Latest Research News and Events
Long-term views of a changed Alaska
December 01, 2023
As an instructor for Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, I have stood before a group of Alaskans every Tuesday night this November. During the most recent class session of Ned Rozell's Alaska, I asked 17 people what changes they have noticed in this giant peninsula during their time here.
UAF-led project will look for rare-earth elements in Southeast Alaska seaweed
November 28, 2023
A University of Alaska Fairbanks-led research team has been awarded a $1.9 million federal grant to explore whether seaweed are absorbing rare-earth elements near a rich deposit in Southeast Alaska.
Surfing in winter on cross-country skis
November 28, 2023
With mild temperatures and ample snow, much of Alaska is now primed for cross-country skiing. It's a sport for all ages, made possible by friction.
Inspiring Girls* Expeditions 2024 accepting applications
November 28, 2023
Inspiring Girls* Expeditions Alaska is accepting applications for a unique suite of tuition-free backcountry science and art education programs in summer 2024.
Climate hazards cost Fairbanks, Anchorage homeowners millions
November 15, 2023
A new survey found that Fairbanks and Anchorage homeowners are increasingly threatened by climate-related hazards like wildfire, permafrost thaw and winter rain, the latter costing homeowners $25 million in annual damages.
Secret lives playing out all around us
November 10, 2023
While we were sleeping, they were out there. Two red foxes, a male and female, pawing into spring snow on a hillside. The foxes had found the entrance to a tunnel dug many years ago. It might have been the den in which one of them was born.
Ernest Leffingwell, fan of the Far North
November 02, 2023
One hundred years ago, a group of men sailed to the northern coast of Alaska to find a land mass rumored to protrude from the Arctic Ocean. They did not find the land. After wintering in the North, everyone hurried back to warmer places. Except for Ernest Leffingwell.
Plastic falls in Southeast Alaska's rain
October 27, 2023
"We found microplastics in every single rain sample (gathered in Juneau)," Sonia Nagorski told a group of people listening to her talk at the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in New Orleans two winters ago.
Finned adventurers nosing into the Arctic
October 20, 2023
A few years ago, Randy Brown wondered if he might lose $50,000 he had just won as part of the Rachel Carson Award for Exemplary Scientific Accomplishment.
DNA analysis reveals pink salmon swim home with incredible accuracy
October 13, 2023
Analysis of a massive database of pink salmon DNA has revealed unexpected details about the abundant salmon species, including its ability to return to spawn at nearly the same spot within streams as their parents.