Kiruna
Encyclopedia
Kiruna is the northernmost city in Sweden
, situated in Lapland province, with 18,154 inhabitants in 2005. It is the seat of Kiruna Municipality
(pop. 23,099 in 2008) in Norrbotten County
.
Centuries before Kiruna was founded in 1900, the presence of iron ore at Kiirunavaara
and Luossavaara
had been known by the local Sami
population. In 1696, Samuel Mört, a bookkeeper of the Kengis
works, wrote on the presence of iron in the two hills. Anders Hacksell mapped the area in 1736 and named the mountains Fredriks berg (Kiirunavaara) and Berget Ulrika Eleonora (Luossavaara), after king Fredrik I
and his wife Ulrika Eleonora. Despite the findings of large amounts of ore, no mining was initiated because of the remote location and the harsh climate. Some ore was extracted in the 19th century by extracting it in summer and transporting it in winter, using sleds drawn by reindeer
and horse
s. However, the costs were high and the quality of the phosphor
ous ore poor, until, in 1878, the Gilchrist-Thomas process, invented by Sidney Gilchrist Thomas
and Percy Gilchrist
, allowed for the separation of phosphor from the ore.
In 1884, a concession for a railway from Luleå
to Narvik
was granted to The Northern of Europe Railway Company. The provisional railway between Luleå and Malmberget
was finished in 1888 and the first train left Malmberget in March. Around the same time, the English company went bankrupt and had to sell the line to the Swedish state for 8 million Swedish crown
s, around half the amount initially invested. After a significant rebuild, the railway to Gällivare could be used again and iron ore was extracted at Malmberget
by Aktiebolaget Gellivare Malmfält (AGM).
At the initiative of Robert Schoug, the Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Aktiebolag
(LKAB) was founded in 1890. In 1893, Gustaf Broms became CEO of both LKAB and AGM. LKAB pressed for continuing Malmbanan
via Luossavaara and Kiirunavaara to the ice-free coast of Norway. The continuation of the railway line to Narvik
was controversial, because opponents feared the influence of Russia
(then controlling Finland
and already connected to Sweden at Haparanda
–Tornio
) on an international railway line. The decision to build was finally taken in 1898. The railway came to Kiruna 15 October 1899 and the Swedish and Norwegian sections were joined 15 November 1902. For LKAB, this had been so expensive that they could barely avoid bankruptcy in 1901, just after the ore mining at Kiirunavaara had started. King Oscar II only opened the railway line 14 July 1903, preferring summer over winter to travel north.
The architects Per Olof Hallman and Gustaf Wickman were appointed to design the city, to be built at Haukivaara, near both iron ore mines, with then revolutionary consideration of geographical and climatological circumstances; being built on a hill, winter temperatures are much milder than in other towns, and due to the street plan and the positioning, wind is limited. On 27 April 1900, Hallmans plan was officially accepted.
Gustaf Broms proposed to name the settlements Kiruna, a short and practical name that could also be pronounced by Swedish speaking inhabitants. LKAB appointed Hjalmar Lundbohm
, who had finished neither highschool nor his geology studies, as local manager in Kiruna.
s similar to those in the other mining town, Malmberget
, 80 kilometres (49.7 mi) south of Kiruna. Also, provisional buildings served as a church, a school, a hospital, a hotel and a police station. However, official residences were built at a high pace, and when the king opened the railway in 1903, all illegal residences and most other provisional buildings had been demolished and replaced. The very first building, B:1, is preserved and can be seen at Hjalmar Lundbohmsgården. In 1899, 18 people were registered as living in soon-to-be Kiruna.
This increased to 222 in 1900, 7,438 in 1910 and 12,884 in 1930. The residences did not fully keep up with this rapid growth; by 1910 there were 1,877 official rooms and some unrecognised residences, which meant that an average of three to four people lived in a single room; this density decreased steadily during the decades to follow. Kiruna became a municipalsamhälle (a community within a municipality) in 1908. This caused unhappiness in local organisations, such as Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Arbeteraförening, that had hoped for a status as köping
, which would have kept more of the mining income inside the locality. In return, the mining company LKAB paid for a hospital, fire station, sewage, roads, a church (opened 1912) and the priests home.
In April 1907, a tram
began operation in Kiruna, the northernmost in the world. This meant miners would no longer have to walk several kilometers through the sub-arctic cold, nor would they need to climb a hundred meters up the mining hill. The network consisted of three lines: bergbanan (mountain line), stadsspårvägen (city tram) and gruvspårvägen (mine tram). The mountain line closed in 1955 after a road up the mine had been built 1949. The city line had a total length of 8 kilometres (5 mi) at longest and was unique due to the 1-meter gauge
, double windows and heated wagons. It closed in 1958 after gradually being replaced by buses. Between 1941 and 1964, a tram was used inside the mine, with wagons bought from closed down tramlines from all over Sweden.
The economy for iron ore was good in the early 20th century. Before the start of the work, Hjalmar Lundbohm had been worried about whether the Kiruna winter would allow for working outside at all, but despite early research into underground mining, mountaintop removal mining was the primary method in the early years. Mechanisation was attempted early using steam powered excavators, but the cold climate led to considerable difficulties and only when electrical machinery became available in the 1910s, significant mechanisation was achieved. The peak of Kiirunavaara
, Statsrådet, was 247.7 metres (812.7 ft) above Luossajärvi
until it was spectacularly blown off in 1910.
A general strike hit Sweden in 1909 and Kiruna was no exception. Hoping for a better future, thousands of people left Kiruna, including a group of 500 inhabitants emigrating to Brazil. Most of them returned, disappointed that life in Latin America
was not what they had hoped it to be, Hjalmar Lundbohm personally lent money for the trip home to some of the emigrants.
During World War I
, iron ore production dropped to the lowest level in LKAB's history, and when exports increased again, a successful three-month strike in 1920 meant a 20% increase in salaries for the miners. Production dropped to a minimum in 1922 and a three-day workweek was introduced, but during the fabulous twenties it increased to a record nine million tonnes in 1927.
In 1921, mining started at the other of the two ore hills in Kiruna, Luossavaara
. However, the total amount of ore that could be mined in open pit mining here was small compared to Kiirunavaara, and LKAB preferred to concentrate resources in one place. Nevertheless, mining here continued until 1974 and later it became a research mine.
During the first decades of Kiruna's existence, no road connected it to the outside world. The only connection was by railway or, as in the time before the railway, by boat (in summer) via the Torne
and Kalix
rivers to Jukkasjärvi
and Håmojåkk and then proceed by foot. A road from Kiruna was built to Tuolluvaara in 1901, Poikkijärvi in 1909, Alttajärvi in 1913 and connected to Svappavaara
in 1926, from where roads already connected via Vittangi
to Pajala
and via Lappesuando to Gällivare
and further south.
The Great Depression
led to a 70% drop in ore production, a drop that would turn into a dramatic increase on the eve of World War II
.
Although some tourists already came to the area in the 19th century, the completion of the railway line truly made tourism possible. Tourists came for the rivers and the mountains, but also geologists and entire classes of students came to see the mine. Additionally, a yearly winter sports festival was started, which attracted people from a wide area. The Sami population was already a tourist attraction in the early days of Kiruna's existence.
, then in November 1939 after the Russian invasion of Finland
, but in both cases the Swedish soldiers did not engage in any fighting. In March 1940, Churchill requested permission to transport soldiers from Narvik in Norway to Finland via Kiruna and Haparanda in Operation Catherine. Out of fear that the presence of British soldiers near the Kiruna ore mine would provoke a German attack on Sweden, the request was denied.
After the German invasion of Norway
, at least ten soldiers were stationed along every bridge along Malmbanan
, preparing for the possibility to blow up the bridges should the German army invade Sweden. Additionally, foreigners were banned from visiting Kiruna or the iron ore line, and only the Sami
, military personnel, locals and people working for the government were permitted to travel between Kiruna and Riksgränsen.
After the battle at Bjørnfjell, 15 April 1940, wounded and fallen Norwegian soldiers were transported to Kiruna.
Despite the conditions for Swedish neutrality
, rail cars with food, skis and helmets were transported from Kiruna to the Norwegian soldiers in Bjørnfjell.
Swedish iron ore from Kiruna was of major importance to the German war machine. A group of people working at LKAB organised in the Wollweberliga, planning to sabotage transports to Germany. In late November 1941, Edvard Nyberg, Ernst Wollweber
and others produced a mine to be attached to the ore cars. Nyberg was caught, was fired from LKAB and spent 3½ years in prison. Upon his release, he founded Nybergs Mekaniska Verkstad which is still one of Kirunas biggest companies http://www.nybergsmek.se/.
