Alaska | Ice Stories: Dispatches From Polar Scientists

Ptarmigan

By Amy Breen · August 19, 2008 ·

TOOLIK FIELD STATION, ALASKA-- We often encounter ptarmigan hidden among the lichen-covered rock and tundra plants at Toolik Lake. Ptarmigan live year round in the Arctic. They are well camouflaged in both the winter and summer seasons... {Read More »}

Barrow, Alaska: US gateway to arctic science

By Kevin Fall · August 11, 2008 ·

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BARROW, ALASKA-- Barrow, Alaska, is the northernmost city in the Americas, and the US gateway for scientific exploration in the arctic. Getting supplies in and out is just a little bit tough in a place where winter temperatures can reach -50F... {Read More »}

North to the Future

By Phil McGillivary · August 11, 2008 ·

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BARROW, ALASKA-- "North to the Future" is Alaska's State Motto. It seems particularly appropriate now with the changes taking place in the north. You fly in to Barrow first via a stop in Fairbanks, and then Dead Horse... {Read More »}

Digging Soil Pits

By Amy Breen · August 8, 2008 ·

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TOOLIK FIELD STATION, ALASKA– The northern foothills of the Brooks Range, including Toolik Lake, received nearly 15 cm of rain over the past several months. In Fairbanks, the rivers are at levels not observed since 1967. The tundra is fully saturated... {Read More »}

Bringing It All Back Home

By Ken Tape · August 7, 2008 ·

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NOATAK VILLAGE, BROOKS RANGE, ALASKA-- Our wildlife list so far includes moose, grizzly bear, musk oxen, dall sheep, rough-legged hawk, peregrine falcon, and a whole bunch of smaller birds and rodents... {Read More »}

Musk Oxen

By Amy Breen · August 6, 2008 ·

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TOOLIK FIELD STATION, ALASKA– Last week, we encountered a herd of musk oxen rambling on the tundra... {Read More »}

In the Footsteps of Philip Smith

By Ken Tape · August 4, 2008 ·

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NOATAK RIVER, BROOKS RANGE, ALASKA-- Yesterday we floated through Noatak Canyon, but not before stopping on several occasions to relocate and rephotograph old Philip Smith photos. I added these excursions partly out of curiosity, but partly to extend the record of vegetation... {Read More »}

And Miles to Go Before I Sleep

By Ken Tape · July 31, 2008 ·

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NOATAK RIVER, BROOKS RANGE, ALASKA-- Long, hot days on the river. We finished the sampling a couple days ago, and yesterday boated the remainder of the Nimiuktuk River, eventually reaching the confluence with the Noatak River. With our precious science bounty aboard... {Read More »}

Mysterious Ground Ice Feature

By Amy Breen · July 30, 2008 ·

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TOOLIK FIELD STATION, ALASKA– Earlier this summer, my friends and I encountered a curious ice feature north of Toolik Lake near the Kuparuk River. Since the ice feature occurs at a familiar site, we knew it was newly exposed ice. So, we set out to learn just what this feature is and how it formed... {Read More »}

Ideas Crystallize

By Ken Tape · July 28, 2008 ·

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NIMIUKTUK RIVER SANDBAR, BROOKS RANGE, ALASKA-- Another solid day of sampling and mosquitoes. We are sampling areas documented in repeated photographs over time that show both expanding shrub patches and stagnant shrub patches... {Read More »}

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