Where is Novaya Zemlya located?
Q: Where is Novaya Zemlya located?
A: Novaya Zemlya is located in the Arctic Ocean in the north of Russia and the extreme northeast of Europe.
Q: What is the archipelago made of?
A: The archipelago is made of a north island and a south island that separates the Barents Sea from the Kara Sea.
Q: How long is Novaya Zemlya?
A: Both islands together are about 900 km long.
Q: How many people live on the islands of Novaya Zemlya?
A: Today, 2716 people live on the islands, with 2622 of them living in the capital Belushya Guba on the south island.
Q: When did the Russians first know about Novaya Zemlya?
A: The Russians knew of Novaya Zemlya from the 11th century when hunters from Novgorod visited the area.
Q: What was Novaya Zemlya used for during the cold war?
A: In July 1954, Novaya Zemlya was designated the Novaya Zemlya Test Site and was used as a test site throughout the cold war.
Q: What is the significance of Tsar Bomba?
A: In 1961, Tsar Bomba was dropped on Novaya Zemlya, making it the site of the largest nuclear bomb ever made at 50 Mt. By contrast, the largest weapon ever produced by the United States, the now-decommissioned B41, had a predicted maximum yield of 25 Mt.