Which is the world’s largest island and why the world is watching it now

Often described as remote and forbidding, this island has quietly become one of the most closely watched places on Earth, drawing attention not just from scientists and climate researchers, but also from major global powers. The title of the world’s largest island belongs to Greenland, a vast, ice-dominated landmass that sits between the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada and northwest of Iceland. Greenland comprises the main island, larger than any other island on the planet, and more than a hundred smaller surrounding islands. It shares a tiny 1.2-kilometre land border with Canada on Hans Island. Notwithstanding its massive size, Greenland has a surprisingly small population of 56,000 people, of whom a third live in the capital city, Nuuk. The majority of the settlements are to be found along the coast, as the interior is covered in ice.Read more: 5 most walkable cities to explore in 2026In fact, approximately 84% of Greenland is actually covered by a permanent ice sheet, which is second-largest in the world after Antarctica’s. This ice sheet can be up to 3 km thick, pushing the underlying bedrock below sea level. Only the immediate coastal areas, which are often mountainous, rocky, and barren, are ice-free. Geologically, Greenland is very unique. Greenland is located on the Greenland Plate, which is a sub-plate of the North American Plate, and has some of the world's oldest rocks. The Isua greenstone belt in southwestern Greenland is around 3.7 to 3.8 billion years old, which provides geologists with unique information about the earliest history of the planet.The island’s terrain is stark: a vast icecap slopes gradually from the interior toward the coasts, where jagged mountains rise sharply. Greenland’s highest point, Gunnbjørn Fjeld, stands at 3,694 metres, making it the tallest mountain in the Arctic. Vegetation is sparse, with tundra dominating most ice-free land. Only one naturally forested area exists, the Qinngua Valley in the far south, protected by surrounding mountains and just warm enough in summer to support trees. The climate in Greenland varies from arctic to subarctic, with short and cool summers and long and cold winters. The coastal areas have a slightly more moderate climate because of the Gulf Stream, which makes the average winter temperature in Nuuk around −9°C, much warmer than similar Arctic regions like Iqaluit in Canada. However, the summers are still quite cool, with average temperatures of around 10°C, which is too low to support much tree growth. If Greenland were merely a frozen island at the top of the world, global interest might remain limited. But climate change has turned it into a critical focal point. The Greenland ice sheet is so large that if it were to melt significantly, the consequences would be global. Scientists have discovered features beneath the ice that were once unimaginable, including Greenland’s Grand Canyon, hidden for millennia. There is also evidence suggesting that Greenland may not be a single island beneath the ice, but potentially three separate landmasses, divided by bedrock basins that sit below sea level. If massive melting were to happen, these basins could fill up with water. Although scientists are not sure whether the water would form lakes or whether it would be connected to the ocean, this would be a drastic change in the geography of Greenland and would raise sea levels worldwide. In recent years, Greenland’s three largest outlet glaciers, the Jacobshavn Isbræ, Kangerdlugssuaq, and Helheim glaciers, have shown periods of rapid acceleration. Satellite data has linked these movements to increased seismic activity, with glaciers generating earthquake swarms as they shift. Climate change has also revealed new land: in 2005, an island named Uunartoq Qeqertaq, meaning “warming island” in Inuit, emerged from retreating ice, having previously been thought part of the mainland.In addition to its significance in climate studies, Greenland has been of prime importance to the world due to its natural resources. Greenland has deposits of zinc, lead, iron ore, coal, gold, platinum, uranium, rare earth minerals, graphite, copper, tungsten, titanium, and vanadium, besides immense hydropower resources and fishing grounds.Rare earths, which are in high demand for their use in high-tech industries, renewable energy, and military applications, are of great interest. Gold deposits have been discovered in the southern parts of Greenland, around Nanortalik, while diamonds have been discovered near Maniitsoq. Greenland is still largely unexplored, particularly in the northeast and central east parts of the country.The international focus on Greenland intensified in 2019 when Donald Trump proposed that the United States might be interested in “buying” Greenland. This idea was quickly dismissed by Denmark and the government of Greenland. However, this incident brought to light the fact that Greenland has always been of great geopolitical importance.The United States has considered Greenland to be of strategic value since the 19th century. After the purchase of Alaska in 1867, the United States began to realize the importance of the Arctic region in transatlantic defence and communication. Greenland became important in military strategies during the Cold War era, and its position, which connects North America to Europe, makes it of strategic value in the modern Arctic.With the melting of ice and the opening of Arctic passages, Greenland’s location, assets, and stability have become more prominent. Climate change has turned Greenland from a remote and icy place into a major player in international debates on the environment, security, and future resource availability.Greenland, known as Kalaallit Nunaat or “the Land of the People” in Greenlandic, continues to be a sparsely populated and unique place, but it is also increasingly at the forefront of international discourse. The ice caps of Greenland hold secrets of the past and portents of the future of our planet. The natural resources of Greenland offer the promise of economic development, but its location is at the intersection of continents.