Ellen Viste releases new book Temperature. A Story of Cold Shock, Heat Death, and the Species That Sets the Planet’s Thermostat

We are delighted to share that writer and journalist Ellen Viste, a former writer in residence at Artica Svalbard nominated by Norsk faglitterær forfatter- og oversetterforening (NFFO), has released her new book Temperature. A Story of Cold Shock, Heat Death, and the Species That Sets the Planet’s Thermostat.

In Temperature, Viste explores one of the most fundamental forces shaping our world. Temperature defines the boundaries of life and the conditions of our planet: twenty degrees is summer, forty degrees signals fever, at zero water freezes, and at one hundred it boils. Two degrees has become a symbol of climate change, while thirty-seven degrees defines the human body itself.

Through a compelling journey across science and history, the book examines how humanity came to understand temperature and how this knowledge transformed the world. From early questions about what thermometers actually measure to debates about whether heat was once thought to be a substance, Viste brings readers into a story shaped by curious scientists, strange experiments, and the limits of human endurance.

Using Svalbard as a frame of reference, the book reflects on temperature as both a physical reality and a lived experience. From the vast history of the universe and the Big Bang to the buzzing of atoms and the concept of absolute zero, Temperature traces the profound role temperature plays in shaping life, technology, and our understanding of the planet.

Reflecting on her time in Longyearbyen, Ellen Viste credits her residency at Artica Svalbard as an important part of the book’s development:

“Spending two icy months in Longyearbyen allowed me to frame the book from a perspective that was pure temperature. The creative environment offered by Artica was so inspiring. I'd go back any time.”

By situating the narrative in the Arctic, the book connects scientific discovery with the fragile and changing environments of the North. At a time when the planet is experiencing unprecedented warming, Temperature reminds us that the delicate balance of heat and cold has always shaped life on Earth — and that understanding it has never been more important.

Temperature. A Story of Cold Shock, Heat Death, and the Species That Sets the Planet’s Thermostat is available now in Norwegian through .

We warmly congratulate Ellen on the publication of this fascinating and thought-provoking book and are proud that her time at Artica Svalbard contributed to its development.