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Alaska Science Center

The mission of the Alaska Science Center 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

Studying Tsunami Sands to Better Understand the 1700 Cascadia Earthquake

Studying Tsunami Sands to Better Understand the 1700 Cascadia Earthquake

New Publication Synthesizes Climate Effects on Bears and their Interactions with Humans

New Publication Synthesizes Climate Effects on Bears and their Interactions with Humans

Celebrating Black History: Meet Ric Wilson, A Pioneer of Alaskan Geo-Mapping

Celebrating Black History: Meet Ric Wilson, A Pioneer of Alaskan Geo-Mapping

Publications

Stratigraphy, paleoflora, and tectonic setting of the Paleogene Sheep Creek volcanic field, central Alaska

In this paper, we provide new information on the stratigraphy and paleoflora of the Sheep Creek volcanic field in the Alaska Range that bolsters our understanding of a key interval in the tectonic, paleoclimate, and paleoenvironmental history of the northern Cordillera. Although the distribution and basic stratigraphy of these rocks have been previously reported, here we document the stratigraphic
Authors
Timothy White, David Sunderlin, Dwight Bradley

Assessment of undiscovered oil and gas resources of the North Chukchi Basin, outer continental shelf of the Chukchi and East Siberian Seas, Arctic Ocean, 2023

Using a geology-based assessment methodology, the U.S. Geological Survey estimated mean volumes of 1.8 billion barrels of oil and 119.9 trillion cubic feet of gas technically recoverable from undiscovered, conventional accumulations in Cretaceous and Cenozoic strata of the North Chukchi Basin.
Authors
David W. Houseknecht, Craig P. Markey, Tracey J. Mercier, Christopher J. Schenk, Christopher D. Connors, Jared T. Gooley, Palma J. Botterell, Rebecca A. Smith, William A. Rouse, Christopher P. Garrity

Does the extent of glacial cover across watersheds and discharge periods affect dietary resource use of nearshore fishes in the Northern Gulf of Alaska?

Northern high-latitude glaciers impact nearshore marine ecosystems through the discharge of cold and fresh waters, including nutrients and organic matter. Fishes are important integrators of ecosystem processes and hold key positions in the transfer of energy to higher trophic positions in such systems. This study used a natural gradient in space and time, including watershed glacial cover (0–60%)
Authors
Lindsey Stadler, Kristen Gorman, Vanessa R. von Biela, Andrew C. Seitz, Katrin Iken

Science

Ecosystems on the Edge: Landscape and Fire Ecology of Forests, Deserts, and Tundra

Climate changes and interacting disturbances such as wildfires, insect and disease outbreaks, and erosion and flooding can perturb and reorganize ecosystems.
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Ecosystems on the Edge: Landscape and Fire Ecology of Forests, Deserts, and Tundra

Climate changes and interacting disturbances such as wildfires, insect and disease outbreaks, and erosion and flooding can perturb and reorganize ecosystems.
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Alaska Resource Data File

The Alaska Resource Data File (ARDF) site provides descriptions of mines, prospects, and mineral occurrences for individual U.S. Geological Survey 1:250,000-scale quadrangles in Alaska.
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Alaska Resource Data File

The Alaska Resource Data File (ARDF) site provides descriptions of mines, prospects, and mineral occurrences for individual U.S. Geological Survey 1:250,000-scale quadrangles in Alaska.
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Alaska Mine Waste

Critical minerals are essential to the U.S. economy and national security, have a supply chain that is vulnerable to disruption, and serve an essential function in the manufacturing of many products. Often, critical minerals are found as co- or by-products in deposits mined for precious or base metals. The projects described here develop an interdisciplinary (geological, societal, ecological) and...
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Alaska Mine Waste

Critical minerals are essential to the U.S. economy and national security, have a supply chain that is vulnerable to disruption, and serve an essential function in the manufacturing of many products. Often, critical minerals are found as co- or by-products in deposits mined for precious or base metals. The projects described here develop an interdisciplinary (geological, societal, ecological) and...
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