Germany requested from Sweden use of the railway network to transport military equipment, but the Swedish government agreed only to transitering av human karaktär, men ej underhåll till stridande trupp (transit of humanitarian character, but no maintenance of fighting soldiers). Germany argued that, now that Norway was occupied, the German soldiers there were no longer fighting, and thus transported a large amount of military equipment, ammunition and, secretly, troops from south to north Norway, via Malmbanan and Kiruna. Troops were often transported in transports declared as material transports. Despite being strictly against the rules, there was considerable interaction between the German soldiers and the Swedish locals, including trading and football matches.
During the war, up to 2000 refugees from 20 different countries were kept in Kiruna. Also German prisoners of war, for example from crashed airplanes, were kept in Kiruna before being transported south. However, small-scale sabotage, such as sand in the engines, was also common and loose weapons often ended up at the bottom of the Luossajärvi lake, next to the railway stop.
North of Torneträsk, at Kaivare, a radio base Kari was built in secrecy and used by the Norwegian resistance. It was also used for the smuggling of arms to Norway and refugees from Norway.
After World War II, the economy of Kiruna started to diversify. Initially, the mechanisation of the mining industry led to more mechanical workshops developing machinery for the mine, still dependent on the mining, but individual companies with spinoffs that could be sold to other areas than the Kiruna mine alone. In the 1950s, a fund, Norrlandsfonden was estabilshed, in which profits from LKAB would be invested in order to diversify the local economy. The municipality started to lend money to starting companies against very beneficial rates, a scheme that lasted until 1959 because the banks, that insisted this was false competition, had established more relaxed rules for lending out money. The industrial area east of the city was built in the 1950s to separate industry from neighborhoods.
On 10 November 1960, Kiruna Airport
opened to separate civilian air traffic from the military airplanes that had landed at Kalixfors airport and at Luossajärvi
since World War I. A road to Nikkaluokta
was opened in 1971 and to Riksgränsen
and Narvik
in 1984. The latter had been debated heavily, for alternative plans existed to build the road to Norway on the northern side of Torneträsk
, via Laimo, Kattuvuoma, Salmi
to Innset
and Bardu
in Norway. This road was never built, but a 25 km long track between Laimo and Salmi was built at the initiatives of the locals and finished in 1962; however, this track, called Talmavägen, is not connected to any other road.
Increased communications were also beneficial for tourism. Swedish Railways had already run special trains before World War II, but started a special Dollar train in the summer months between Gothenborg and Kiruna, connecting to cruise ships from the United States
. The canoe club Kiruna Långfärdspaddlare was founded in 1972 and rafting for tourists restarted after it had been discontinued for 20 years due to the drowning of Valfrid Johansson. Until the 1980s, tourism had been mainly a summer business, but touristic exploitation of dog sledging was started in 1983 in Jukkasjärvi. In 1990, the first Icehotel was built in Jukkasjärvi and advertised as the worlds largest igloo. It had been built using techniques from the building of Malmbanan
90 years before, and was also inspired by the Snow Festival, that had started in 1986 to celebrate the Swedish Viking
satellite. Since 1998, a special tourist area exists in the mine and since 1999, tourists can visit the various areas of research going on in Kiruna.
In 1957, the Kiruna Geophysical Observatory (KGO) (now the Swedish Institute of Space Physics
) was founded and established by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Esrange
Space Centre is established in 1966. Here, rocket operations and ground-based observations are carried out since 1966, balloon operations since 1974, satellite operations since 1978 and testing operations since 2000 (with the Swedish Defence Material Administration). ESA also operates a satellite station near at Salmajärvi, near Esrange, since 1989. In 1987, Umeå University
started a space engineering program in Kiruna, and GIS education was started by Luleå University of Technology
in 1991. In 1993, The Umeå space engineers moved to the same building housing IRF and a year later another Luleå University programme, civil engineering with specialisation in space technology, started at the same location. Since 2006, the Erasmus Mundus Master Course in Space Science and Technology has started with at least one semester spent at LTU. In 2007, education along IRV was split and only the Department of Space Science, belonging to Luleå University of Technology, remained, while the Umeå University programme in Space Engineering quit.
The Kiruna Icehotel
has been built in Jukkasjärvi
each winter since 1990 and has become a major tourist attraction.
Until the 1970s, Kiruna's population steadily increased as the iron ore economy was thriving. 1973 was a record year for the iron ore company LKAB, mining 24 million ton ore from Kiruna and nearby Svappavaara
. However, a steel crisis led to a dramatic decrease in the iron ore economy, and LKAB had losses in 1977 for the first time in decades. Additionally, increasing transport capacity meant increasing competition from Africa, South America and Australia, where mining is mostly done in the open and thus cheaper. In ten years the number of employees decreased from 8,000 to 4,000 and the population of Kiruna began to drop. The mines at Svappavaara, Tuolluvaara and Luossavaara closed and only Kirunavaara remained. The local job office was jocularly called Resebyrån (the travel agency) because the only message to unemployed youths was: move. Since then, the population has gone steadily downhill, but has stabilised in recent years due to the diversification of the economy.
Since 1985, the snow festival has been organised each winter, including various activities such as an ice sculpture contest. In 2000, when the city was 100 years old, the Kiruna festival was first organised and has since been organised every year in summer.
. The city centre is built on the Haukavaara hill at an altitude of 530m, high above the Torne river
to the north and the Kalix river
to the south. Other parts of the town are Lombolo and Tuolluvaara. Near Kiruna are the mountains Kiirunavaara
and Luossavaara
. Kiirunavaara is an iron ore mine that is the town's primary economic resource. Luossavaara is a former mine and now used as a skiing slope.
The city is built near the lake Luossajärvi
with outflow to the Luossajoki that flows in the Torne river
at Laxforsen. The area around Kiruna is very sparsely populated. The northwest, west and southwest of Kiruna are dominated by the Scandinavian mountains
, visible from the city centre. Swedens highest mountain, Kebnekaise
, is 75 kilometres (46.6 mi) from the city centre and can be seen from it as well. To the west is Nikkaluokta
and to the northwest are Abisko
, Björkliden, Riksgränsen
and the Norwegian
town of Narvik
, 180 kilometres (111.8 mi) via the road. 12 kilometres (7 mi) north of Kiruna is Kurravaara
, on the edge of the Torne River
. The land north of Kurravaara is roadless, uninhabited land, partly barren and partly birch forest, up to the Norwegian and Finnish
borders at Treriksröset
. The lower-lying east is dominated by boreal forest, stretching hundreds (if not thousands) of kilometers into Finland and Russia
. Around 15 km east of Kiruna is a group of villages at the Torne River, most notably Jukkasjärvi
, where an ice hotel
is built in winter, attracting tourists from all over the world. The twin cities Gällivare
and Malmberget
are some 120 km south of Kiruna.
Kiruna became a Swedish city on January 1, 1948, and was at one time listed as the largest city in the world by area, even if most of its territory of course was non-urban. After the Swedish municipality reform
in the 1970s, the term "city" has been legally discontinued. Today only the built-up area is considered a de facto
city.
, Kiruna has a Sub-Arctic climate with short, cool summers and long, cold winters, although the city itself can be considerably milder than the surrounding forest. Snowcover generally lasts from mid-October to mid-May, but snowfall can occur year-round. The sun doesn't set
between May 30 and July 15, and perpetual daylight lasts from early May to early August. The period that the sun doesn't rise
lasts from early December to early January, the exact boundaries depending on local topography. In this time of the year, a few hours of twilight are the only daylight available.
During the midnight sun period, temperatures can rise as high as 25 degrees Celsius (77 F).
road, connecting Luleå
with Norway and passing close by Gällivare
(south of Kiruna) and Narvik
(on the Norwegian coast). A short road connects to Kurravaara at the Torne river and ends there. Another road connects Kiruna with Nikkaluokta
close to Kebnekaise
and is used by tourists to get to the mountains. It also passes by or nearby several villages in the Kalix river valley.
Buses connect Kiruna with major towns in Norrbotten
province and villages nearby and in the wider region. The railway
connects Luleå with Gällivare, Kiruna and Narvik. Although built to serve the mine, Swedish Rail
runs daily passenger traffic on the line: a night train from Narvik to Stockholm
, a day train from Narvik to Luleå (connecting with a second night train to Stockholm and Göteborg), and trains to Luleå and Narvik that start and finish in Kiruna. The latter is known as Karven and popular for day trips to the mountains near Abisko, Björkliden and Riksgränsen
, particularly in winter. Additional long-distance trains are run by Connex in summer.
Kiruna Airport
is located southeast of the city, 8 km by road. A few flights per day connect Kiruna with Stockholm, either directly or via Luleå or Umeå
. During tourist season, buses connect Kiruna Airport to the city center.
