Severnaya Zemlya Firnley Islands. Severnaya Zemlya is consistently cold and quite dry, with a mean annual temperature of , mean annual precipitation of about , and generally overcast skies. Monthly average temperature ranges from in February to in July. The archipelago sees large temperature fluctuations during winter months, as low-pressure cyclonic activity originating in the North Atlantic make their way across the Arctic, bringing precipitation and higher temperatures. These cyclones are most common in September and October, which see 30% of annual precipitation. Snowfall in summer is common as temperatures hover around , although higher temperatures occur when warm air masses move
History of Franz Josef Land and Karl Weyprecht of Austria–Hungary on board the schooner "Tegetthoff", this expedition's primary goal was to find the north-east passage with the secondary goal of locating the North Pole. The ship left Tromsø, Norway, in July 1872 but by August had become locked in pack ice north of Novaya Zemlya. The vessel drifted and eventually reached a hitherto unknown archipelago, which they named in honor of Franz Joseph I (1830–1916), Emperor of Austria. In May 1874 Wayprecht decided that the crew of twenty-four should abandon the ice-bound ship. On August 16 they reached land at Novaya Zemlya. They followed the