It is a pleasant day for a walk in middle Alaska, with blue sky overhead, sandhill cranes croaking above the University of Alaska Fairbanks farm, and the sharp scent of sliced blades of grass, mowed for perhaps the last time in 2019. I am hiking the length of a new planet-walk display with Peter Delamere. […]
Every Alaskan owns at least one version of a sensitive scientific instrument: the thermometer. But what is it measuring? Because hot and cold are relative terms, sometimes our senses can’t be trusted to tell us the difference. For example, a tub of ice water will feel warm if you stick your foot in it after […]
Photo: An atmospheric river that transported immense amounts of water vapor from the tropics to Southcentral Alaska in November 2018. NOAA image Nome, August 2019: More than 2 inches of rainfall falls in one day, setting a new record. Thompson Pass, December 2017: 1.7 inches of snow piles up in 10 minutes. Seven feet of […]
Image: This mummified ground squirrel, curled up at lower right in its nesting material, lived in Alaska about 20,000 years ago. Photo by Ben Gaglioti One fall day in Interior Alaska, a lion stalked a ground squirrel that stood at attention on a hillside. The squirrel noticed bending blades of grass, squeaked an alarm […]