Iron ore extraction is a key industry of the area, and the town is very dependent on the mining
company LKAB
. During World War II, large quantities of iron were transported from northern Sweden by rail to the east coast, and further down to be sold to Germany. (See Swedish iron ore during World War II
).
In recent years attempts have been made to reduce the area's dependence on mining with initiatives to promote science, R&D and government related activities. Initiatives have included the proposed relocation of the Swedish Space Corporation
and the establishment of the Environment and Space Research Institute (Miljö- och rymdforskningsinstitutet); the former was never executed and the latter was essentially only a temporary success.
Kiruna Station
of ESA, the European Space Agency, is located in the municipality. So is Esrange
, the European Space and Sounding Rocket Range, as well as an EISCAT
station and EISCAT scientific headquarters.
Also in Kiruna are the Institute of Space Physics and the Department of Space Science belonging to Luleå University of Technology
.
In 2007, the Swedish government announced that Kiruna would be the host of Spaceport Sweden
, signing an agreement with Virgin Galactic
.
Tourism is an important source of income for Kiruna and the surrounding region with around 300,000 tourist-nights per year (1998). Throughout the year, fishing
and hunting
are popular activities by both locals and tourists. Visits can be done to the mine, the church and different research agencies, such as Abisko Scientific Research Station
the Institute of Space Physics or Esrange
. Tourists can experience the sami culture, particularly in combination with winter activities such as dog sledding.
In summer, many come to the mountains to hike up to Kebnekaise
, to walk on trails such as Kungsleden
and Nordkalottruta
, or to hike in the national parks such as Abisko National Park
. The location north of the arctic circle attracts tourists for experiencing the midnight sun
. Tourists also come for the lakes and rivers of Lapland. There exists rafting
on the Kalix
and Torne
rivers, canoeing
in the Vistas valley near Nikkaluokta
, and boat trips on lakes such as Torneträsk
. Caving can be done near Björkliden. Each year in summer, the Kiruna festival is organised, a music festival in the midnight sun.
In winter, the Icehotel attracts tourists from all over the world. The northern location makes it a good place to observe the northern lights
, and snow cover generally lasts from October to May. The long and certain snow cover makes it a good place for skiing
(cross-country and alpine), dog sledding or driving a snowmobile
. Ice climbing
can be done in the mountains and sometimes one can go ice skating
on lakes or rivers. Each year in winter, the Snow festival is organised, including scooter jumping, reindeer racing, an ice sculpture contest, and more.
, E20°25'48
) would have to be relocated to counter mining related subsidence
. The relocation would be made gradually over the coming decade. On January 8, 2007, a new location was proposed. Kiruna would gradually move northwest to the foot of the Luossavaara
mountain, by the lake of Luossajärvi
.
The first actual work on moving the town was done in November 2007, when work on the new main sewage pipe started.
In the same week, first sketches for the layout of the new part of the town became available. The sketches include a travel centre, the new locations for the city hall and the church, an artificial lake and an extension of the Luossavaara hill into the city. The location of the new section of the E10
is still uncertain, as is the location of the railway
and the railway station. A more official sketch was published early in spring 2008, which was then discussed with various interest groups before a further version is to be produced.
Most of the buildings in Kiruna will simply be torn down and rebuilt at the target site. However, the Kiruna city hall, the most architecturally significant building in Kiruna, will be cut into four parts, each of which will be transported whole to the target site and reassembled there. The move will require an extremely flat and level road tens of metres wide and will be extremely slow.
In June 2010, the municipal council decided that the town would be moved eastwards, in the direction of Tuolluvaara, instead of the proposed northwestern location.
there is an Ice hotel
which is reconstructed every year.
The church in Kiruna
from 1912 is also notable, one of Sweden's largest wooden buildings. The church exterior is built in an Neo Gothic style, while the altar is in Art Nouveau
. It has separately been voted Sweden's best looking church and the foremost Swedish pre-1950 construction.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, situated in Lapland province, with 18,154 inhabitants in 2005. It is the seat of Kiruna Municipality
Kiruna Municipality
Kiruna Municipality is a municipality in Norrbotten County in northernmost Sweden. Its seat is located in Kiruna...
(pop. 23,099 in 2008) in Norrbotten County
Norrbotten County
Norrbotten County is the northernmost county or län of Sweden. It borders Västerbotten County to the southwest, the Gulf of Bothnia to the southeast. It also borders the counties of Nordland and Troms in Norway to the northwest, and Lapland Province in Finland to the northeast.The name...
.
Origins
Archeological findings have shown that the region around Kiruna has been inhabited for at least 6,000 years.Centuries before Kiruna was founded in 1900, the presence of iron ore at Kiirunavaara
Kiirunavaara
Kiirunavaara is a mountain in Kiruna, Sweden that contains the biggest bodies of iron ore in the world. The Swedish mining company LKAB has been mining the mountain since the beginning of the 20th century....
and Luossavaara
Luossavaara
Luossavaara is a mountain in Kiruna, Sweden. It is the site of a now-inactive iron ore mine formerly operated by the Swedish mining company LKAB. Today it has a ski lift and slope, as well as a hiking path called Midnattsolstigan ....
had been known by the local Sami
Sami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
population. In 1696, Samuel Mört, a bookkeeper of the Kengis
Kengis
Kengis is a small rural community in northernmost Sweden and located very near to the Finnish border.-History:In 1644, two Swedish noblemen, later called Renstierna , set up a forge in the Swedish village Pajala north of the Polar circle...
works, wrote on the presence of iron in the two hills. Anders Hacksell mapped the area in 1736 and named the mountains Fredriks berg (Kiirunavaara) and Berget Ulrika Eleonora (Luossavaara), after king Fredrik I
Frederick I of Sweden
Frederick I, , was a prince consort of Sweden from 1718 to 1720, and a King of Sweden from 1720 until his death and also Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel from 1730...
and his wife Ulrika Eleonora. Despite the findings of large amounts of ore, no mining was initiated because of the remote location and the harsh climate. Some ore was extracted in the 19th century by extracting it in summer and transporting it in winter, using sleds drawn by reindeer
Reindeer
The reindeer , also known as the caribou in North America, is a deer from the Arctic and Subarctic, including both resident and migratory populations. While overall widespread and numerous, some of its subspecies are rare and one has already gone extinct.Reindeer vary considerably in color and size...
and horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s. However, the costs were high and the quality of the phosphor
Phosphor
A phosphor, most generally, is a substance that exhibits the phenomenon of luminescence. Somewhat confusingly, this includes both phosphorescent materials, which show a slow decay in brightness , and fluorescent materials, where the emission decay takes place over tens of nanoseconds...
ous ore poor, until, in 1878, the Gilchrist-Thomas process, invented by Sidney Gilchrist Thomas
Sidney Gilchrist Thomas
Sidney Gilchrist Thomas was an English inventor.-Life:Thomas was born at Canonbury, London and was educated at Dulwich College....
and Percy Gilchrist
Percy Gilchrist
Percy Carlyle Gilchrist FRS was a British chemist and metallurgist born in Lyme Regis, Dorset, and who studied at Felsted and the Royal School of Mines...
, allowed for the separation of phosphor from the ore.
In 1884, a concession for a railway from Luleå
Luleå
- Transportation :Local buses are run by .A passenger train service is available from Luleå Centralstation on Sweden's national SJ railway service northbound to Narvik on the Norwegian coast, or southbound to Stockholm. See Rail transport in Sweden....
to Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
was granted to The Northern of Europe Railway Company. The provisional railway between Luleå and Malmberget
Malmberget
Malmberget is a locality and mining town situated in Gällivare Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 6,017 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated 5 kilometres from the municipal seat Gällivare....
was finished in 1888 and the first train left Malmberget in March. Around the same time, the English company went bankrupt and had to sell the line to the Swedish state for 8 million Swedish crown
Swedish Crown
The so-called Swedish Crown, also known as the "Purchased Crown", was a part of the Polish Crown Jewels.- History :The crown was made for King Sigismund II Augustus...
s, around half the amount initially invested. After a significant rebuild, the railway to Gällivare could be used again and iron ore was extracted at Malmberget
Malmberget
Malmberget is a locality and mining town situated in Gällivare Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 6,017 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated 5 kilometres from the municipal seat Gällivare....
by Aktiebolaget Gellivare Malmfält (AGM).
At the initiative of Robert Schoug, the Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Aktiebolag
LKAB
LKAB is a Swedish mining company. The company mines iron ore at Kiruna and at Malmberget in northern Sweden. The company was established in 1890, and has been 100% state-owned since the 1950s...
