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2025 HAARP Open House Announced

This Father's Day weekend, the University of Alaska Fairbanks invites you and your families to join the 2025 HAARP Open House in Gakona, Alaska on Saturday, June 14, 2025 from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. This event provides an opportunity for the public to experience this world-class research facility firsthand, learn about the scientific questions the facility seeks to answer, and talk directly with researchers.

Read more about the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) and join the open house Facebook event.

No tickets are required, but visitors are encouraged to RSVP to reserve their time slot to enter the array — and for the chance to win prizes.

• Explore the site on a self-guided tour, about 90 minutes
• See HAARP’s control room, power plant, antenna array and more!
• Experience a show in the Geophysical Institute's portable planetarium
• Hear science talks about aurora, LIDAR & HAARP science
• Area 49 merchandise will be for sale, cash or credit card.
• Local partner Wrangell Institute for Science & Environment (WISE) will join UAF for the event.
• Ernesto’s Grill will be selling food at the facility.

Guidelines for the event:

Please follow all posted signs and staff instructions while onsite for your safety and to protect sensitive research equipment.

Pets are welcome but must be leashed and will not be allowed in UAF buildings or in the antenna array. Please pick up after your pet.

Parking is limited. Vehicles are restricted to a maximum length of 36 feet, maximum width of 9 feet and maximum height of 10 feet.

Drone use: Unauthorized UAS operations over HAARP lands compromise the safety and integrity of ongoing research, pose risks of physical damage, may cause electromagnetic interference, and infringe upon personal privacy. Unauthorized UAS flights are strictly prohibited and may result in enforcement actions, including fines and legal consequences. If you're interested in drone footage, contact the Geophysical Institute at uaf-gi-public-info [at] alaska.edu.

Visitors are encouraged to bring water, wear sturdy shoes for the tour, and prepare for variable weather.
Please contact uaf-gi-public-info [at] alaska.edu before the event for any accommodations requests or assistance.

Array entry:

Entry into the array and diagnostic instruments will be done in timed groups. No entry to the array after 3 p.m. Please keep in mind that the later you show up, the less you'll be able to see.

Parking at the array is limited. You may or may not be able to drive your car to the array. However, visitors can access via a one-mile walk or a short shuttle ride.

HAARP is located in Gakona at mile 11.3 Tok Cutoff, 26 miles northeast of Glennallen. It is about 200 miles from Anchorage and 230 miles from Fairbanks.

If you’re a member of the press, contact Geophysical Institute public information officer Rod Boyce at rcboyce [at] alaska.edu for more information about HAARP and the open house.

Download the event flyer.

NSIDC Cryosphere Seminar with Dr. Maddie Smith of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Wednesday, June 11 from 11:00 am-12 noon
Zoom link: https://cuboulder.zoom.us/j/94492027114

Title:
Puddles on a Frozen Ocean: The Role of Meltwater in the Arctic Sea Ice Pack

Abstract:

Dramatic changes in Arctic sea ice extent and volume in recent decades have altered its seasonal growth and melt cycle. During the Arctic summer, the rapid melt of snow and sea ice introduces significant amounts of low-salinity meltwater to the surface ocean on a local scale. However, the fate of this meltwater and its broader impacts on the Arctic system remain key questions.

Here, we summarize recent findings on meltwater formation and distribution, with a focus on observations from the Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate (MOSAiC) expedition in summer 2020. Meltwater accumulates in thin layers on, beneath, and around sea ice floes?features that are likely widespread yet often undetected by standard methods. Meltwater budget calculations indicate that these layers constitute less than a quarter of the total freshwater produced but have significant physical impacts. They reduce bottom ice melt, initiate new ice formation, and inhibit atmosphere-ocean exchanges of momentum, energy, and materials, potentially altering Arctic system dynamics.

As meltwater fluxes are expected to increase in the central Arctic Basin and decrease along its margins, further research is needed to understand their role in upper ocean freshening and Arctic climate change.

