Norway
Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
374km²
Area
143km
Coastline
2,277m
Highest point
Beerenberg
18
People
6°C
Warmest sea
August
894km
To the mainland
When to go to Jan Mayen
Good all year round.
The sea is warmest in August (6 °C) and coolest in March (0 °C). The water never reaches 21 °C: bring a wetsuit.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in the Arctic Ocean, part of Norway
Jan Mayen is an island in Norway. It covers 374 km², with 143 km of coastline. Its highest point, Beerenberg, rises to 2,277 m. About 18 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 894 km away.
Getting there
- 894 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
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On the island
What you find on Jan Mayen.
- 15beachesHaugenstranda and 14 more
- 2viewpointsMoon surface viewpoint
- 55named peaksWordietoppen, Mercantontoppen, Hakluyttoppen and 52 more
- 17volcanoesBeerenberg, Lunckekjegla, Ringkollen and 14 more
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Jan Mayen in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Jan Mayen, each with its own numbers.
13beaches and covesCoastya
78mountainsPeakyas
Highest point
2,277m
prominence 2,277 m · according to Peakyas
Beach with the warmest sea
6.4°C
Håpbukta
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
13 beaches
on Coastya, the beach atlas
- Titeltbuktacove6.2°C
- Sjuhollendarbuktacove6.2°C
- Eggøybuktacove6.3°C
- Båtvikacove6.2°C
- Haugenstranda6.2°C
- Helenesanden6.2°C
- Ullerengsanden6.3°C
- Turnbuktacove6.3°C
5 more on CoastyaOpen Coastya ↗
78 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Beerenbergprominence 2,277 m2,277m
- Haakon VII Toppen2,277m
- Wordietoppen2,213m
- Mercantontoppen2,188m
- Hakluyttoppen2,188m
- Gjuvtinden2,085m
- Kongshamaren1,954m
- Jutulen1,742m
70 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 452 m above the sea. 35 % of it is below 200 m.
- 18 %0–50 m
- 17 %50–200 m
- 31 %200–500 m
- 22 %500–1,000 m
- 12 %1,000–2,000 m
- <1 %> 2,000 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
20 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Olonkinbyen14 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 0 | -1 | -1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Night low (°C) | -3 | -3 | -4 | -2 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 1 | -1 | -2 |
| Sea (°C) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Rain (mm) | 80 | 61 | 63 | 53 | 42 | 32 | 45 | 55 | 77 | 82 | 82 | 79 |
| Wet days | 19 | 17 | 18 | 13 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 15 | 16 | 18 | 19 |
| Sun h/day | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.4 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 5.3 | 3.7 | 2.5 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 | — |
| Wind (km/h) | 33 | 32 | 30 | 28 | 24 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 26 | 29 | 31 | 34 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.8 | +0.6 | +0.4 | +0.6 | −1.1 | −0.9 | −0.8 | −1.0 | −1.3 | −0.6 | −0.7 | −0.6 |
| 2021 | −0.6 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | −0.1 | −0.1 | −0.1 | +0.3 | +1.3 | +1.3 | +1.3 | +1.3 | +0.9 |
| 2022 | +0.4 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.4 | −0.2 | −0.4 | −0.6 | ±0.0 | −0.3 | +0.3 | +0.8 |
| 2023 | +0.2 | −0.1 | −0.4 | −0.7 | −0.7 | −0.8 | −0.9 | −1.4 | −0.5 | −0.9 | −0.5 | −0.5 |
| 2024 | −0.7 | −0.8 | −0.3 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | −0.2 | +0.2 | +1.0 | ±0.0 | −0.5 | −0.5 | −0.5 |
| 2025 | −0.7 | −0.5 | −0.6 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.3 | +1.3 | +1.5 | +1.8 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +0.6 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
About these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q14056) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
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