Relatively few people have been to the Arctic, and even fewer have set foot in Antarctica. Most of us rely on our imaginations and media to visualize these landscapes and the ways they are changing. Research shows that the Arctic is warming four times faster than the global average. The sea ice is melting, exposing more open […]
This time of year, when berries fill my thoughts, the early summer blooms that begot them are hazy in my mind. As I pick, I try to remember that my belly and bucket are full thanks to these flowers and their pollinators. And to my surprise, as I learned this summer, perhaps a parasitic plant […]
When large storms hit Western Alaska, some areas fare much worse than others. New research studying ex-Typhoon Merbok in September 2022 has found that a complex recipe of topography, tidal influences and seasonal water-level changes contribute to those differences. A University of Alaska Fairbanks-led team determined that the shape of bays and estuaries in the region […]
Rapid series of low-pressure systems can cause weather conditions under which the ice can only hardly recover. This affects Arctic coastlines and the global climate system. In the Arctic, the weather plays a key role in determining how much ice covers the ocean. One weather phenomenon that has a significant influence on this is Arctic […]