What to know about the US military’s Pituffik Space Base in Greenland
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Digital Subscription
One year of digital access for only $205*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional
$1 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/03/2025 (533 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
NUUK, Greenland (AP) — The remote Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, which Vice President JD Vance is visiting on Friday, is the U.S. Department of Defense’s northernmost installation.
The base was built following a 1951 defense agreement between Denmark and the United States. It supports missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance operations for the U.S. and NATO.
The Pituffik base is located on the northwestern coast of Greenland, about 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) north of the the Arctic Circle and 1,524 kilometers (947 miles) south of the North Pole. It is about 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) north of Greenland’s capital, Nuuk.
It was known as the Thule Air Base until 2023, when it was renamed to recognize Greenlandic cultural heritage and reflect its role in the relatively new U.S. Space Force.
The base is locked in by ice for nine months of the year, but its airfield remains open all year round. It is in constant darkness from November to February and constant daylight from May to August.
It is operated by the 821st Space Base Group and is also home to the world’s northernmost deepwater sea port. The nearest town is Qaanaaq, around 120 kilometers (75 miles) to the northwest.