Background Articles

Findings from European scientists were published in a journal late last year.

During this summer, the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard has been melting five times faster than normal. "Svalbard is a hotspot for Arctic warming", experts warn.

Floodwaters from the Mendenhall River rushed under Sam and Amanda Hatch’s home last August at then record-levels. After the water receded, their house sank several inches into the saturated soil, shifting its foundations. As they rebuilt, the Hatch family decided to elevate their house by four feet on piers to avoid flooding in the future. Scraping together deals and favors, Sam Hatch said the whole process cost around $135,000. It was completed a month ago, he said.

Scientists are enhancing flood forecasts in Juneau as Suicide Basin refills, following an unexpected record flood last year caused by rapid drainage.

NASA's PACE satellite, designed to study ocean biology in unprecedented detail, has been successfully launched to enhance understanding of Earth's changing climate and improve weather forecasting.

Alaska communities are facing significant challenges due to climate change, including the disappearance of snow crabs, threats to subsistence hunting and fishing, and difficulties in processing and storing food, but some communities are taking action and developing local climate adaptation plans with the support of funding and collaboration between different governments and agencies.

A new study reveals that four dozen Antarctic ice shelves have shrunk by at least 30% since 1997, with 28 of them losing more than half of their ice, raising concerns about sea level rise due to climate change.