The area has rugged mountain terrain with altitudes of up to . Much of the relief of the peninsula is a
paleic surface similar to the one found in the highlands of southern Norway. In the peninsula the paleic surface is made up of an undulating
plateau between the altitudes of 200 and 600
m.a.s.l. The higher parts of the undulating plateau are made up by erosion-resistant rocks like
quartzite. The lower parts are made up by weak rocks like
shale and
mudstone. At intermediate levels
sandstone is common. Some parts of the paleic surface in Varanger Peninsula are a re-exposed
unconformity that underlie sedimentary rock of Vendian (
Late Neoproterozoic) age. The paleic surface might have been uplifted as much as 200–250 meters since
middle Pliocene times. Landforms resulting from
Quaternary periglaciation are recurrent across the peninsula. Among the most common are
block fields and
solifluction lobes. Blockfields are most extensive on the northern half of the peninsula, chiefly in the plateau area.
Polygonal ground is found in some places, but there are no known modern
ice wedges. Two ancient fault systems divide the geology of the peninsula into three groups, where the NE side of the peninsula (North Varanger region) is separated from the SW by the Trollfjord-Komagelva
strike-slip fault, and the SW side is divided approximately NNE-SSW by thrusting of the
Scandinavian Caledonides over the Baltic Shield.
Stable carbon isotope ratio chemostratigraphy has been used to correlate the Annijokka Member of the Båtsfjord Formation with other Neoproterozoic successions around the world, suggesting it was deposited approximately 811 million years ago, during the Bitter Springs carbon isotope excursion.
Climate A part of the peninsula, including the town of
Vardø (located on an island just off the coast of the peninsula), earlier had an Arctic
tundra climate but with the updated 1991-2020 climate normals, this is mostly gone. However, much of the peninsula is at some altitude and are
alpine tundra. On the south coast, including the town of
Vadsø, there is sufficient summer heat for birch trees to grow.
Fauna Arctic fox exist, and 79 cubs were registered in 2023. The
Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management has a project on the peninsula for the reintroduction and protection of the
Arctic fox, which is
critically endangered on the Norwegian mainland. In addition to introducing animals into nature, the larger and stronger
red fox is hunted down. There are many species of
sea birds along the coast of the peninsula; some arctic species of birds spend the winters along the coast of the peninsula. ==Media gallery==