This story will be updated throughout the day. Photo of researchers walking to the Polarstern frozen in the ice north of Svalbard courtesy of the Alfred Wegener Institute.
It’s no joke – for those looking for a place to live in Longyearbyen starting in April there’s a realistic possibility of vacancies.
Among the reasons that’s not a joke, of course, is it’s no laughing matter the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic – even though there remains no officially diagnosed cases in Svalbard as of midday Tuesday – include people being forced from their homes and/or Longyearbyen because of the massive tourism and other layoffs. As a result listings for shared rooms and apartments are popping up during what’s normally a peak demand period – although for the past year or so there’s often been nothing available even during “slow” periods.