Officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in North-western Europe whose territory comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. Norway has a total area of 385,207 square kilometres and has an extensive coastline, facing the North Atlantic Ocean and the Barents Sea. The maritime influence also dominates Norway’s climate with mild lowland temperatures on the sea coasts, whereas the interior, while colder, is also a lot milder than areas elsewhere in the world on such northerly latitudes. Even during polar night in the North, temperatures above freezing are commonplace on the coastline. The maritime influence brings high rainfall and snowfall to some areas of the country.