Unified Interior Regions
Region 11: Alaska
Alaska Science Center
4210 University Drive
Anchorage, AK 99508
Phone: (907) 786-7000
Volcano Science Center
4230 University Drive
Anchorage, AK 99508
Phone: (907) 786-7497
Climate Adaptation Science Center
4230 University Drive
Anchorage, AK 99508
Phone: 907-301-7830
Regions L2 Landing Page Tabs
USGS in Alaska engages approximately 400 scientists and support staff working across 3 major centers with a combined annual science budget of about $65 million. In just the last 5 years, USGS in Alaska has produced scientific benefits resulting from over 1000 publications and about 250 Technical Reports.
Alaska Technical Data Unit - Field Records Archives
This project is designed to collect, inventory, preserve, and make available the records of USGS geologic and minerals work in Alaska. Materials are organized in two broad categories of records: (1) Project History files, which contain field notes, maps, and fossil reports; and (2) Geologic Subject files, containing unpublished materials, correspondence, and the Economic Minerals files. Access...
Media/Outreach at the Alaska Science Center
If you have questions about upcoming events, research, or media inquiries regarding the USGS Alaska Science Center please contact Yvette Gillies, Paul Laustsen or Steven Sobieszczyk.
Wind - Habitat Dynamics
Several species of shorebird that nest in the Arctic make remarkable non-stop trans-oceanic migrations to non-breeding areas in the southern hemisphere. Scientists at the USGS Alaska Science Center have discovered many fascinating and previously unknown details about these long-distance migrations by instrumenting individual birds with Argos satellite transmitters (see ASC Shorebird Research...
Vegetation Phenology - Habitat Dynamics
Vegetation Phenology
Sea Ice - Habitat Dynamics
Sea Ice Present, Future and Ice Loss and Wildlife
Fish and Aquatic Ecology
Fish and aquatic habitats in Alaska support important commercial, sport, and subsistence fisheries and provide forage fish that support wildlife populations. The USGS Alaska Science Center conducts interdisciplinary research to inform local, state, federal, and international policy makers regarding conservation of fish, aquatic species, and their habitats. We work collaboratively with...
Research Conducted in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Coastal Plain (1002 Area)
Selected Bibliography of Research Involving USGS and Conducted in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) Coastal Plain (1002 Area)
Compiled as of 12/17/2018
Research Conducted in the National Petroleum Reserve – Alaska (NPRA)
Selected Bibliography of Research Involving USGS and Conducted in the National Petroleum Reserve – Alaska (NPR-A)
Compiled as of 12/17/2018
Broad-scale Research Conducted Across the 1002 Area and the NPR-A of Alaska
Selected Bibliography of Broad-scale Research Involving USGS and Conducted Across the 1002 Area and the NPR-A of Alaska
Compiled as of 12/17/2018
National Assessment of Coastal Vulnerability to Sea Level Rise
The original national coastal vulnerability index (CVI) assessment was motivated by expected accelerated sea-level rise (SLR) and the uncertainty in the response of the coastline to SLR. This research was conducted between 1999 and 2001, and is currently being updated using new data sources and methodology. This original study was part of the ...
Alaska Science Center Previous Seminars
The USGS Alaska Science Center has a monthly seminar series that runs from October through May. This series highlights the multiple research programs that are taking place across all disciplines at the center.
Listed below are previous seminars given.
Long-Term Coastal Change
Goals of this task include developing and improving coastal-change assessments and supporting long-term planning and decision making to ensure sustainable coastal economies, infrastructure, and ecosystems.
USGS research activities relevant to Alaska have yielded more than 9400 historical publications. This page features some of the most recent newsworthy research findings.
Search USGS publications for Alaska
Arctic Science for Decision Maker
2020 USGS Alaska Annual Science Report
Dietary fat concentrations influence fatty acid assimilation patterns in Atlantic pollock (Pollachius virens)
A key aspect in the use of fatty acids (FA) to estimate predator diets using Quantitative FA Signature Analysis (QFASA) is the ability to account for FA assimilation through the use of calibration coefficients (CC). Here, we tested the assumption that CC are independent of dietary fat concentrations by feeding Atlantic pollock (Pollachius virens)...