(LKAB) was founded in 1890. In 1893, Gustaf Broms became CEO of both LKAB and AGM. LKAB pressed for continuing Malmbanan
Malmbanan
The Iron Ore Line is a long railway line between Riksgränsen and Boden in Norrbotten County, Sweden. The line contains two branches, from Kiruna to Svappavaara and from Gällivare to Koskullskulle. The term is often colloquially used to also include the Ofoten Line, from Riksgränsen to Narvik in...
via Luossavaara and Kiirunavaara to the ice-free coast of Norway. The continuation of the railway line to Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
was controversial, because opponents feared the influence of Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(then controlling Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and already connected to Sweden at Haparanda
Haparanda
Haparanda is a locality and the seat of Haparanda Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 4,778 inhabitants in 2005. It is adjacent to Tornio, Finland...
–Tornio
Tornio
Tornio is a town and municipality in Lapland, Finland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water. The population density is , with a total population of . It borders to the Swedish municipality of Haparanda...
) on an international railway line. The decision to build was finally taken in 1898. The railway came to Kiruna 15 October 1899 and the Swedish and Norwegian sections were joined 15 November 1902. For LKAB, this had been so expensive that they could barely avoid bankruptcy in 1901, just after the ore mining at Kiirunavaara had started. King Oscar II only opened the railway line 14 July 1903, preferring summer over winter to travel north.
The architects Per Olof Hallman and Gustaf Wickman were appointed to design the city, to be built at Haukivaara, near both iron ore mines, with then revolutionary consideration of geographical and climatological circumstances; being built on a hill, winter temperatures are much milder than in other towns, and due to the street plan and the positioning, wind is limited. On 27 April 1900, Hallmans plan was officially accepted.
Gustaf Broms proposed to name the settlements Kiruna, a short and practical name that could also be pronounced by Swedish speaking inhabitants. LKAB appointed Hjalmar Lundbohm
Hjalmar Lundbohm
Johan Olof Hjalmar Lundbohm was a Swedish geologist and chemist and the first managing director of LKAB in Kiruna. He is almost regarded as the founder of the city....
, who had finished neither highschool nor his geology studies, as local manager in Kiruna.
Early history
Before the design for the settlement had been accepted, houses were built in a disorganized manner with illegal slumSlum
A slum, as defined by United Nations agency UN-HABITAT, is a run-down area of a city characterized by substandard housing and squalor and lacking in tenure security. According to the United Nations, the percentage of urban dwellers living in slums decreased from 47 percent to 37 percent in the...
s similar to those in the other mining town, Malmberget
Malmberget
Malmberget is a locality and mining town situated in Gällivare Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 6,017 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated 5 kilometres from the municipal seat Gällivare....
, 80 kilometres (49.7 mi) south of Kiruna. Also, provisional buildings served as a church, a school, a hospital, a hotel and a police station. However, official residences were built at a high pace, and when the king opened the railway in 1903, all illegal residences and most other provisional buildings had been demolished and replaced. The very first building, B:1, is preserved and can be seen at Hjalmar Lundbohmsgården. In 1899, 18 people were registered as living in soon-to-be Kiruna.
This increased to 222 in 1900, 7,438 in 1910 and 12,884 in 1930. The residences did not fully keep up with this rapid growth; by 1910 there were 1,877 official rooms and some unrecognised residences, which meant that an average of three to four people lived in a single room; this density decreased steadily during the decades to follow. Kiruna became a municipalsamhälle (a community within a municipality) in 1908. This caused unhappiness in local organisations, such as Luossavaara-Kiirunavaara Arbeteraförening, that had hoped for a status as köping
Köping
This article deals with the Swedish denomination for a market town. For the city, see Köping, Sweden. For the municipality, see Köping Municipality....
, which would have kept more of the mining income inside the locality. In return, the mining company LKAB paid for a hospital, fire station, sewage, roads, a church (opened 1912) and the priests home.
In April 1907, a tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
began operation in Kiruna, the northernmost in the world. This meant miners would no longer have to walk several kilometers through the sub-arctic cold, nor would they need to climb a hundred meters up the mining hill. The network consisted of three lines: bergbanan (mountain line), stadsspårvägen (city tram) and gruvspårvägen (mine tram). The mountain line closed in 1955 after a road up the mine had been built 1949. The city line had a total length of 8 kilometres (5 mi) at longest and was unique due to the 1-meter gauge
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
, double windows and heated wagons. It closed in 1958 after gradually being replaced by buses. Between 1941 and 1964, a tram was used inside the mine, with wagons bought from closed down tramlines from all over Sweden.
The economy for iron ore was good in the early 20th century. Before the start of the work, Hjalmar Lundbohm had been worried about whether the Kiruna winter would allow for working outside at all, but despite early research into underground mining, mountaintop removal mining was the primary method in the early years. Mechanisation was attempted early using steam powered excavators, but the cold climate led to considerable difficulties and only when electrical machinery became available in the 1910s, significant mechanisation was achieved. The peak of Kiirunavaara
Kiirunavaara
Kiirunavaara is a mountain in Kiruna, Sweden that contains the biggest bodies of iron ore in the world. The Swedish mining company LKAB has been mining the mountain since the beginning of the 20th century....
, Statsrådet, was 247.7 metres (812.7 ft) above Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi is a small lake in Kiruna in northern Sweden beside Luossavaara. The mining company LKAB has gradually emptied the southern part of the lake in 2007-8 to allow mining of iron ore in the peat bog...
until it was spectacularly blown off in 1910.
A general strike hit Sweden in 1909 and Kiruna was no exception. Hoping for a better future, thousands of people left Kiruna, including a group of 500 inhabitants emigrating to Brazil. Most of them returned, disappointed that life in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
was not what they had hoped it to be, Hjalmar Lundbohm personally lent money for the trip home to some of the emigrants.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, iron ore production dropped to the lowest level in LKAB's history, and when exports increased again, a successful three-month strike in 1920 meant a 20% increase in salaries for the miners. Production dropped to a minimum in 1922 and a three-day workweek was introduced, but during the fabulous twenties it increased to a record nine million tonnes in 1927.
In 1921, mining started at the other of the two ore hills in Kiruna, Luossavaara
Luossavaara
Luossavaara is a mountain in Kiruna, Sweden. It is the site of a now-inactive iron ore mine formerly operated by the Swedish mining company LKAB. Today it has a ski lift and slope, as well as a hiking path called Midnattsolstigan ....
. However, the total amount of ore that could be mined in open pit mining here was small compared to Kiirunavaara, and LKAB preferred to concentrate resources in one place. Nevertheless, mining here continued until 1974 and later it became a research mine.
During the first decades of Kiruna's existence, no road connected it to the outside world. The only connection was by railway or, as in the time before the railway, by boat (in summer) via the Torne
Torne River
The Torne River , is a river in northern Sweden and Finland. Approximately half of the river's length is a part of the border between these two countries. It rises at Lake Torne near the border with Norway and flows generally southeast for a distance of into the Gulf of Bothnia...
and Kalix
Kalix River
The Kalix River is one of the four major rivers of Norrland, northern Sweden, that are untouched by water power...
rivers to Jukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 519 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated at 321 meters elevation....
and Håmojåkk and then proceed by foot. A road from Kiruna was built to Tuolluvaara in 1901, Poikkijärvi in 1909, Alttajärvi in 1913 and connected to Svappavaara
Svappavaara
Svappavaara is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 394 inhabitants in 2005. It is a mining village and the mine was closed in 1983, but enrichment of iron ore from the mine at Kiruna is still going on...
in 1926, from where roads already connected via Vittangi
Vittangi
Vittangi is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 789 inhabitants in 2005.The locality is very notable because it houses a cluster of people suffering from congenital analgesia, an otherwise extremely rare illness....
to Pajala
Pajala
Pajala is a locality and the seat of Pajala Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 1,985 inhabitants in 2005.-History:Lars Levi Læstadius lived and worked in Pajala Municipality in the middle of the 19th century...
and via Lappesuando to Gällivare
Gällivare
Gällivare is a locality and the seat of Gällivare Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 8,480 inhabitants in 2005. The town was founded in the 17th century...
and further south.
The Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
led to a 70% drop in ore production, a drop that would turn into a dramatic increase on the eve of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Although some tourists already came to the area in the 19th century, the completion of the railway line truly made tourism possible. Tourists came for the rivers and the mountains, but also geologists and entire classes of students came to see the mine. Additionally, a yearly winter sports festival was started, which attracted people from a wide area. The Sami population was already a tourist attraction in the early days of Kiruna's existence.
World War II
The municipality of Kiruna shares borders with Norway and Finland, and Kiruna is located relatively close to both countries. This led to many soldiers being transported to the area whenever mobilisation was requested; first in September 1939 after the German invasion of PolandInvasion of Poland (1939)
The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War in Poland and the Poland Campaign in Germany, was an invasion of Poland by Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of World War II in Europe...
, then in November 1939 after the Russian invasion of Finland
Winter War
The Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
, but in both cases the Swedish soldiers did not engage in any fighting. In March 1940, Churchill requested permission to transport soldiers from Narvik in Norway to Finland via Kiruna and Haparanda in Operation Catherine. Out of fear that the presence of British soldiers near the Kiruna ore mine would provoke a German attack on Sweden, the request was denied.
