A secret Nazi military base has been unearthed in a remote island of Alexandra Land in the Arctic Circle by Russian scientists, reports claim.
According to Science Alert, more than 500 artifacts have been found on the base leading the scientists to believe that the base is actually the site of the long-been suspected base called "Treasure Hunter" or "Schatzgraber," which was built on direct orders from Adolf Hitler.
"These artifacts unmistakably advise about the German identity of the station, and also suggest that its designation was both military and meteorological," explained a spokeswoman for the Russian Arctic National Park, in an email to FoxNews.com.
Fox News report cited that some of the items found on the base include war items such as German mines, hand grenade fragments, cartridge boxes, boxes for MG-34 submachine gun feed belts and clothes such as uniforms, overcoats. The base also housed weather balloons, thermometers, astronomic tables, and journals.
According to Popular Mechanics, stories about the "Treasure Hunter," had been popular over the years but until now, no evidence about it has surfaced. While the base had supported the military efforts of Nazis in the arctic, some believed that the base also served as a base for Nazi archaeological study, in search of Nordic artifacts for propaganda purposes.
Official reports said the base shut down in 1944 due to supply shortage. Their military personnel ate raw polar bear meat contaminated with roundworms, fell ill and eventually died.
Meanwhile, the artifacts have been sent to the park's office in Archangelsk for further examination. The items will be included on an exhibition at the Russian Arctic National Park museum after further studies.
"This summer in the Arctic was very warm, so the entire area of Schatzgrabber was completely free of snow and ice, which made it possible to explore the area fully," team leader Evgeny Ermolov, a senior researcher with the Russian Arctic National Park, which now administers the island, said in a statement.