Budge, Suzanne M.; Townsend, Katherine; Lall, Santosh P; Bromaghin, Jeffrey F. Annual adult survival drives trends in Arctic-breeding shorebirds but knowledge gaps in other vital rates remain
Conservation status and management priorities are often informed by population trends. Trend estimates can be derived from population surveys or models, but both methods are associated with sources of uncertainty. Many Arctic-breeding shorebirds are thought to be declining based on migration and/or overwintering population surveys, but data are...
Weiser, Emily L.; Lanctot, Richard B.; Brown, Stephen C.; Gates, H. River; Bety, Joel; Boldenow, Megan L.; Brook, Rodney W.; Brown, Glen S.; English, Willow B.; Flemming, Scott A.; Franks, Samantha E.; Gilchrist, H. Grant; Giroux, Marie-Andree; Johnson, Andrew; Kendall, Steve; Kennedy, Lisa V.; Koloski, Laura; Kwon, Eunbi; Lamarre, Jean-Francois; Lank, David B.; Latty, Christopher J.; Lecomte, Nicolas; Liebezeit, Joseph R.; McGuire, Rebecca L; McKinnon, Laura; Nol, Erica; Payer, David C.; Perz, Johanna; Rausch, Jennie; Robards, Martin D.; Saalfeld, Sarah T.; Senner, Nathan R.; Smith, Paul A.; Soloviev, Mikhail; Solovyeva, Diana V; Ward, David H.; Woodard, Paul F.; Sandercock, Brett K.
Selected geologic maps of the Kodiak batholith and other Paleocene intrusive rocks, Kodiak Island, Alaska
Kodiak Island in southern Alaska is one of the premier examples globally for the study of forearc magmatism. This location contains two Paleocene intrusive belts that formed due to the subduction of a migrating spreading ridge and slab-window: the Kodiak batholith and the trenchward magmatic belt. These magmatic rocks are part of the Sanak-Baranof...
Farris, David W.; Haeussler, Peter J. Geochronologic and Hf-isotope framework of Proterozoic rocks from central New Mexico, USA: Formation of the Mazatzal crustal province in an extended continental margin arc
The growth of southern Laurentia has been attributed to the accretion of juvenile arc terranes during the successive 1.74-1.68 Ga Yavapai and 1.65-1.60 Ga Mazatzal orogenies. However, in light of the increasing importance of the ca. 1.49-1.40 Ga Mesoproterozoic Picuris orogeny, the tectonic setting in which the Mazatzal crustal province and its...
Holland, Mark E.; Grambling, Tyler A.; Karlstrom, Karl E.; Jones, James V.; Nagotko, Kimberly N.; Daniel, Christopher G. Submarine landslide kinematics derived from high-resolution imaging in Port Valdez, Alaska
Submarine landslides caused by strong ground shaking during the M9.2 1964 Great Alaska earthquake generated a tsunami that destroyed much of the old town of Valdez, Alaska, and was responsible for 32 deaths at that location. We explore structural details of the 1964 landslide deposit, as well as landslide deposits from earlier events, in order to...
Roland, Emily; Haeussler, Peter; Parsons, Thomas E.; Hart, Patrick E. Observations on the structure of Surtsey
Comparison of investigations of the 1979 and 2017 cored boreholes coupled with continued observations of the dynamic surface of Surtsey has modified our concepts of the subsurface structure of the volcano. A geometrical analysis of the 2017 vertical and inclined cores indicates that near-surface layering dips westerly, indicating that the...
Moore, James G.; Jackson, Marie D. Source model for Sabancaya volcano constrained by DInSAR and GNSS surface deformation observation
Sabancaya is the most active volcano of the Ampato-Sabancaya Volcanic Complex (ASVC) in southern Perú and has been erupting since 2016. The analysis of ascending and descending Sentinel-1 orbits (DInSAR) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) datasets from 2014 to 2019 imaged a radially symmetric inflating area, uplifting at a rate of 35 to...
Boixart, Gregorio; Cruz, Luis; Miranda, Rafael; Euillades, Pablo; Euillades, Leonardo; Battaglia, Maurizio U-Pb Zircon ages from bedrock samples collected in the Tanacross D-1, and parts of the D-2, C-1, and C-2 quadrangles, Alaska
This Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys (DGGS) Preliminary Interpretive Report presents U-Pb ages of zircons from 14 sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous samples collected during 2017 and 2018 field investigations in the northeastern Tanacross Quadrangle, Alaska. The DGGS Northeast Tanacross project is a part of multi-year...
