Svalbard Global Seed Vault is a secure seedbank located on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen near the town of Longyearbyen in the remote Arctic Svalbard archipelago.

1. The Svalbard Seed Vault Norway

2. Svalbard ( territory of Norway) Geography Location: Northern Europe, islands between the Arctic Ocean, Barents Sea, Greenland Sea, and Norwegian Sea, north of Norway Geographic coordinates: 78 00 N, 20 00 E Map references: Artic Region

6. Spitsbergen

9. Seeds from all over the world will be stored at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. The Nordic prime ministers all donated seeds particular to their country on 16 June. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is being established on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen near the town of Longyearbyen (population 1900) in the remote arctic Svalbard archipelago. The island is about 1120 km from the north pole.

10. The seedbank is being constructed 393 feet inside a sandstone mountain at Svalbard on Spitsbergen Island. The bank will employ a number of robust security systems. Seeds will be packaged in special 4-ply packets and heat sealed to exclude moisture. The facility will be managed by the Nordic Gene Bank, though there will be no permanent staff on-site. Spitsbergen was considered ideal due to its lack of tectonic activity and its permafrost, which will aid preservation. The location 426 feet above sea level will ensure that the site remains dry even if the icecaps melt.

16. Locally mined coal will provide power for refrigeration units which will further cool the seeds to the internationally-recommended standard −20 to −30 C. Even if the equipment fails, at least several weeks will elapse before the temperature rises to the −3 C of the surrounding sandstone bedrock. Prior to construction, a feasibility study determined that the vault could preserve seeds from most major food crops for hundreds of years. Some seeds, including those of important grains, could survive far longer, possibly thousands of years.

20. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault will open officially on 26 February 2008. Approximately 1.5 million distinct seed samples of agricultural crops are thought to exist. The variety and volume of seeds stored will depend on the number of countries participating. But the facility has a capacity to conserve 4.5 million. The first seeds arrived in January 2008.