The farther north you sail past the Arctic Circle, the longer the midnight sun lasts. In the waters around the North Cape, the sun stays above the horizon around the clock from the middle of May to the end of July. On cloud-free nights, the Barents Sea shimmers in the sunlight when the sun is at its lowest, just after midnight. In the winter, a much less pleasant phenomenon takes place: The sun doesn’t rise for more than two months.