Editing Troms (section)

==Economy==
[[File:Fagerfjeliet.jpg|thumb|left|Small farms and mountains in [[Lenvik Municipality]]; June 2007.]]
[[File:Nordkjosbotn.jpg|thumb|right|Many villages are located at the head of fjords; this is [[Nordkjosbotn]] at the head of Balsfjord, 1-hr drive south of Tromsø.]][[File:Skjærstad Harstad Wilse 35840.jpeg|thumb|left|Agricultural area near Harstad in 1930]]
The [[Tromsø (city)|city of Tromsø]], in the north central part, is the county seat and an [[Arctic]] seaport, and seat of the world's northernmost university, renowned for research about the [[aurora borealis]]. The [[University of Tromsø]] has an astrophysical observatory located in [[Skibotn]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Skibotn Astrophysical Observatory |url=http://www.phys.uit.no/fysikk/astro/skibotn_main.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717145042/http://www.phys.uit.no/fysikk/astro/skibotn_main.htm |archive-date=July 17, 2011 |access-date=May 2, 2023 |website=Astrophysics Group of University of Tromso}}</ref> Tromsø is the only municipality in the county with a strong population growth; most of the smaller municipalities experience decreasing populations as the young and educated moved to the cities, often in the southern part of Norway. [[Harstad (town)|Harstad]] is a commercial centre for the southern part of the county, and has been chosen by [[Statoil]] as its main office in Northern Norway.

Along the coast and on the islands, fishing is dominant. Important ports for the fishing fleet are [[Skjervøy (village)|Skjervøy]], [[Tromsø (city)|Tromsø]], and [[Harstad (town)|Harstad]]. There is also some agriculture, especially in the southern part of the county, which has a longer [[growing season]] (150&nbsp;days in Harstad). [[Balsfjord Municipality]] is often regarded to be the most northern municipality with substantial agricultural activity in Norway, although there is also agriculture further north.

The Norwegian armed forces are vital employers in the Troms, having the seat of the [[6. Divisjon|6th army division]], [[Bardufoss Air Station]], helicopter wings and radar stations in the county. There are hospitals in Tromsø (university hospital and main hospital for North Norway) and Harstad.

While the busiest airport in Troms is [[Tromsø Airport]], the southern part included [[Harstad/Narvik Airport, Evenes]] and [[Bardufoss Airport]], with [[Sørkjosen Airport]] in the northeast. The [[European route E6|E6]] cuts through the county from Nordland into [[Gratangen Municipality]] in the south to [[Kvænangen Municipality]] in the north and then into Finnmark. The [[European route E8|E8]] highway runs from Tromsø to Finland via [[Nordkjosbotn]] and the Skibotn valley. There are several large bridges; some of the largest are [[Tjeldsund Bridge]], [[Mjøsund Bridge]], [[Gisund Bridge]], [[Tromsø Bridge]] and [[Sandnessund Bridge]]. There are several undersea road tunnels; Rolla to Andørja (in [[Ibestad Municipality]]), Tromsøya to the mainland ([[Tromsø Municipality]]), Kvaløya to Ringvassøya (also in Tromsø), and [[Skjervøya]] to the mainland (in [[Skjervøy Municipality]]. The roads are well maintained, but have to go long detours around fjords. For this reason passenger boats are fairly popular, for example between Tromsø and Harstad, and there are also commercial flights inside the county of Troms.

There is no railway in Troms, but in 2013, the government of Finland expressed interest in building a railway from the Finnish rail network to port facilities at [[Skibotn]], though they also stated that they could not finance much of the cost.<ref>{{cite web |last=Nilsen |first=Thomas |date=2013-12-03 |title=Katainen: Railway to Arctic Ocean is a great opportunity |url=http://barentsobserver.com/en/arctic/2013/12/katainen-railway-arctic-ocean-great-opportunity-03-12 |publisher=Barents Observer}}</ref>