Verkhoiansk

a city in Verkhoiansk Raion, Yakut ASSR. Located north of the Arctic Circle, on the northern edge of the lana Plateau, 900 km north-northeast of Yakutsk. Verkhoiansk is a landing on the lana River. Population, 2,000 (1969). One of the coldest places in the northern hemisphere, with an absolute minimum of about -70° C., Verkhoiansk was founded in 1638 as a cossack wintering station.