Stories
In coastal Arctic Alaska people rely on sea ice as a platform for hunting, fishing and travel. Yet reliable forecasts of sea ice conditions and associated weather are not always readily available. ACCAP was asked by the National Weather Service to gather feedback from communities to guide future delivery of NWS seasonal to subseasonal sea ice information to rural Alaskans. In autumn 2023, ACCAP, the NWS and our partners at the Alaska Arctic Observatory and…
Avalanches are Alaska’s deadliest natural hazard. They affect about 30 percent of the state and regularly damage or destroy infrastructure and block transportation corridors. Despite the danger, Alaska lacks an avalanche warning system. ACCAP Deputy Director Nathan Kettle is coordinating two projects that lay the groundwork for a future warning program. The efforts are in partnership with the Alaska Department of Natural Resources Geological and Geophysical Surveys (DGGS). IARC’s Tom Ballinger is leading the first…
The Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy’s Rick Thoman and John Walsh contributed to the 18th Arctic Report Card released Dec. 12, 2023. The report card, produced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, documents how warming air, ocean and land affect people and ecosystems. According to Thoman the sections on salmon and working with local communities may be of particular interest to Alaskans. The report card models a crucial shift toward centering local…
Climate change will have far-reaching consequences to the people of Alaska, according to the fifth National Climate Assessment, a report from the U.S. government released earlier this month. ACCAP’s Sarah Trainor, Adelheid Herrmann and Danielle Meeker were among the authors of the Alaska chapter of the assessment, which goes beyond documented ecosystem changes to focus on societal implications of climate change. Climate change exacerbates disparities in access to healthcare, especially among Alaska Native and rural…
Rick Thoman and the ACCAP team recently reorganized the frequently visited graphics website page. Thoman’s Climate and weather graphics are used by a broad audience that includes the news media, students and community planners. Under the new organizational structure, there are now three graphic categories: Alaska Community andRegional Trends, Alaska-Wide Climate Trends, and Monthly and Seasonal Climate Analyses. Thoman continues to add new graphics and back fill graphics from the past so check out the…