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 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
Making the case for the Picuris orogeny: Evidence for a 1500 to 1400 Ma orogenic event in the southwestern United States
The early Mesoproterozoic (ca. 1400 Ma) is an enigmatic time in the tectonic evolution of southern Laurentia. Circa 1400 Ma granites within Laurentia and multiple other continents have distinctive geochemistry consistent with crustal extension or mantle upwelling. In the southwestern United States, these granites are commonly foliated and are...
Abbott, Lon D.; Hancock, Gregory S.; Daniel, Christopher G.; Jones, James V.; Andronicos, Christopher L.; Gray, Mary Beth Migration patterns of Western High Arctic (Grey-belly) Brant Branta bernicla
This study describes the seasonal migration patterns of Western High Arctic Brant (WHA, or Grey-belly Brent Geese), Branta bernicla, an admixed population that breeds in the Canadian High Arctic and winters along the Pacific coast of North America. Adult WHA Brant were captured in family groups on Melville Island (75°23’N, 110°50’W) in 2002...
Boyd, W. Sean; Ward, David H.; Kraege, Donald K.; Gerick, Alyssa A. Modern salt-marsh and tidal-flat foraminifera from Sitkinak and Simeonof Islands, southwestern Alaska
We describe the modern distribution of salt-marsh and tidal-flat foraminifera from Sitkinak Island (Trinity Islands) and Simeonof Island (Shumagin Islands), Alaska, to begin development of a dataset for later use in reconstructing relative sea-level changes caused by great earthquakes along the Alaska-Aleutian subduction zone. Dead foraminifera...
Kemp, Andrew C.; Engelhart, Simon E.; Culver, Stephen J.; Nelson, Alan R.; Briggs, Richard W.; Haeussler, Peter J. Phylogeography, post-glacial gene flow, and population history of North American goshawks (Accipeter gentilis)
Climate cycling during the Quaternary played a critical role in the diversification of avian lineages in North America, greatly influencing the genetic characteristics of contemporary populations. To test the hypothesis that North American Northern Goshawks (Accipitergentilis) were historically isolated within multiple Late Pleistocene refugia, we...
Bayard De Volo, Shelley; Reynolds, Richard T.; Sonsthagen, Sarah A.; Talbot, Sandra L.; Antolin, Michael F. Polar bear use of a persistent food subsidy: insights from non-invasive genetic sampling in Alaska
Remains of bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) harvested by Iñupiat whalers are deposited in bone piles along the coast of Alaska and have become persistent and reliable food sources for polar bears (Ursus maritimus). The importance of bone piles to individuals and the population, the patterns of use, and the number, sex, and age of bears...
Peacock, Elizabeth L.; Herreman, Jason Thermokarst lakes, drainage, and drained basins
Schroder, John F.; Grosse, Guido; Jones, Benjamin M.; Arp, C. Lake trout otolith chronologies as multidecadal indicators of high-latitude freshwater ecosystems
High-latitude ecosystems are among the most vulnerable to long-term climate change, yet continuous, multidecadal indicators by which to gauge effects on biology are scarce, especially in freshwater environments. To address this issue, dendrochronology (tree-ring analysis) techniques were applied to growth-increment widths in otoliths from lake...
Black, B.A.; von Biela, Vanessa R.; Zimmerman, Christian E.; Brown, Randy J. Temporal, spatial and ecological dynamics of speciation among amphi-Beringian small mammals
Quaternary climate cycles played an important role in promoting diversification across the Northern Hemisphere, although details of the mechanisms driving evolutionary change are still poorly resolved. In a comparative phylogeographical framework, we investigate temporal, spatial and ecological components of evolution within a suite of Holarctic...
Hope, Andrew G.; Takebayashi, Naoki; Galbreath, Kurt E.; Talbot, Sandra L.; Cook, Joseph A. Changes in size and trends of North American sea duck populations associated with North Pacific oceanic regime shifts
Broad-scale multi-species declines in populations of North American sea ducks for unknown reasons is cause for management concern. Oceanic regime shifts have been associated with rapid changes in ecosystem structure of the North Pacific and Bering Sea. However, relatively little is known about potential effects of these changes in oceanic...
