Climate and geography

CLIMATE
 

The Faroese weather is moist, changeable and at times windy. It is possible to experience all four seasons within the same day - from moments of brilliant sunshine to misty hill fog to showers and rain or snow.

Due to the influence of the Gulf Stream encircling the islands, there is little variation between winter and summer temperatures. The average temperature ranges from 3°C in winter to 12°C in the summer.

The harbours never freeze, and snowfall is usually shortlived.

During the summer the days are long and the nights are light. In the middle of the summer the sun hardly sets and the longest period of daylight is 19 hours.

Weather forecast for the Faroe Islands from DMI is here.

Look also for the daily weather here.
 

Geography

The Faroe Islands are located in the North Atlantic Ocean northwest of Scotland and halfway between Iceland and Norway. 
 

Size

The archipelago is composed of 18 islands covering 1399 sq km (545.3 sq miles) and is 113 km (70 miles) long and 75 km (47 miles) wide.
 
The average height above sea level is 300 m (982 ft). The highest mountain (Slættaratindur) is 880 m (2883 ft) above sea level.
 
The total coastline of the islands is 1,289 km. It is not further than five kilometers to the ocean from any point in the islands.
 

Geology

The Faroe Islands are part of the North Atlantic basalt area, stretching from Ireland to Greenland.
 
The landscape is shaped by volcanic rocks and erosion processes, which have taken place since the volcanoes ceased being active 50-60 million years ago.
 
Glaciers of the ice period have restructured the original plateau to an archipelago with high mountains, deep valleys and narrow fjords.
 

Fauna and Flora

The vegetation is sparse. The islands are covered by grass which during the summer period gives a characteristic feeling of a country clad in green.
 

Animals

Animal life is characterized by the ever present sheep that outnumber the population by a factor of two and the rich and varied bird life, especially seabirds, which attracts bird enthusiasts and ornithologists from all around the world.
 

Settlement

The settlement pattern is characterized by a large number of densely populated villages of varying size scattered over 17 of the islands.
 
There are in all about 100 towns and villages. The largest town is the capital, Tórshavn and the second largest is Klaksvík.