Series: Alaska Park Science - Volume 12 Issue 2: Climate Change in Alaska's National Parks

In this issue: * Status and Trends of Alaska National Park Glaciers * Tracking Glacial Landscapes: High School Science Gets Real * Climate Change Scenario Planning Lessons from Alaska

• Article 1: Download Alaska Park Science: Volume 12, Issue 2

  Download a print-friendly copy of Volume 12, Issue 2 of Alaska Park Science. Read more

• Article 2: Climate Change in Alaska’s National Parks

  

  Five years ago, during International Polar Year, we devoted an entire issue of Alaska Park Science to evidence of climate change in Alaska’s national parks (NPS 2007). Although that became one of our most popular and awardwinning issues, the environment for discussing climate change was mixed when we started work. . . Read more

• Article 3: Monitoring the Vital Signs of Alaska’s National Parks

  

  Several years of studying and monitoring allows scientists to analyze trends in data to explore the health of parks in Alaska Read more

• Article 4: Using Integrated Ecosystem Modeling to Understand Climate Change

  

  By any measure, climate change promises to bring major impacts to parks and preserves in the Alaska region. We know with great certainty that temperatures will continue to increase in coming decades, and warming will undoubtedly be accompanied by some combination of altered precipitation regimes, changes in seasonal weather patterns, and shifting extremes. Read more

• Article 5: Status and Trends of Alaska National Park Glaciers

  

  Most visitors to Alaska’s National Parks are by now familiar with the fact that the state’s many glaciers are changing. Many glaciers are shrinking, and “retreat” of the glacier terminus is usually the most obvious manifestation of that change. But while some glaciers (like the Yahtse Glacier in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Figure 2) have experienced dramatic retreat over the last century or so, others appear surprisingly stable. Read more

• Denali National Park & Preserve

  Article 6: Effects of Changing Climate on the Kahiltna Glacier

  

  The Kahiltna Glacier in Denali National Park and Preserve is best known to mountain climbers as a starting point when summiting Mt. McKinley, the highest peak in North America. Visitors on flightseeing tours are fascinated by its classic moraine stripes and dramatic icefalls. To scientists, however, the Kahiltna Glacier represents a prime opportunity to examine the effects of a warming climate on Alaska glaciers. Read more

• Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve

  Article 7: Tracking Glacial Landscapes: High School Science Gets Real

  

  For four summers, between 2008 and 2011, the Alaska Summer Research Academy (ASRA) at University Alaska Fairbanks and the Design Discover Research (DDR) program at University Alaska Southeast provided authentic field experiences in Glacier Bay National Park in northern Southeast Alaska for homegrown high school students. Read more

• Article 8: Permafrost Landforms as Indicators of Climate Change in Parks Across the Arctic

  

  Permafrost, ground so cold that it stays frozen for multiple years, develops certain landforms when it thaws, and thereby provides a way for scientists to recognize and monitor our changing climate. Read more

• Bering Land Bridge National Preserve

  Article 9: Beringia: Lost World of the Ice Age

  

  From little beetles to massive wooly mammoths, many clues remain for scientists to understand the ways that the Bering Land Bridge influenced all living organisms in the area we call Beringia - both past and present! Read more

• Article 10: Glacier-fed Rivers and Climate Change in Alaska Parks

  

  Not only are most glaciers shrinking, the rate at which they are changing has accelerated over the last 2-3 decades. Over the last century, mid-latitude and arctic glaciers have generally been shrinking, while some in marginal environments have disappeared. This can have a significant impact on the species that live in glacier-fed rivers. Read more

• Cape Krusenstern National Monument

  Article 11: Observations of Changing Conditions in Northwest Alaska and Impacts on Subsistence Fishing Practices

  

  The global warming trend of the past century is amplified at high latitudes. Global climate change and the regional intensity of change in the Arctic have significant implications for the remote, indigenous communities of the North, who are closely tied to their surrounding environment. Residents of the Arctic recognize that regional climate has changed within living memory. Read more

• Denali National Park & Preserve

  Article 12: Denali Repeat Photography Project Reveals Dramatic Changes

  

  Discover how repeat photographs help scientists study - and share - the effects of a changing climate on the subarctic landscape of Denali National Park and Preserve. Read more

• Article 13: Predicting the Effects of Climate Change on Ecosystems and Wildlife Habitat in Northwest Alaska

  

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• Article 14: Climate Change Scenario Planning Lessons from Alaska

  

  Scenario planning is a tool that enables us to test our assumptions about the future. Scenarios are not forecasts or predictions about the future, but are plausible hypotheses of what could happen. Read more

• Article 15: Influence of Climate Change on Geohazards in Alaskan Parks

  

  Alaska’s parks are dynamic and are undergoing constant geomorphic change as glaciers and streams erode and cliffs collapse. Based on climate projec-tions, some permafrost in Alaska will thaw, and many glaciers will thin and retreat, over the remainder of this century, uncovering potentially unstable valley walls. Both permafrost thaw and glacier thinning will contribute to an increase in the incidence of landslides. Read more

• Article 16: The Long-Term Threats from Climate Change to Rural Alaskan Communities

  

  The traditional way of life in much of rural Alaska is at risk. Alaska Native and long-term non-Native villagers are undergoing a series of challenges related both to climate change and to deteriorating economic circumstances. Read more

• Article 17: NPS Alaska Planning and Designs for the Future with Climate Change

  

  Alaska’s national parks face new and unexpected planning, design, and maintenance challenges as we enter a new era of climate change. It behooves the NPS to pay attention to these changes and plan and act accordingly Read more

• Article 18: Telling the Stories of Climate Change

  

  The public must be made aware of the challenges facing the National Park System and urged and empowered to take action to preserve and protect these resources as part of their enduring responsibility as citizens.” Creating compelling outreach materials is one of the best ways to accomplish this task. Read more