Search our collection of background (non-event) articles from news media, science journals and other sources.
The virtual reality project Qikiqtaruk: Arctic at Risk is transporting people to Yukon's northernmost point without them ever having to leave home.
Rick Thoman is thinking hard about the cost of climate change and the benefits of better tracking, potentially influencing Alaska’s response to extreme weather and more.
Scientists found that the glaciers are triggering the release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas that causes global temperatures to rise.
The state’s rural areas lead the world in renewably powered microgrids. So if the grid of the future is being incubated in rural Alaska, can urban Alaska, like the Railbelt, benefit from some of these strategies and lessons learned?
It’s been a week since ice severed a fiber optic cable in the Arctic Ocean, cutting communications to several Northwest Alaska communities.
Ice lies thick on the water as nuclear powered icebreakers "Sibir" and "Arktika" escort LNG carrier "Fedor Litke" into the Vilkitsky Strait en route to a Northeast Asian port.
The Arctic Ocean could be ice-free in summer by the 2030s, even if we do a good job of reducing emissions between now and then.
When most people consider the arctic, or high-altitude mountain landscapes, they think of endless snow, ice and bare rock. But pastel-coloured flowers, sometimes just a few millimetres wide, bloom in these dramatic places too. The miniature flowers not only weather some of the toughest habitats on Earth, but can also help engineer the landscape for other species.
The Bering Sea region is front and center for federal fisheries researchers after the 2019 heatwave produced extreme change in the marine ecosystem.
The new project with drone maker DJI will try to get a bigger picture than fieldwork trips with more frequent, automated drone flights.
Such a large, sudden die-off and a lack of sea ice were a red flag for scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
As Alaska faces an increased risk of spring breakup flooding this year, scientists are asking residents to share photos documenting major rivers’ progress from ice to water to help them predict with more accuracy where flooding might occur.
Since the first big winter storms, snow on the western Kenai Peninsula has collapsed roofs, broken gas meters and raised backcountry avalanche risk. “I think we can safely say that this was the most snow in any winter for the northwest Kenai Peninsula since the winter of 2011, 2012,” said Rick Thoman.
As Western wildfires get more destructive, scientists are finding a far-off connection to shrinking ice on the Arctic Ocean.
At the world’s northernmost year-round research station, scientists are racing to understand how the fastest-warming place on Earth is changing — and what those changes may mean for the planet’s future.
Scientists are studying the diets of the oceans’ top predators as they change in response to their environments. This is because how much and what they eat can affect how ecosystems function.
Drivers in much of Alaska including Anchorage will have until May 15 to remove studded tires; those in southern areas will have until May 1.
"Siku" means sea ice in the Siberian Yup'ik language. But about a hundred other Yup'ik words describe different types of sea ice, including icebergs, floating pressure ice ridges, solid ice safe for travel — and "pequ," "an unsuitable area in ice field where the current causes ice to heave up or break up," Vera Metcalf said.
Story telling provides a powerful tool in a changing climate. Epen Hobson has been experiencing the land and ocean through the perspective of an Inuit photographer and hunter. A recipient of the Arctic Resilient Communities Fellowship he shares, "We're an oral people, we tell stories, we teach by telling stories," The effects of climate change are concrete and dramatic for the Arctic communities such as Utqiagvik, and Hopson is hungry to see infrastructure and policy solutions to address them.
The Copper River Basin in Alaska has experienced less reliable snow and ice conditions in recent years, impacting winter activities such as trapping, hunting, and gathering firewood. This study, based on nine oral interviews with local residents, reveals that crossing rivers has become more treacherous and difficult, with significant changes in ice conditions observed since the 1970s. Decreased snowpacks and increased shrub growth have also posed obstacles for accessing winter trails, requiring individuals to cut through forests. These changes, combined with socio-economic and technological factors, have affected the way people engage in winter activities in the Copper River Basin. Overall, this research contributes to the understanding of climate change's impact on winter activities in Alaska and the Circumpolar North.
All Topics
All Countries
Any Date
Apply