UAF visitors' guide

Welcome to UAF's Fairbanks campus!
UAF is America’s northernmost Land, Sea and Space Grant institution. Our 2,250-acre campus includes miles of multiuse recreational trails and two small lakes, with views of North America’s tallest peak, Mount McKinley, often visible to the south.

The Fairbanks campus is the university’s principal research center. UAF is among the top 10 universities in atmospheric sciences and meteorology in the nation. It is home to the International Arctic Research Center, Geophysical Institute, the Institute of Arctic Biology and many other research centers.

Millions of years of biodiversity and more than 11,000 years of cultural traditions are represented in the exhibits and research collections of the University of Alaska Museum of the North. Highlights include 2,000 years of Alaska art; the state's largest public display of gold; Blue Babe, a 36,000-year-old mummified steppe bison; and an ever-changing sound and light display driven by the sun and moon, seismic activity and the aurora. The museum also offers special exhibits, lectures and family programs.

UAF is a vital part of the local arts scene. Our campus hosts the Fairbanks Summer Arts Festival and the Festival of Native Arts, among many other annual special events. Theatre UAF presents several plays each year, and art exhibits, concerts, lectures and performances enliven our campus year-round. Check www.uaf.edu/events/ for a full listing of campus events.

Reduced shuttle service operates throughout the summer. Call 474-PARK (7275) or visit the Transportation Services website for more information: www.uaf.edu/fs/transservices.html.

Summer 2008 guided tours

Guided walking tours and prospective student campus tours

Guided Campus Tours for Prospective Students
Find out if UAF is right for you by seeing it in person. We offer campus tours for prospective students each weekday, starting in the Signers’ Hall lobby and lasting 75 – 90 minutes. We encourage advance reservations. Call 800-478-1823 or 474-7500, or go to www.uaf.edu/admissions/visit/.

June 1 – Aug. 31: Monday – Friday, 9:30 a.m. No tours July 3 – 4.
Sept. 1 – May 31: Monday – Friday by appointment, except during campus closures.

Campus map grid location: F/G-10 (Purple Zone)

Guided walking tours and prospective student campus tours Guided walking tours
Visit the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus for a free guided walking tour lasting about two hours. Meet in the lobby of Signers’ Hall. Dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes. Call 474-7021 for more information.

June 1 – Aug. 31: Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. No tours July 3 – 4.

Campus map grid location: F/G-10 (Purple Zone)

International Arctic Research Center
Walk through the IARC, which serves as a headquarters for scientists studying arctic and global climate. Meet in the Akasofu Building lobby. Call 474-7558 for more information, or e-mail info@gi.alaska.edu. Reservations required for groups of 10 or more.

June 4 – Aug. 27: Wednesdays, 4 p.m.

Campus map grid location: D-2 (Blue Zone)

Geophysical Institute
Visit the world-renowned Geophysical Institute, where scientists study everything from the center of the earth to the center of the sun. Learn about the Alaska Satellite Facility’s polar-orbiting satellites and the Alaska Earthquake Information Center’s seismology lab. Meet in the Elvey Building lobby. Call 474-7558 for information, or e-mail info@gi.alaska.edu. Reservations required for groups of 10 or more.

June 4 – Aug. 27: Wednesdays, 2:30 p.m.

Campus map grid location: D-3 (Blue Zone)

UAF photo by Leone Thierman

Arctic Region Supercomputing Center
Take a leap into virtual reality at the ARSC Discovery Lab. Park in the Taku visitor lot, walk up the hill, take a right at the top on Tanana Loop and find the first loading dock on the left behind Rasmuson Library. Tour size limited to 20 participants on first-come, first-served basis. Call 450-8600 or visit www.arsc.edu for more information.

June 4 – Aug. 27: Wednesdays, 1 p.m.

Campus map grid location: F-11 (Purple Zone)

UAF photo by Gail Koepf

Cold Climate Housing Research Center
Sustainable building practices are on display at America’s only arctic housing research center. This new research and testing facility, designed to address the challenges faced by northern builders, showcases the latest building materials and techniques. Built on permafrost, the facility demonstrates appropriate design for the North. Call 474-2402 or 457-3454 for more information, or visit www.cchrc.org.

Tours year-round: Thursdays, 2 p.m. Other times by appointment only.

Campus map grid location: H-5 (Red Zone)

Georgeson Botanical Garden
Each year the Georgeson Botanical Garden tests more than 300 cultivars of annuals and thousands of perennials. Visit gorgeous and extensive gardens to see the wide variety of plants that grow in this northern climate, and sneak a peek at Santa’s sidekicks in the Reindeer Research Program. Admission is $2. Call 474-1944 for more information, or visit www.uaf.edu/snras/gbg/.

Guided tour, June 6 – Aug. 29: Fridays, 2 p.m.
Self-guided tour, May 31 – Sept. 2: daily, 8 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Campus map grid location: G-2 (Blue Zone)

UAF photo by Tomohiro Nishio

Poker Flat Research Range
Visit the only university-owned sounding rocket range in the world! Look for the rocket on the right-hand side of the Steese Highway, 30 miles north of Fairbanks. Call 474-7558 for more information, or e-mail info@gi.alaska.edu. Reservations required for groups of 10 or more.

June 12, 26; July 10, 24; Aug. 7, 14: Thursdays, 1:30 p.m.

Fairbanks & vicinity map location: B

Muskoxen at the Robert G. White Large Animal Research Station Robert G. White Large Animal Research Station
See muskoxen, caribou and reindeer up close as guides from the Institute of Arctic Biology explain the history and biology of these arctic ungulates. From Farmers Loop Road, turn onto Ballaine Road, then left on Yankovich Road. The station is on the right, one mile down the road. Viewing is available year-round from the parking area; binoculars are helpful. Call 474-7207 or 474-7412 for more information, or visit www.uaf.edu/lars/.

May 26 – Sept. 1: daily, 45-minute tours offered each hour beginning at 10 a.m.
Last tour begins at 4 p.m.
Open July 4. Call for daily availability and fees.

For UAF shuttle service information, call 474-7433 or visit www.uaf.edu/fs/transservices.html.

Fairbanks & vicinity map location: A

More things to see and do
While you are at UAF, you may be interested in visiting the bookstore, walking through Signers' Hall where the Alaska Constitution was signed, eating lunch at Wood Center or just wandering around. Check out some other things to see and do throughout the year.

Photo credits: All photos by Todd Paris, Marketing and Communications unless otherwise noted.