Hardangerjøkulen

Hardangerjøkulen is the sixth-largest glacier on mainland Norway, covering 73 square kilometres on the northern edge of the Hardangervidda plateau. The ice reaches a thickness of 380 metres, with the summit at 1,863 metres above sea level. Several glacier arms extend outward, with Blåisen, Midtdalsbreen, and Rembesdalskåka being the most accessible. The glacier sits closer to a railway line than any other in Norway; the Bergen-Oslo railroad passes within a few kilometres, and guided walks onto the ice depart from Finse station during summer. The Midtdalen valley below the glacier doubled as the ice planet Hoth in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1979). Like most Norwegian glaciers, Hardangerjøkulen has retreated significantly over recent decades, losing both mass and extent to rising temperatures.