Wypych, Alicja; Jones, James V.; O'Sullivan, Paul B. Erratum: Seismic survey design and effects on maternal polar bear dens
Since the publication of this manuscript, readers have noted two errors in our analysis. The first is that we inadvertently stated that the forward looking infrared (FLIR) survey simulations only represented a single FLIR survey. In reality, the analysis assumed two independent FLIR surveys occurred prior to simulated seismic activity occurring...
Wilson, Ryan R.; Durner, George M. Deglacierization of a marginal basin and implications for outburst floods, Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska
Suicide Basin is a partly glacierized marginal basin of Mendenhall Glacier, Alaska, that has released glacier lake outburst floods (GLOFs) annually since 2011. The floods cause inundation and erosion in the Mendenhall Valley, impacting homes and other infrastructure. Here, we utilize in-situ and remote sensing data to assess the recent...
Kienholz, Christian; Pierce, Jamie; Hood, Eran; Amundson, Jason M.; Wolken, Gabriel; Jacobs, Aaron; Hart, Skye; Wikstrom-Jones, Katreen; Abdel-Fattah, Dina; Johnson, Crane; Conaway, Jeffrey S. Evidence for large Holocene earthquakes along the Denali fault in southwest Yukon, Canada
The Yukon–Alaska Highway corridor in southern Yukon is subject to geohazards ranging from landslides to floods and earthquakes on faults in the St. Elias Mountains and Shakwak Valley. Here we discuss the late Holocene seismic history of the Denali fault, located at the eastern front of the St. Elias Mountains and one of only a few known...
Blais-Stevens, Andrée; Clague, J.J.; Brahney, J.; Lipovsky, P.; Haeussler, Peter; Menounos, B.
Evaluation of the analytical methods used to determine the elemental concentrations found in the stream geochemical dataset compiled for Alaska
A recent U.S. Geological Survey data compilation of stream-sediment geochemistry for Alaska contains decades of analyses collected under numerous Federal and State programs. The compiled data were determined by various analytical methods. Some samples were reanalyzed by a different analytical method than the original, resulting in some elements...
Wang, Bronwen; Ellefsen, Karl J.; Granitto, Matthew; Kelley, Karen D.; Karl, Susan M.; Case, George N.D.; Kreiner, Douglas C.; Amundson, Courtney L.Browse a selection of videos, audio clips, images, and more from a wide range of science topics covered by USGS!
"Science for a Changing World" - watch the short film here!
Documentary on walruses here!
Watch the first-ever footage of a polar bear on Arctic sea ice!
Join USGS geologists as they collect lava samples from Kilauea Volcano.
Watch researchers in the Arctic!
Shaking of Atwood Building, Mw 7.0 November 30, 2018, Anchorage quake
This video presents a visualization of how the Atwood Building in Anchorage, Alaska, shook during the Mw 7.0 November 30, 2018, Anchorage, Alaska, earthquake. The building was instrumented by the U.S. Geological Survey to obtain data to study its behavior and performance during strong shaking. Such data are useful in making decisions about improving the performance of the
Shaking of Frontier Building, M7.0 November 30, 2018, Anchorage Quake
This video presents a visualization of how the Frontier Building in Anchorage, Alaska, shook during the moment magnitude (Mw) 7.0 November 30, 2018, Anchorage, Alaska, earthquake. The building was instrumented by U.S. Geological Survey to obtain data to study its behavior and performance during strong shaking. Such data are useful in making decisions about improving the
Endicott Island, Alaska
Endicott Island, and artificial island built in 1987 by Alaska Interstate Construction and is used by BP and Hilcorp Alaska for petroleum production.
Tanana River at Big Delta bridge
Tanana River at Big Delta bridge
Tanana River at Big Delta sonar and debris on a bridge
Tanana River at Big Delta sonar and debris on a bridge
Satellite image of Taku Glacier in October 1, 2018
Satellite image of Taku Glacier in October 1, 2018. The Norris Glacier can be seen on the lower left hand corner and the Hole-in-the-Wall Glacier in the upper center portion of the image. Citation: McNeil, C. J., and Baker, E. H., 2019, Geodetic data for Juneau Icefield Glaciers: orthophotos, digital elevation models, and glacier boundaries (ver 1.0, August, 2019): U.S.
