explained, "After a few very exciting minutes, we landed on a strange unvegetated bunch of mud, moraine deposits and gravel surrounded by sea ice on all sides, not a very friendly place."

They touched down under the misapprehension that the island was Oodaaq, only to discover the truth of the matter later on, that terra firma was a hitherto unknown island.

Given the minute dimensions of the isle, at 30 metres by 60 metres, with a mere height of three metres above sea level at its highest point, it's feasible that the island may not be around for any great length of time. According to Rasch, "No one knows how long it will remain." Despite this, the team are hopeful it will receive the name "Qeqertag Avannarlet", which is Greenlandic for "the northernmost island".