sea ice
Lack of sea ice sends seal pups and walrus calves to beach
Alaska Sea Grant, Kawerak, Inc. and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are preparing to place signs along the beaches near Nome, alerting the public about an increasing number of ice-associated seal pups resting along the shore. The signs remind the public not to disturb the animals, unless they are Alaska Native engaged in subsistence…
Read MoreCarbon dioxide sample from Utqiaġvik provides wake-up call on climate
How does the buildup of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere measured at Hawai‘i’s Mauna Loa volcano over the last six decades compare with the air above Alaska? During a recent spring trip to Utqiaġvik, I had a chance to find out by visiting the farthest-north atmospheric observatory operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration…
Read More“We have never been here before” — Gay Sheffield, on ecosystem-wide changes in the Bering Sea
The Bering Sea is undergoing massive changes that include the dramatic loss of sea ice last winter. As Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory agent Gay Sheffield notes in the interview below, “we have never been here before.” Sheffield spoke to the Associated Press at the American Geophysical Union conference this week in Washington, D.C., saying…
Read MoreStudy aims to help Alaska’s North Slope officials adapt to climate change hazards
(UTQIAĠVIK, Alaska)—Stacy Bowen’s family has owned The Fur Shop for some 40 years. The cream-colored store in Utqiaġvik sits on the edge of the Arctic Ocean. Crammed floor to ceiling with animal skins, costume jewelry, fabric bolts, souvenir sweatshirts and fresh flowers flown in from the tropics, the eclectic shop is a commercial hub for…
Read MoreNome Nugget: “Nature follows its own break-up calendar.”
Interview with Gay Sheffield and others.
Read MoreTo list or not to list. The battle continues over the Pacific walrus.
Our Nome-based Marine Advisory agent Gay Sheffield stopped by the studios of KNOM-FM recently to discuss the federal government’s decision not to grant protections to the Pacific walrus under the Endangered Species Act. “Listing the walrus isn’t going to bring the sea ice back,” she said. Listen to the full interview here.
Read MoreBeaufort and Chukchi Seas have near record open water
Temperatures are dropping and the days are getting darker as Alaska moves into autumn. But despite the approaching winter chill, there’s lots of open water north of Alaska—a near record, in fact. That has potential implications for fall storms and coastal erosion in northwestern Alaska.
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