After the German invasion of Norway
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
, at least ten soldiers were stationed along every bridge along Malmbanan
Malmbanan
The Iron Ore Line is a long railway line between Riksgränsen and Boden in Norrbotten County, Sweden. The line contains two branches, from Kiruna to Svappavaara and from Gällivare to Koskullskulle. The term is often colloquially used to also include the Ofoten Line, from Riksgränsen to Narvik in...
, preparing for the possibility to blow up the bridges should the German army invade Sweden. Additionally, foreigners were banned from visiting Kiruna or the iron ore line, and only the Sami
Sami people
The Sami people, also spelled Sámi, or Saami, are the arctic indigenous people inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of far northern Sweden, Norway, Finland, the Kola Peninsula of Russia, and the border area between south and middle Sweden and Norway. The Sámi are Europe’s northernmost...
, military personnel, locals and people working for the government were permitted to travel between Kiruna and Riksgränsen.
After the battle at Bjørnfjell, 15 April 1940, wounded and fallen Norwegian soldiers were transported to Kiruna.
Despite the conditions for Swedish neutrality
Sweden during World War II
Sweden during World War II maintained a policy of neutrality. When the Second World War began on September 1, 1939, the fate of Sweden was unclear...
, rail cars with food, skis and helmets were transported from Kiruna to the Norwegian soldiers in Bjørnfjell.
Swedish iron ore from Kiruna was of major importance to the German war machine. A group of people working at LKAB organised in the Wollweberliga, planning to sabotage transports to Germany. In late November 1941, Edvard Nyberg, Ernst Wollweber
Ernst Wollweber
Ernst Friedrich Wollweber was Minister of State Security of the German Democratic Republic from 1953 to 1957.-Biography:...
and others produced a mine to be attached to the ore cars. Nyberg was caught, was fired from LKAB and spent 3½ years in prison. Upon his release, he founded Nybergs Mekaniska Verkstad which is still one of Kirunas biggest companies http://www.nybergsmek.se/.
Germany requested from Sweden use of the railway network to transport military equipment, but the Swedish government agreed only to transitering av human karaktär, men ej underhåll till stridande trupp (transit of humanitarian character, but no maintenance of fighting soldiers). Germany argued that, now that Norway was occupied, the German soldiers there were no longer fighting, and thus transported a large amount of military equipment, ammunition and, secretly, troops from south to north Norway, via Malmbanan and Kiruna. Troops were often transported in transports declared as material transports. Despite being strictly against the rules, there was considerable interaction between the German soldiers and the Swedish locals, including trading and football matches.
During the war, up to 2000 refugees from 20 different countries were kept in Kiruna. Also German prisoners of war, for example from crashed airplanes, were kept in Kiruna before being transported south. However, small-scale sabotage, such as sand in the engines, was also common and loose weapons often ended up at the bottom of the Luossajärvi lake, next to the railway stop.
North of Torneträsk, at Kaivare, a radio base Kari was built in secrecy and used by the Norwegian resistance. It was also used for the smuggling of arms to Norway and refugees from Norway.
Post-war
In 1948, Kiruna gained city rights and started to receive large amounts of money from the mine. The city centre was renovated starting it 1953; most buildings built before 1920 were demolished and replaced, and many of the current buildings were built in the following period. The town grew and new neighborhoods were built, as well as new apartment buildings and villas in existing neighborhoods. The area currently known as Lombolo was built in the 1960s.After World War II, the economy of Kiruna started to diversify. Initially, the mechanisation of the mining industry led to more mechanical workshops developing machinery for the mine, still dependent on the mining, but individual companies with spinoffs that could be sold to other areas than the Kiruna mine alone. In the 1950s, a fund, Norrlandsfonden was estabilshed, in which profits from LKAB would be invested in order to diversify the local economy. The municipality started to lend money to starting companies against very beneficial rates, a scheme that lasted until 1959 because the banks, that insisted this was false competition, had established more relaxed rules for lending out money. The industrial area east of the city was built in the 1950s to separate industry from neighborhoods.
On 10 November 1960, Kiruna Airport
Kiruna Airport
Kiruna Airport is the northernmost airport in Sweden. The airport lies around ten kilometres from the town centre of Kiruna. In 2010 the airport served 199,708 passengers.-Future:Kiruna Airport is the chosen destination for the Spaceport Sweden project...
opened to separate civilian air traffic from the military airplanes that had landed at Kalixfors airport and at Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi is a small lake in Kiruna in northern Sweden beside Luossavaara. The mining company LKAB has gradually emptied the southern part of the lake in 2007-8 to allow mining of iron ore in the peat bog...
since World War I. A road to Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta is a Swedish Sami village in Norrbotten County. The village belongs to Gällivare Municipality, bordering Kiruna Municipality, the closest urban area some 60 kilometers away...
was opened in 1971 and to Riksgränsen
Riksgränsen
Riksgränsen, The National Border in Swedish, is a ski-resort in Kiruna Municipality, Lappland, Sweden, 200 km north of the Arctic Circle. The skiing season is from February to June...
and Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
in 1984. The latter had been debated heavily, for alternative plans existed to build the road to Norway on the northern side of Torneträsk
Torneträsk
Torneträsk or Torne träsk is a lake in Kiruna Municipality, Lapland, Norrbotten County in Sweden, in the Scandinavian mountain range. Träsk is the local word for lake . It is the seventh largest lake in Sweden, with a total area of and a length of...
, via Laimo, Kattuvuoma, Salmi
Salmi
Salmi is a rural settlement and town near Pitkäranta in Republic of Karelia ....
to Innset
Innset
Innset may refer to the following places:*Innset, Sør-Trøndelag, a village in Rennebu municipality in Sør-Trøndelag, Norway*Innset, Troms, a village in Bardu municipality in Troms, Norway...
and Bardu
Bardu
Bardu is a municipality in Troms county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Setermoen, the largest urban area in the municipality.Norway's largest military garrison is located at Setermoen...
in Norway. This road was never built, but a 25 km long track between Laimo and Salmi was built at the initiatives of the locals and finished in 1962; however, this track, called Talmavägen, is not connected to any other road.
Increased communications were also beneficial for tourism. Swedish Railways had already run special trains before World War II, but started a special Dollar train in the summer months between Gothenborg and Kiruna, connecting to cruise ships from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The canoe club Kiruna Långfärdspaddlare was founded in 1972 and rafting for tourists restarted after it had been discontinued for 20 years due to the drowning of Valfrid Johansson. Until the 1980s, tourism had been mainly a summer business, but touristic exploitation of dog sledging was started in 1983 in Jukkasjärvi. In 1990, the first Icehotel was built in Jukkasjärvi and advertised as the worlds largest igloo. It had been built using techniques from the building of Malmbanan
Malmbanan
The Iron Ore Line is a long railway line between Riksgränsen and Boden in Norrbotten County, Sweden. The line contains two branches, from Kiruna to Svappavaara and from Gällivare to Koskullskulle. The term is often colloquially used to also include the Ofoten Line, from Riksgränsen to Narvik in...
90 years before, and was also inspired by the Snow Festival, that had started in 1986 to celebrate the Swedish Viking
Viking (satellite)
Viking was Sweden's first satellite. It was launched on an Ariane 1 rocket as a piggyback payload together with the French satellite SPOT 1, on February 22, 1986. Operations ended on May 12, 1987...
satellite. Since 1998, a special tourist area exists in the mine and since 1999, tourists can visit the various areas of research going on in Kiruna.
In 1957, the Kiruna Geophysical Observatory (KGO) (now the Swedish Institute of Space Physics
Swedish Institute of Space Physics
The Swedish Institute of Space Physics or Institutet för rymdfysik is a Swedish government agency. The institute's primary task is to carry out basic research, education and associated observatory activities in space physics, space technology and atmospheric physics.-Foundation:The IRF was founded...
) was founded and established by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Esrange
Esrange
Esrange Space Center is a rocket range and research centre located outside the town of Kiruna in northern Sweden. It is a base for scientific research with high altitude balloons, investigation of the aurora borealis, sounding rocket launches, and satellite tracking, among other things...
