Winski to Analyze Alaskan Ice Core to Understand Fire Conditions in 21st Century. The National Science Foundation awarded Dominic Winski $137,419 to reconstruct 1,500 years of summer climate and wildfire history in Alaska, western Canada and Siberia using an ice core from Denali National Park. Studies that combine past records of summer climate and wildfire are critically needed, says Winski. "Right now, the climate and landscape are changing. We know that in many areas, this means more wildfires, but we do not yet fully understand the relationship between climate and wildfire as we move into the future." The University of Maine

Norway Expands Key Arctic Port for More US Nuke Sub Visits. A key Arctic port in Norway has been improved and additions made to pave the way for increased visits by US nuclear submarines, providing a major new jumping off point for watching Russia's active Northern Fleet as it transits into the North Atlantic. Twice over the past year, the US Navy has made public displays of its nuclear submarines docking in Norway, sending a clear signal to Russia about the American presence in the region and providing a rare glimpse into the secretive world or undersea deployments. Of course, Norway would have been asked to approve those releases, sending its own signal to the Russians. But those visits were brief, and mostly for effect. The new work will allow American and NATO submarines to pull into the port and replenish, allowing for longer deployments to the critical Arctic region. Breaking Defense

  

Arctic Sea-Ice Loss Intensifies Aerosol Transport to Tibetan Plateau. A joint research team led by Prof. Cong Zhiyuan from the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research (ITP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) found that Arctic sea-ice loss intensifies aerosol transport to the Tibetan Plateau (TP). The study, published in Nature Climate Change on August 31, provides a new perspective on understanding the trans-boundary transport of atmospheric pollutants to the TP. Phys.org

UNI ARCTICenter to Research Pandemic Response Among Indigenous Arctic People. As COVID-19 continues to impact America and the world, a team of interdisciplinary experts from the University of Northern Iowa's ARCTICenter are focusing their attention on the pandemic's impact among indigenous and non-indigenous people in the Arctic. The UNI Department of Geography, the ARCTICenter and the GeoTREE Center received a nearly $200,000 grant from the National Science Foundation. The Rapid Response Research grant, "Tracking and Understanding Spatiotemporal Dynamics of the COVID-19 Pandemic in the Arctic (COVITA)", has been awarded to professors Andrey Petrov, Tatiana Degai, John DeGroote and Mark Welford, who will work with UNI staff, students and a collaborator at Texas State University to develop and deploy a real-time, web-based COVID-19 data hub. The Courier

Study Looks at Covid Costs for Alaska Seafood Processors. Alaska seafood processors are paying tens of millions of dollars extra to cover costs from the Covid-19 pandemic, and most of it is coming out of pocket. Intrafish Media provides a first, in-depth look at how costs for providing protective gear, like masks and gloves, testing thermometers, extra staff to handle sanitizing demands between work shifts, and modifying worker lines for social distancing, are playing out in the nation's seafood processing sector. The Arctic Sounder