Fri­day, Octo­ber 26, was the offi­ci­al onset of the polar night. The sun will remain behind the hori­zon until Febru­ary 15. Becau­se of the moun­ta­ins sur­roun­ding Lon­gye­ar­by­en, the sun will not be seen again in town befo­re around March, 08.

The begin­ning of the polar night is tra­di­tio­nal­ly the time for the “Dark Sea­son Blues Fes­ti­val”, fea­turing local, Nor­we­gi­an and inter­na­tio­nal Blues acts. From Fri­day to Sun­day, good, hand­ma­de music can be seen and heard in Longyearbyen’s pubs.