Space Centre is established in 1966. Here, rocket operations and ground-based observations are carried out since 1966, balloon operations since 1974, satellite operations since 1978 and testing operations since 2000 (with the Swedish Defence Material Administration). ESA also operates a satellite station near at Salmajärvi, near Esrange, since 1989. In 1987, Umeå University
Umeå University
Umeå University is a university in Umeå in the mid-northern region of Sweden. The university was founded in 1965 and is the fifth oldest within Sweden's present borders....
started a space engineering program in Kiruna, and GIS education was started by Luleå University of Technology
Luleå University of Technology
Luleå University of Technology or Luleå tekniska universitet of Sweden is Scandinavia's northernmost university of technology. It has four campuses, located in Luleå , Kiruna , Skellefteå and Piteå .-History:The university was founded on 1 June 1971 at Porsön in Luleå as...
in 1991. In 1993, The Umeå space engineers moved to the same building housing IRF and a year later another Luleå University programme, civil engineering with specialisation in space technology, started at the same location. Since 2006, the Erasmus Mundus Master Course in Space Science and Technology has started with at least one semester spent at LTU. In 2007, education along IRV was split and only the Department of Space Science, belonging to Luleå University of Technology, remained, while the Umeå University programme in Space Engineering quit.
The Kiruna Icehotel
Icehotel (Jukkasjärvi)
The Icehotel in the village of Jukkasjärvi, about 17 km from Kiruna, Sweden, was the world's first ice hotel. After its first opening in 1990, the hotel has been erected each year from December to April.-History:...
has been built in Jukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 519 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated at 321 meters elevation....
each winter since 1990 and has become a major tourist attraction.
Until the 1970s, Kiruna's population steadily increased as the iron ore economy was thriving. 1973 was a record year for the iron ore company LKAB, mining 24 million ton ore from Kiruna and nearby Svappavaara
Svappavaara
Svappavaara is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 394 inhabitants in 2005. It is a mining village and the mine was closed in 1983, but enrichment of iron ore from the mine at Kiruna is still going on...
. However, a steel crisis led to a dramatic decrease in the iron ore economy, and LKAB had losses in 1977 for the first time in decades. Additionally, increasing transport capacity meant increasing competition from Africa, South America and Australia, where mining is mostly done in the open and thus cheaper. In ten years the number of employees decreased from 8,000 to 4,000 and the population of Kiruna began to drop. The mines at Svappavaara, Tuolluvaara and Luossavaara closed and only Kirunavaara remained. The local job office was jocularly called Resebyrån (the travel agency) because the only message to unemployed youths was: move. Since then, the population has gone steadily downhill, but has stabilised in recent years due to the diversification of the economy.
Since 1985, the snow festival has been organised each winter, including various activities such as an ice sculpture contest. In 2000, when the city was 100 years old, the Kiruna festival was first organised and has since been organised every year in summer.
Geography
Kiruna is located in the north of Sweden, 145 kilometres (90.1 mi) north of the Arctic circleArctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For Epoch 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs north of the Equator....
. The city centre is built on the Haukavaara hill at an altitude of 530m, high above the Torne river
Torne River
The Torne River , is a river in northern Sweden and Finland. Approximately half of the river's length is a part of the border between these two countries. It rises at Lake Torne near the border with Norway and flows generally southeast for a distance of into the Gulf of Bothnia...
to the north and the Kalix river
Kalix River
The Kalix River is one of the four major rivers of Norrland, northern Sweden, that are untouched by water power...
to the south. Other parts of the town are Lombolo and Tuolluvaara. Near Kiruna are the mountains Kiirunavaara
Kiirunavaara
Kiirunavaara is a mountain in Kiruna, Sweden that contains the biggest bodies of iron ore in the world. The Swedish mining company LKAB has been mining the mountain since the beginning of the 20th century....
and Luossavaara
Luossavaara
Luossavaara is a mountain in Kiruna, Sweden. It is the site of a now-inactive iron ore mine formerly operated by the Swedish mining company LKAB. Today it has a ski lift and slope, as well as a hiking path called Midnattsolstigan ....
. Kiirunavaara is an iron ore mine that is the town's primary economic resource. Luossavaara is a former mine and now used as a skiing slope.
The city is built near the lake Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi is a small lake in Kiruna in northern Sweden beside Luossavaara. The mining company LKAB has gradually emptied the southern part of the lake in 2007-8 to allow mining of iron ore in the peat bog...
with outflow to the Luossajoki that flows in the Torne river
Torne River
The Torne River , is a river in northern Sweden and Finland. Approximately half of the river's length is a part of the border between these two countries. It rises at Lake Torne near the border with Norway and flows generally southeast for a distance of into the Gulf of Bothnia...
at Laxforsen. The area around Kiruna is very sparsely populated. The northwest, west and southwest of Kiruna are dominated by the Scandinavian mountains
Scandinavian Mountains
The Scandinavian Mountains or the Scandes, in Swedish Skanderna, Fjällen or Kölen , in Finnish Köli and in Norwegian Kjølen, with the three latter meaning The Keel, are a mountain range that runs through the Scandinavian Peninsula...
, visible from the city centre. Swedens highest mountain, Kebnekaise
Kebnekaise
Kebnekaise is the highest mountain in Sweden and Sápmi. The Kebnekaise massif, which is part of the Scandinavian Mountains, has two peaks, of which the southern, glaciated one is highest at above sea level at the latest time of measurement. The north top is free of ice...
, is 75 kilometres (46.6 mi) from the city centre and can be seen from it as well. To the west is Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta is a Swedish Sami village in Norrbotten County. The village belongs to Gällivare Municipality, bordering Kiruna Municipality, the closest urban area some 60 kilometers away...
and to the northwest are Abisko
Abisko
Abisko is a village in northern Sweden, near the Abisko National Park located 4 km west of the village. It had 85 inhabitants as of 2005.-Transportation:...
, Björkliden, Riksgränsen
Riksgränsen
Riksgränsen, The National Border in Swedish, is a ski-resort in Kiruna Municipality, Lappland, Sweden, 200 km north of the Arctic Circle. The skiing season is from February to June...
and the Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
town of Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
, 180 kilometres (111.8 mi) via the road. 12 kilometres (7 mi) north of Kiruna is Kurravaara
Kurravaara
Kurravaara is village 12km north of Kiruna in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 57 inhabitants in 2005.It is the first village at the Torne River at Kallojärvi at 322 meter and is also close to the Rautas River....
, on the edge of the Torne River
Torne River
The Torne River , is a river in northern Sweden and Finland. Approximately half of the river's length is a part of the border between these two countries. It rises at Lake Torne near the border with Norway and flows generally southeast for a distance of into the Gulf of Bothnia...
. The land north of Kurravaara is roadless, uninhabited land, partly barren and partly birch forest, up to the Norwegian and Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
borders at Treriksröset
Treriksröset
Treriksröset , Treriksrøysa , Kolmen valtakunnan rajapyykki is the point at which the borders of Sweden, Norway and Finland meet....
. The lower-lying east is dominated by boreal forest, stretching hundreds (if not thousands) of kilometers into Finland and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Around 15 km east of Kiruna is a group of villages at the Torne River, most notably Jukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 519 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated at 321 meters elevation....
, where an ice hotel
Icehotel (Jukkasjärvi)
The Icehotel in the village of Jukkasjärvi, about 17 km from Kiruna, Sweden, was the world's first ice hotel. After its first opening in 1990, the hotel has been erected each year from December to April.-History:...
is built in winter, attracting tourists from all over the world. The twin cities Gällivare
Gällivare
Gällivare is a locality and the seat of Gällivare Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 8,480 inhabitants in 2005. The town was founded in the 17th century...
and Malmberget
Malmberget
Malmberget is a locality and mining town situated in Gällivare Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 6,017 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated 5 kilometres from the municipal seat Gällivare....
are some 120 km south of Kiruna.
Kiruna became a Swedish city on January 1, 1948, and was at one time listed as the largest city in the world by area, even if most of its territory of course was non-urban. After the Swedish municipality reform
Municipalities of Sweden
The municipalities of Sweden are the local government entities of Sweden. The current 290 municipalities are organized into 21 counties...
in the 1970s, the term "city" has been legally discontinued. Today only the built-up area is considered a de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
city.
Climate
Being located 145 kilometres north of the Arctic CircleArctic Circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. For Epoch 2011, it is the parallel of latitude that runs north of the Equator....
, Kiruna has a Sub-Arctic climate with short, cool summers and long, cold winters, although the city itself can be considerably milder than the surrounding forest. Snowcover generally lasts from mid-October to mid-May, but snowfall can occur year-round. The sun doesn't set
Midnight sun
The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon occurring in summer months at latitudes north and nearby to the south of the Arctic Circle, and south and nearby to the north of the Antarctic Circle where the sun remains visible at the local midnight. Given fair weather, the sun is visible for a continuous...
between May 30 and July 15, and perpetual daylight lasts from early May to early August. The period that the sun doesn't rise
Polar night
The polar night occurs when the night lasts for more than 24 hours. This occurs only inside the polar circles. The opposite phenomenon, the polar day, or midnight sun, occurs when the sun stays above the horizon for more than 24 hours.-Description:...
lasts from early December to early January, the exact boundaries depending on local topography. In this time of the year, a few hours of twilight are the only daylight available.