Flint, Paul L. Terrestrial and marine trophic pathways support young-of-year growth in a nearshore Arctic fish
River discharge supplies nearshore communities with a terrestrial carbon source that is often reflected in invertebrate and fish consumers. Recent studies in the Beaufort Sea have documented widespread terrestrial carbon use among invertebrates, but only limited use among nearshore fish consumers. Here, we examine the carbon source and diet of...
von Biela, Vanessa R.; Zimmerman, Christian E.; Cohn, Brian R.; Welker, Jeffrey M. Thermokarst lakes, drainage, and drained basins
Thermokarst lakes and drained lake basins are widespread in Arctic and sub-Arctic permafrost lowlands with ice-rich sediments. Thermokarst lake formation is a dominant mode of permafrost degradation and is linked to surface disturbance, subsequent melting of ground ice, surface subsidence, water impoundment, and positive feedbacks between lake...
Shroder, John F.; Grosse, Guido; Jones, Benjamin M.; Arp, Christopher D. New insights into the diets of harbor seals in the Salish Sea revealed by quantitative fatty acid signature analysis
Harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) are an abundant predator along the west coast of North America, and there is considerable interest in their diet composition, especially in regard to predation on valued fish stocks. Available information on harbor seal diets, primarily derived from scat analysis, suggests that adult salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.),...
Bromaghin, Jeffrey F.; Lance, Monique M.; Elliott, Elizabeth W.; Jeffries, Steven J.; Acevedo-Gutiérrez, Alejandro; Kennish, John M.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!
Alaska Coastal Marsh
Coastal Marsh along Cook Inlet across from Anchorage Alaska.
Geologic Studies on Sitkinak Island, Alaska
Base camp, Sitkinak Island.
Peulik Volcano
Camera is located at Whale Mountain, showing a flank of Peulik, Becharof Lake, the Gas Rocks, and Chiginagak in the distance. Current image interval is 60 minutes. This camera lens is often covered by snow and ice.
Unalakleet video camera 2 snapshot
Two video cameras overlook the coast from atop a windmill tower in Unalakleet, Alaska where they look westward over Norton Sound. Every half hour during daylight hours, the cameras collect snapshots and video for 10 minutes. Today’s most recent image from camera 2 is shown here. Please note that it takes 10 minutes for the images to be posted, once they are collected by
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Remote Sensing of the Arctic Coast of Alaska Using Airborne Lidar Data
Fact sheet: "Remote Sensing of the Arctic Coast of Alaska Using Airborne Lidar Data"
Movements and Habitat Use of White-fronted Geese
Flint, P. L. and B. W. Meixell. 2017. Movements and habitat use of White-fronted geese during the remigial molt in Arctic Alaska, USA. Waterbirds 40(3):272-281. doi:10.1675/063.040.0308
Redoubt - CI
Camera installation and maintenance are courtesy of Hilcorp. The camera is located on Platform Anna, approximately 38 miles SE of Mt. Spurr; it was originally pointed at Mt. Spurr. This camera is NE of Redoubt, and has been repositioned (mid-March, 2012) to show both Redoubt (right) and Iliamna (left) in its view.
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Unalakleet video camera 1 time exposure
Two video cameras overlook the coast from atop a windmill tower in Unalakleet, Alaska where they look westward over Norton Sound. Every half hour during daylight hours, the cameras collect snapshots and video for 10 minutes. Today’s most recent time-exposure (timex) image from camera 1 is shown here. Please note that it takes 10 minutes for the images to be posted, once
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Dall Sheep Habitat, Denali National Park, Alaska
Ed Pfeifer of the USGS Southwest Geographic Science Team recording field notes in alpine tundra during a field study of Dall sheep habitat in Denali National Park, Alaska, on July 29, 2009
Redoubt - DFR
Camera is co-located with seismic station DFR, approximately 7.6 miles (12.2 km) NE of Redoubt. Read more details about Redoubt volcano.
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
