Yakutsk: the coldest inhabited city on Earth

Built on permafrost terrain, Yakutsk remains the most populous city with over one hundred thousand inhabitants on the coldest planet Earth.

A car remains essential to explore the surroundings; in winter, suitable vehicles are needed for extreme temperatures.

The Mammoth Museum displays mammoth remains perfectly preserved in Siberian permafrost, some with skin and fur still intact after thousands of years of natural freezing.

Within minutes, the Chersky Range and the frozen surroundings of Yakutsk offer extreme Arctic landscapes accessible through organized specialized tours.

Heading toward the center, you visit the Museum of History and Culture of the Peoples of the North, dedicated to the indigenous Sakha and Evenki peoples of eastern Siberia, with traditional costumes and tools.

As evening falls, local restaurants serve stroganina, thinly sliced frozen raw fish according to native Siberian traditions.

Yakutsk records winter temperatures that can drop below minus fifty degrees, making it officially the coldest inhabited city in the world with over one hundred thousand residents.

The entire city stands on permanently frozen permafrost ground that never completely thaws, forcing buildings to be constructed on stilts to avoid structural collapse due to seasonal thawing.