During the midnight sun period, temperatures can rise as high as 25 degrees Celsius (77 F).
Communications
Kiruna is located at the E10European route E10
European route E 10 is a road part of the International E-road network. It begins in Å, Norway and ends in Luleå, Sweden. The road is about 850 km in length...
road, connecting Luleå
Luleå
- Transportation :Local buses are run by .A passenger train service is available from Luleå Centralstation on Sweden's national SJ railway service northbound to Narvik on the Norwegian coast, or southbound to Stockholm. See Rail transport in Sweden....
with Norway and passing close by Gällivare
Gällivare
Gällivare is a locality and the seat of Gällivare Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 8,480 inhabitants in 2005. The town was founded in the 17th century...
(south of Kiruna) and Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
(on the Norwegian coast). A short road connects to Kurravaara at the Torne river and ends there. Another road connects Kiruna with Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta is a Swedish Sami village in Norrbotten County. The village belongs to Gällivare Municipality, bordering Kiruna Municipality, the closest urban area some 60 kilometers away...
close to Kebnekaise
Kebnekaise
Kebnekaise is the highest mountain in Sweden and Sápmi. The Kebnekaise massif, which is part of the Scandinavian Mountains, has two peaks, of which the southern, glaciated one is highest at above sea level at the latest time of measurement. The north top is free of ice...
and is used by tourists to get to the mountains. It also passes by or nearby several villages in the Kalix river valley.
Buses connect Kiruna with major towns in Norrbotten
Norrbotten
Norrbotten is a Swedish province in northernmost Sweden. It borders south to Västerbotten, west to Swedish Lapland, and east to Finland.- Administration :...
province and villages nearby and in the wider region. The railway
Malmbanan
The Iron Ore Line is a long railway line between Riksgränsen and Boden in Norrbotten County, Sweden. The line contains two branches, from Kiruna to Svappavaara and from Gällivare to Koskullskulle. The term is often colloquially used to also include the Ofoten Line, from Riksgränsen to Narvik in...
connects Luleå with Gällivare, Kiruna and Narvik. Although built to serve the mine, Swedish Rail
SJ AB
SJ is a government-owned passenger train operator in Sweden. SJ was created in 2000, out of the public transport division of Statens Järnvägar, when the former government agency was divided into six separate government-owned limited companies.-Overview:SJ's operations fall broadly into subsidised...
runs daily passenger traffic on the line: a night train from Narvik to Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, a day train from Narvik to Luleå (connecting with a second night train to Stockholm and Göteborg), and trains to Luleå and Narvik that start and finish in Kiruna. The latter is known as Karven and popular for day trips to the mountains near Abisko, Björkliden and Riksgränsen
Riksgränsen
Riksgränsen, The National Border in Swedish, is a ski-resort in Kiruna Municipality, Lappland, Sweden, 200 km north of the Arctic Circle. The skiing season is from February to June...
, particularly in winter. Additional long-distance trains are run by Connex in summer.
Kiruna Airport
Kiruna Airport
Kiruna Airport is the northernmost airport in Sweden. The airport lies around ten kilometres from the town centre of Kiruna. In 2010 the airport served 199,708 passengers.-Future:Kiruna Airport is the chosen destination for the Spaceport Sweden project...
is located southeast of the city, 8 km by road. A few flights per day connect Kiruna with Stockholm, either directly or via Luleå or Umeå
Umeå
- Transport :The road infrastructure in Umeå is well-developed, with two European highways passing through the city. About 4 km from the city centre is the Umeå City Airport...
. During tourist season, buses connect Kiruna Airport to the city center.
Mine
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
company LKAB
LKAB
LKAB is a Swedish mining company. The company mines iron ore at Kiruna and at Malmberget in northern Sweden. The company was established in 1890, and has been 100% state-owned since the 1950s...
. During World War II, large quantities of iron were transported from northern Sweden by rail to the east coast, and further down to be sold to Germany. (See Swedish iron ore during World War II
Swedish iron ore during World War II
Swedish iron ore was an important economic factor in the European Theatre of World War II. Both the Allies and the Third Reich were keen on the control of the mining district in northernmost Sweden, surrounding the mining towns of Gällivare and Kiruna...
).
In recent years attempts have been made to reduce the area's dependence on mining with initiatives to promote science, R&D and government related activities. Initiatives have included the proposed relocation of the Swedish Space Corporation
Swedish Space Corporation
The Swedish Space Corporation is a comprehensive space company covering the entire field, from the definition of innovative business concepts and space projects to the development, tests and operation of the systems....
and the establishment of the Environment and Space Research Institute (Miljö- och rymdforskningsinstitutet); the former was never executed and the latter was essentially only a temporary success.
Space research
The ESTRACKESTRACK
The European Space Operations Centre operates a number of ground-based space-tracking stations for the European Space Agency known as the European Space Tracking network. The stations support various ESA spacecraft and facilitate communications between ground operators and scientific probes such...
Kiruna Station
Kiruna Station
Kiruna Station is an ESTRACK radio antenna station for communication with spacecraft operated by the Swedish Space Corporation. It is located 38 km east of Kiruna, Sweden. The site hosts one 15 metre- and one 13-metre-diameter antenna, each with S- and X-band reception and S-band transmission...
of ESA, the European Space Agency, is located in the municipality. So is Esrange
Esrange
Esrange Space Center is a rocket range and research centre located outside the town of Kiruna in northern Sweden. It is a base for scientific research with high altitude balloons, investigation of the aurora borealis, sounding rocket launches, and satellite tracking, among other things...
, the European Space and Sounding Rocket Range, as well as an EISCAT
EISCAT
EISCAT is an acronym for the European Incoherent Scatter Scientific Association. It operates three incoherent scatter radar systems, at 224 MHz, 931 MHz in Northern Scandinavia and one at 500 MHz on Svalbard, used to study the interaction between the Sun and the Earth as revealed by disturbances in...
station and EISCAT scientific headquarters.
Also in Kiruna are the Institute of Space Physics and the Department of Space Science belonging to Luleå University of Technology
Luleå University of Technology
Luleå University of Technology or Luleå tekniska universitet of Sweden is Scandinavia's northernmost university of technology. It has four campuses, located in Luleå , Kiruna , Skellefteå and Piteå .-History:The university was founded on 1 June 1971 at Porsön in Luleå as...
.
In 2007, the Swedish government announced that Kiruna would be the host of Spaceport Sweden
Spaceport Sweden
Spaceport Sweden is a company that plans to make Kiruna the primary European Spaceport for personal suborbital spaceflight and space tourism. It's a co-operation between the Swedish Space Corporation, the Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi, LFV Group and Kiruna’s business-development company Progressum.The...
, signing an agreement with Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic
Virgin Galactic is a company within Richard Branson's Virgin Group which plans to provide sub-orbital spaceflights to the paying public, along with suborbital space science missions and orbital launches of small satellites...
.
Tourism
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
and hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
are popular activities by both locals and tourists. Visits can be done to the mine, the church and different research agencies, such as Abisko Scientific Research Station
Abisko Scientific Research Station
The Abisko Scientific Research Station is a field research station belonging to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Situated on the south shore of Lake Torneträsk, it lies at the edge of the Abisko National Park and is used by researchers from many countries...
the Institute of Space Physics or Esrange
Esrange
Esrange Space Center is a rocket range and research centre located outside the town of Kiruna in northern Sweden. It is a base for scientific research with high altitude balloons, investigation of the aurora borealis, sounding rocket launches, and satellite tracking, among other things...
. Tourists can experience the sami culture, particularly in combination with winter activities such as dog sledding.
In summer, many come to the mountains to hike up to Kebnekaise
Kebnekaise
Kebnekaise is the highest mountain in Sweden and Sápmi. The Kebnekaise massif, which is part of the Scandinavian Mountains, has two peaks, of which the southern, glaciated one is highest at above sea level at the latest time of measurement. The north top is free of ice...
, to walk on trails such as Kungsleden
Kungsleden
Kungsleden is a hiking trail in northern Sweden, approximately long, between Abisko in the north and Hemavan in the south. It passes through one of Europe's largest remaining wilderness areas.-The trail:...
and Nordkalottruta
Nordkalottruta
- External links :* *...
, or to hike in the national parks such as Abisko National Park
Abisko National Park
Abisko National Park is a National Park in Sweden.Geographically, Abisko is situated in the Swedish province of Lapland near the Norwegian border , and belongs to Kiruna Municipality, Sweden's northernmost and largest municipality...
. The location north of the arctic circle attracts tourists for experiencing the midnight sun
Midnight sun
The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon occurring in summer months at latitudes north and nearby to the south of the Arctic Circle, and south and nearby to the north of the Antarctic Circle where the sun remains visible at the local midnight. Given fair weather, the sun is visible for a continuous...
