hidden europe 27

A submarine secret

by hidden europe

Summary

The Norwegian Depression is not a state of mind. It is actually a submarine valley off the coast of Norway. We explain more in this short note.

Depressions come in all shapes and sizes. When weather forecasters talk about a depression off the coast of Norway, they refer of course to a meteorological phenomenon — one of those nasty low pressure cells that normally mean wind and rain. But Norway has another form of depression that is unique to the country: a great subterranean trench off Norway’s southern coast. If by some miracle the seas around Europe were suddenly drained, this feature would be the most striking piece of topography between Scotland and Scandinavia.

Related articleFull text online

Where towering cliffs in ocean stand: Lofoten

Capture the atmosphere of one of Europe's most magical landscapes with our account of two communities in the Lofoten islands in northern Norway. Nusfjord is an old fishing station that has reinvented itself through tourism. Meanwhile, the tiny hamlets that cling to the edges of Reinefjord teeter on the brink of extinction.

Related article

Sea fever

When one time English poet laureate John Masefield extolled the lure of the ocean ("I must down to the seas again..."), he clearly didn't have Cunard's luxury Queen Elizabeth II ship or the same company's new super liner Queen Mary in mind.