Scientists

by Channel 2 News staff Wednesday, April 7, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- The Alaska Volcano Observatory says the rate of shallow small earthquakes at Mount Redoubt has decreased greatly over the past few days. On Monday an increase in activity caused the AVO to raise the volcano's alert level to yellow. Scientists say they plan to fly by the volcano later this week if the weather improves. Last year 19 significant eruptions over several weeks sent ash plumes as high as 65,000 feet.

New research suggests there may be a simple, inexpensive way for women who have survived breast cancer to reduce their odds of getting it again -- and it's probably in your medicine cabinet right now. Surviving breast cancer: You go through the diagnosis, surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. "You think when you're done you're just going to be so happy and excited and celebrate. And then there's usually this sort of crash when you're done because 'Now what?' You know there's this risk of it coming back," said Laura Nikolaides with the National Breast Cancer Coalition.

Shell is teaming up with the North Slope Borough for a multi-million dollar study of the Arctic ecosystem. It's a significant investment, which could produce important new information about ocean currents and wildlife in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas. Some people have reservations about an oil company funding research, especially research in an area where that oil company hopes to drill, but Shell says this new partnership understands and addresses many of those concerns. “There is never enough science, in my opinion, to make the best decisions that we can,” said the borough’s mayor, Edward Itta.

by The Associated Press Saturday, January 16, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Marine scientists, fisheries experts and oceanographers from around the world will gather Monday in Anchorage. The 2010 Alaska Marine Science Symposium starts at 1:30 p.m. at the Captain Cook Hotel. The program includes about 75 15-minute presentations with topics ranging from plankton to polar bears. The program is organized by regions. Gulf of Alaska topics will be featured Monday and Tuesday.

The public comment period on a proposal to change groundfish fisheries in order to help Steller sea lions has been extended. The National Marine Fisheries Service has decided to extend the comment period to Sept. 3 for the draft biological opinion for groundfish which was released earlier this month.  The opinion proposes changes to current management practices for groundfish in the Aleutian Islands, in areas where scientists say Steller sea lions are competing too heavily with fishermen for food.

A combination of pilot report, web cam images and infrasound data suggested that the Aleutian Island Cleveland Volcano erupted in a short but spectacular fashion on Tuesday.  The stratovolcano about 940 miles southwest of Anchorage erupted around 2:05 p.m., and a pilot reported the ash cloud to have reached around 35,000 feet, according to a report issued by the Alaska Volcano Observatory.  Infrasound data, or lower-frequency sound often...

Science writer Ned Rozell has an enviable job. He writes a weekly column for the University of Alaska's Geophysical Institute about all thing nature, science, history and the north. In the 15-odd years he's been doing the job, he's covered everything from secretive nesting seabirds to angry polar bears, the tectonics of the Yukon River to "snow fleas" on the Gulkana Glacier. His work has taken him far and wide around the state, a place he's called home since the 1980s, and has exposed him to many of Alaska's most interesting scientists, explorers and characters.

This weekend, (August 18th 2012) marks a slightly ominous anniversary in Anchorage history. It marks the 20th anniversary of the eruption of Mount Spurr. Spurr actually blew its top 3 times that summer. But it was the late August eruption that showered Anchorage with substantial amounts of ash. That night in the city, drivers struggled to keep their windshields clean, while airlines temporarily gave up the struggle to get people to and from their destinations. Anchorage International Airport was forced to shut-down for 20 hours, in order to eliminate the risk that jets might be forced to fly through engine-clogging clouds of volcanic ash. The of the big Spurr eruption day was somewhat overcast, and so -- to some people -- it seemed puzzling why the sky had suddenly grown dark.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says it's investigating an outbreak of skin lesions that has killed about 50 seals, mainly between Barrow and Wainwright, since July. According to a statement and data sheet from NOAA spokesperson Julie Speegle, the North Slope Borough's Department of Wildlife Management has responded to at least 107 cases of stranded ringed seals. About 100 of the seals appeared to have lesions, and nearly half of them were dead when found or died shortly afterward.

by Ted Land and Daniel Hernandez Friday, April 30, 2010 JUNEAU, Alaska -- There's a remarkable transformation happening in the waters of Southeast Alaska this time of year. All kinds of wildlife are emerging from winter -- and they're hungry for a good meal. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration scientists John Moran and J.J. Vollenweider visit Berners Bay, just outside of Juneau, to study the marine life that arrives here each spring. Their twice-weekly field trips are a way to keep track of the dozens of species migrating through area waters.