. Tourists also come for the lakes and rivers of Lapland. There exists rafting
Rafting
Rafting or white water rafting is a challenging recreational outdoor activity using an inflatable raft to navigate a river or other bodies of water. This is usually done on white water or different degrees of rough water, in order to thrill and excite the raft passengers. The development of this...
on the Kalix
Kalix River
The Kalix River is one of the four major rivers of Norrland, northern Sweden, that are untouched by water power...
and Torne
Torne River
The Torne River , is a river in northern Sweden and Finland. Approximately half of the river's length is a part of the border between these two countries. It rises at Lake Torne near the border with Norway and flows generally southeast for a distance of into the Gulf of Bothnia...
rivers, canoeing
Canoeing
Canoeing is an outdoor activity that involves a special kind of canoe.Open canoes may be 'poled' , sailed, 'lined and tracked' or even 'gunnel-bobbed'....
in the Vistas valley near Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta
Nikkaluokta is a Swedish Sami village in Norrbotten County. The village belongs to Gällivare Municipality, bordering Kiruna Municipality, the closest urban area some 60 kilometers away...
, and boat trips on lakes such as Torneträsk
Torneträsk
Torneträsk or Torne träsk is a lake in Kiruna Municipality, Lapland, Norrbotten County in Sweden, in the Scandinavian mountain range. Träsk is the local word for lake . It is the seventh largest lake in Sweden, with a total area of and a length of...
. Caving can be done near Björkliden. Each year in summer, the Kiruna festival is organised, a music festival in the midnight sun.
In winter, the Icehotel attracts tourists from all over the world. The northern location makes it a good place to observe the northern lights
Aurora (astronomy)
An aurora is a natural light display in the sky particularly in the high latitude regions, caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms in the high altitude atmosphere...
, and snow cover generally lasts from October to May. The long and certain snow cover makes it a good place for skiing
Skiing
Skiing is a recreational activity using skis as equipment for traveling over snow. Skis are used in conjunction with boots that connect to the ski with use of a binding....
(cross-country and alpine), dog sledding or driving a snowmobile
Snowmobile
A snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, or sled,is a land vehicle for winter travel on snow. Designed to be operated on snow and ice, they require no road or trail. Design variations enable some machines to operate in deep snow or forests; most are used on open terrain, including...
. Ice climbing
Ice climbing
Ice climbing, as the term indicates, is the activity of ascending inclined ice formations. Usually, ice climbing refers to roped and protected climbing of features such as icefalls, frozen waterfalls, and cliffs and rock slabs covered with ice refrozen from flows of water. For the purposes of...
can be done in the mountains and sometimes one can go ice skating
Ice skating
Ice skating is moving on ice by using ice skates. It can be done for a variety of reasons, including leisure, traveling, and various sports. Ice skating occurs both on specially prepared indoor and outdoor tracks, as well as on naturally occurring bodies of frozen water, such as lakes and...
on lakes or rivers. Each year in winter, the Snow festival is organised, including scooter jumping, reindeer racing, an ice sculpture contest, and more.
Sports
- Kiruna FFKiruna FFKiruna FF is a Swedish football club located in Kiruna. The club currently competes in Division 3 Norra Norrland., the fifth tier of the Swedish football league system.-Background:...
is a Swedish football club located in Kiruna. The club currently competes in Division 3 Norra Norrland, the fifth tier of the Swedish football league system.
Moving the town
In 2004, it was decided that the present centre of the municipality (N67°49'48Latitude
In geography, the latitude of a location on the Earth is the angular distance of that location south or north of the Equator. The latitude is an angle, and is usually measured in degrees . The equator has a latitude of 0°, the North pole has a latitude of 90° north , and the South pole has a...
, E20°25'48
Longitude
Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....
) would have to be relocated to counter mining related subsidence
Subsidence
Subsidence is the motion of a surface as it shifts downward relative to a datum such as sea-level. The opposite of subsidence is uplift, which results in an increase in elevation...
. The relocation would be made gradually over the coming decade. On January 8, 2007, a new location was proposed. Kiruna would gradually move northwest to the foot of the Luossavaara
Luossavaara
Luossavaara is a mountain in Kiruna, Sweden. It is the site of a now-inactive iron ore mine formerly operated by the Swedish mining company LKAB. Today it has a ski lift and slope, as well as a hiking path called Midnattsolstigan ....
mountain, by the lake of Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi
Luossajärvi is a small lake in Kiruna in northern Sweden beside Luossavaara. The mining company LKAB has gradually emptied the southern part of the lake in 2007-8 to allow mining of iron ore in the peat bog...
.
The first actual work on moving the town was done in November 2007, when work on the new main sewage pipe started.
In the same week, first sketches for the layout of the new part of the town became available. The sketches include a travel centre, the new locations for the city hall and the church, an artificial lake and an extension of the Luossavaara hill into the city. The location of the new section of the E10
European route E10
European route E 10 is a road part of the International E-road network. It begins in Å, Norway and ends in Luleå, Sweden. The road is about 850 km in length...
is still uncertain, as is the location of the railway
Malmbanan
The Iron Ore Line is a long railway line between Riksgränsen and Boden in Norrbotten County, Sweden. The line contains two branches, from Kiruna to Svappavaara and from Gällivare to Koskullskulle. The term is often colloquially used to also include the Ofoten Line, from Riksgränsen to Narvik in...
and the railway station. A more official sketch was published early in spring 2008, which was then discussed with various interest groups before a further version is to be produced.
Most of the buildings in Kiruna will simply be torn down and rebuilt at the target site. However, the Kiruna city hall, the most architecturally significant building in Kiruna, will be cut into four parts, each of which will be transported whole to the target site and reassembled there. The move will require an extremely flat and level road tens of metres wide and will be extremely slow.
In June 2010, the municipal council decided that the town would be moved eastwards, in the direction of Tuolluvaara, instead of the proposed northwestern location.
Sights
In the village of JukkasjärviJukkasjärvi
Jukkasjärvi is a locality situated in Kiruna Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden with 519 inhabitants in 2005. It is situated at 321 meters elevation....
there is an Ice hotel
Ice hotel
An ice hotel is a temporary hotel made up of snow, sculpted blocks of ice, and some steel framing. They are promoted by their sponsors and have special features for travelers who are interested in novelties and unusual environments, and thus are in the class of destination hotels...
which is reconstructed every year.
The church in Kiruna
Kiruna Church
-External links:*...
from 1912 is also notable, one of Sweden's largest wooden buildings. The church exterior is built in an Neo Gothic style, while the altar is in Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau is an international philosophy and style of art, architecture and applied art—especially the decorative arts—that were most popular during 1890–1910. The name "Art Nouveau" is French for "new art"...
. It has separately been voted Sweden's best looking church and the foremost Swedish pre-1950 construction.
Notable residents
- Börje SalmingBörje SalmingAnders Börje Salming , nicknamed "The King", is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman. He played for Kiruna AIF, Brynäs IF, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Detroit Red Wings, and AIK. Salming was one of the first European players to make an impact in the National Hockey League , paving...
, NHL ice hockey defenseman - Kim SunnaKim SunnaKim Sunna is a is a Swedish professional ice hockey player. He currently plays for Luleå HF of the Swedish Elitserien.-External links:...
, Elitserien ice hockey player
See also
- EsrangeEsrangeEsrange Space Center is a rocket range and research centre located outside the town of Kiruna in northern Sweden. It is a base for scientific research with high altitude balloons, investigation of the aurora borealis, sounding rocket launches, and satellite tracking, among other things...
- Swedish Institute of Space PhysicsSwedish Institute of Space PhysicsThe Swedish Institute of Space Physics or Institutet för rymdfysik is a Swedish government agency. The institute's primary task is to carry out basic research, education and associated observatory activities in space physics, space technology and atmospheric physics.-Foundation:The IRF was founded...
- Radiotjänst in KirunaRadiotjänst i KirunaRadiotjänst i Kiruna AB is Sweden's TV licensing body. It is a private corporation, formed in 1988 and based in Kiruna. The company is a subsidiary of the three Swedish public service broadcasters Sveriges Television, Sveriges Radio and Sveriges Utbildningsradio...
- Spaceport SwedenSpaceport SwedenSpaceport Sweden is a company that plans to make Kiruna the primary European Spaceport for personal suborbital spaceflight and space tourism. It's a co-operation between the Swedish Space Corporation, the Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi, LFV Group and Kiruna’s business-development company Progressum.The...
External links
- Kiruna – Official website
- Mitt Kiruna – Kiruna city guide with local news, weather forecast, cinemas, TV-guide and current events.
- BBC – Sweden to save sinking town
- Satellite picture by Google Maps
- Det nya Kiruna – Trip to Kiruna