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Peace at dusk
USGS oceanographer Shawn Harrison stands on the coastal bluff of Barter Island, Alaska at sunset. Shawn and his fellow researchers are studying how the highly erosive bluff changes under the varied conditions experienced by this stretch of coastline. The knowledge gained will be used to improve computer-derived simulations of shoreline change, that in turn communities can
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View of Unalakleet from the air
Unalakleet village on the low-lying barrier spit at the inlet of the Unalakleet River and Norton Sound, Alaska.
Twentymile River sonar on a bridge
Twentymile River sonar on a bridge
Scientific crew and drone operators
Scientific crew and drone operators. Left to right: Richard Kolyer (NASA), Jack McFarland (USGS), Kristen Manies (USGS), and Jonas Jonsson (NASA)
Knik River sonar on a bridge
Knik River sonar on a bridge
Glaucous-winged Gull chick on Bogoslof Island in August 2018
A Glaucous-winged Gull on the rock floor of the Bogoslof Volcano a year after it explosively erupted.
Browse a collection of stories about prominent USGS scientists and projects in Alaska news.
The latest edition of the National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD 2011) for Alaska is now publicly available.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska Melting glaciers are not just impacting sea level, they are also affecting the flow of organic carbon to the world’s oceans, according to new research that provides the first ever global-scale estimates for the storage and release of organic carbon from glaciers.
The U.S. Geological Survey is pleased to announce the selection of Dr. Stephen Hickman to serve as the new director of the USGS Earthquake Science Center, headquartered in Menlo Park, California.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — In a new polar bear study published today, scientists from around the Arctic have shown that recent generations of polar bears are moving towards areas with more persistent year-round sea ice.
Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell announced today that Interior’s Alaska Climate Science Center is awarding more than $500,000 to universities and other partners for research to guide managers of parks, refuges and other cultural and natural resources in planning how to help species and ecosystems adapt to climate change.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — A polar bear capture and release-based research program had no adverse long-term effects on feeding behavior, body condition, and reproduction, according to a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey.
As part of the continued US Topo maps revision and improvement cycle, the USGS will be including mountain bike trails to upcoming quadrangles on a state-aligned basis.
In a new polar bear study published today, scientists from the United States and Canada found that during the first decade of the 21st century, the number of polar bears in the southern Beaufort Sea experienced a sharp decline of approximately 40 percent.
Scientists examined storm flooding events in the Bering Sea region of western Alaska from 1913 to 2011 and found that the largest events occurred in autumn and were associated with high tides and strong southwest winds.
Scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey have developed a new mapping tool, the Pedestrian Evacuation Analyst, for use by researchers and emergency managers to estimate how long it would take for someone to travel on foot out of a tsunami-hazard zone.
The Pacific walrus population roughly halved between 1981 and 1999, the last year for which demographic data are available. A recent study by scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey quantifies this historic population decline.
As of Wednesday afternoon, August 13, all power issues were resolved and the U.S. Geological Survey Hawaiian Volcano Observatory resumed monitoring volcanoes and earthquakes.
Stay up-to-date with what is happening in the Alaska Region by checking out our different social media accounts. You can also contact Alaska Regional Office staff or Center Directors for more information.
Contacts
Locations
Alaska Science Center
Phone: (907) 786-7000
Fax: (907) 786-7020
Alaska Climate Adaptation Science Center
USGS Volcano Science Center
Phone: 360-993-8900
Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO)
http://www.avo.alaska.edu/contact.php
Phone: 907-786-7497
USGS California Volcano Observatory (CalVO package delivery)
askcalvo@usgs.gov
Phone: 650-329-5083
USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory (CVO)
vhpweb@usgs.gov
Phone: 360-993-8900
Fax: 360-993-8980
Yellowstone Volcano Observatory (YVO)
yvowebteam@usgs.gov
Phone: 360-993-8906
Anchorage Field Office - Water
Phone: 907-786-7000
Fairbanks Field Office - Water
Phone: 907-479-5645
Juneau Field Office - Water
Phone: 907-586-7216
