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Alaska Science Center

The mission of the Alaska Science Center (ASC) is to provide objective and timely data, information, and research findings about the earth and its flora and fauna to Federal, State, and local resource managers and the public to support sound decisions regarding natural resources, natural hazards, and ecosystems in Alaska and circumpolar regions. We have offices in Anchorage, Juneau, and Fairbanks.

News

USGS Scientist and National Weather Service and University of Alaska Southeast colleagues receive Alaska State Legislature Recognition for Response to Juneau’s annual Suicide Basin Outburst Floods

USGS Scientist and National Weather Service and University of Alaska Southeast colleagues receive Alaska State Legislature Recognition for Response to Juneau’s annual Suicide Basin Outburst Floods

What a Super El Niño could mean for Alaska’s seabirds, salmon, and seas

What a Super El Niño could mean for Alaska’s seabirds, salmon, and seas

EcoNews - Vol. 7 | Issue 2

EcoNews - Vol. 7 | Issue 2

Publications

Integrating detrital magnetite geochemistry and (U-Th)/He chronometry as a sediment provenance tool in geologic and metallogenic terranes Integrating detrital magnetite geochemistry and (U-Th)/He chronometry as a sediment provenance tool in geologic and metallogenic terranes

Magnetite is ubiquitous in porphyry Cu systems and in sediment sourcing both barren and mineralized regions, with potential as an indicator mineral in concealed and coarsely-mapped terranes. We develop and test a workflow for integrated geochemistry and (U–Th)/He (He) dating for inferring detrital magnetite (DMt) provenance in these settings. The ca. 70 Ma Taurus porphyry Cu–Mo(–Au)...
Authors
Robert Gregory McDermott, Douglas C. Kreiner, James V. Jones, Sean P. Regan, James R. Metcalf, Rebecca M. Flowers

Testing the efficacy of industrial mitigation measures for caribou in the Arctic Testing the efficacy of industrial mitigation measures for caribou in the Arctic

1. Mitigation measures are commonly employed to reduce the negative effects of industrial development on wildlife but are not often evaluated for their efficacy. For example, oil fields in the Arctic typically incorporate design features intended to increase permeability for migratory, barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus), even though there is limited empirical evidence of the...
Authors
Heather E. Johnson, John P. Severson

Apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronology from Marsh Creek anticline reconciles Cenozoic and Holocene strain patterns and elucidates the Cenozoic canning displacement zone of Arctic Alaska Apatite (U-Th)/He thermochronology from Marsh Creek anticline reconciles Cenozoic and Holocene strain patterns and elucidates the Cenozoic canning displacement zone of Arctic Alaska

The northeastern Brooks Range is a vast fold-thrust belt that records the northernmost expression of Cenozoic deformation in Alaska, likely with complex dynamic linkages to distant tectonic elements. The principal focus of this manuscript is the Marsh Creek anticline (MCA), which is a large and recently active structure within the broader northeastern Brooks Range. The MCA is a complex...
Authors
William H. Craddock, Julie C Fosdick, Christopher D. Connors, Richard O. Lease, David W. Houseknecht, Megan Mueller, Andrew R C Kylander-Clark

Science

Lemon Creek Glacier

Lemon Creek Glacier is located in southeast Alaska, at the southernmost tip of the Juneau Icefield. Glacier observations began at this site in 1953 and continue through present, serving as a central site between glaciers in the contiguous USA and those in mainland Alaska.
Lemon Creek Glacier

Lemon Creek Glacier

Lemon Creek Glacier is located in southeast Alaska, at the southernmost tip of the Juneau Icefield. Glacier observations began at this site in 1953 and continue through present, serving as a central site between glaciers in the contiguous USA and those in mainland Alaska.
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Glaciers and Landscape Change

Mountain glaciers are dynamic reservoirs of frozen water, deeply interconnected with their surrounding ecosystems. Glacier change in North America has major societal impacts, including to water resources, natural hazard risk, tourism disruption, fisheries, and global sea level change. Understanding and quantifying precise connections between changing glaciers, the surrounding landscape and climate...
Glaciers and Landscape Change

Glaciers and Landscape Change

Mountain glaciers are dynamic reservoirs of frozen water, deeply interconnected with their surrounding ecosystems. Glacier change in North America has major societal impacts, including to water resources, natural hazard risk, tourism disruption, fisheries, and global sea level change. Understanding and quantifying precise connections between changing glaciers, the surrounding landscape and climate...
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Terrestrial Mammal Research

Understanding the population dynamics, predator/prey relationships and habitat ecology of terrestrial mammals, such as caribou and muskoxen, is critical for the management of these species and their habitats in Alaska.
Terrestrial Mammal Research

Terrestrial Mammal Research

Understanding the population dynamics, predator/prey relationships and habitat ecology of terrestrial mammals, such as caribou and muskoxen, is critical for the management of these species and their habitats in Alaska.
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Multimedia

Two people wearing orange life jackets facing away from the camera.
Biologists conducting marine bird and mammal surveys in Kachemak Bay, Alaska
Biologists conducting marine bird and mammal surveys in Kachemak Bay, Alaska
A person standing behind a pale orange river. A person standing behind a pale orange river.
Rusting Rivers B-Roll: Igning River, Alaska
Faint orange creek running through green brush. Faint orange creek running through green brush.
Rusting Rivers B-Roll: Anatok Creek, Alaska
pale orange river flowing into a clear blue river. pale orange river flowing into a clear blue river.
Rusting Rivers: Heavy Metals and Visible Color Changes
Bathymetric map of Ozette Lake in Washington State Bathymetric map of Ozette Lake in Washington State
Ozette Lake Paleoseismology (AD)
Person in a blue jacket working at a weather station in the snow with mountains in the background
Installing a camera at the Mt. Foraker weather station in Denali National Park
Installing a camera at the Mt. Foraker weather station in Denali National Park
Person in blue jacket at a weather station on snow with the sunshine, mountains, and a red helicopter in the background
Camera installation at the Mt. Foraker weather station in Denali National Park
Camera installation at the Mt. Foraker weather station in Denali National Park
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