Short Bio: Dr. Maddie Smith is an Assistant Scientist in the Applied Ocean Physics & Engineering Department at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Motivated by the loss of sea ice in a rapidly changing climate, her research uses observations and modeling approaches to understand how sea ice interacts with the ocean. Maddie completed her PhD in Civil & Environmental Engineering at the University of Washington, exploring the role of surface waves and turbulence in the autumn Arctic Ocean, and her B.A. in Earth & Oceanographic Studies and Environmental Science from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine.

This summer, get an up close look at the world's largest Arctic research station! Toolik Field Station is celebrating 50 years of research and welcomes all to join us for a Visitor's Day.

Meet station staff and scientists as you tour Toolik facilities and research sites. Learn about the exciting science happening at the station. Immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of Alaska’s Arctic tundra with the Toolik Naturalist.

Tours are free. Lunch is available for purchase in advance on our online store.

Visitors are responsible for their own travel to and from the station. No overnight accommodations will be provided. Camping is not allowed in the Toolik Research Natural Area but is available at the nearby Galbraith Lake Campground.

Learn more on our Visitor’s Day website.

Contact Toolik Field Station at uaf-iab-toolik [at] alaska.edu or 907-474-6407 for more information.

Toolik Field Station, located at mile 284.5 of the Dalton Highway on Alaska’s North Slope, is a leading, year-round Arctic research, observation, and education facility, providing insight to address local and global challenges of the rapidly changing Arctic. The station is operated by the University of Alaska Fairbanks Institute of Arctic Biology with support from the National Science Foundation.

UArctic Assembly Details

Registration

• Registration fee: 500 €
• Deadline: May 23, 2025

Members can have more than one representative in the Assembly, but only one can vote.

Note: All member representatives will be contacted directly by email during each stage of the meeting preparation process.
To see who the representatives are for a given member institution, go to the Member Profile page and select the country and institution. Representatives are listed under Contact information.

Program and Agenda

The Program Overview includes:
- Pre-meetings and business meetings
- Thematic Networks’ and new members’ presentations
- UArctic Assembly dinner
- Cultural excursions, including:
- Visit to the Sámi Museum and Nature Centre Siida
- Visit to the Inari Reindeer Farm
- Hike on the Sulaoja Nature Trail (Kevo Nature Park)
- Lake Inari Cruise

Participants will have opportunities to engage with Sámi culture and nature, including Sámi livelihoods, sacred sites, and cultural heritage.

Assembly Agenda and Proposals are available on the Agenda page.

Meeting Venue

Primary venue: Sámi Cultural Centre Sajos
Additional venue: Sámi Education Institute

These venues are ~1 km apart (2 minutes by car / 15 minutes on foot):

Accommodation

Note: Book as early as possible — limited availability!

Preferred hotels offering discounted rates:
- Hotelli Inari
- Wilderness Hotel Juutua

These are within walking distance of the meeting venues.
Click here for accommodation info

Arriving in Inari

From Ivalo Airport:

1. Airport Shuttle Service

   • Drop-off/pick-up at Hotel Inari, Crow Creek Cabins, and Holiday Village Inari
   • Must book by 3 p.m. one day in advance
   • 70€ per person, one-way
   • More Info

2. Ilmari Slant Ky Bus Transfer

   • 40€ per person
   • Details here

3. Taxi Service

   • Must be booked two days in advance
   • Starting at 190€ depending on passengers
   • More Info

From Rovaniemi:

• Buses available to Inari
• Tickets can be bought from the driver or reserved online
• Cost: 54.20€ – 63.20€

From Kirkenes, Norway:

• Daily minibus/coach transfers available
• Click here for full travel details

The Permafrost Young Researchers Network (PYRN) invites you to an upcoming webinar focussed on fieldwork:

Date: June 3rd, 2025
Time: 8 AM AK/6 PM CET
Speaker: We will have a fieldwork panel and Q&A featuring 5 speakers from a variety of backgrounds ranging from arctic to alpine and from both industry and academia.

Registration link: https://queensu.zoom.us/meeting/register/1dmLw9xmRiyzkbb73JDr3w

If you are interested, you can catch up on past webinars on the PYRN YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@PermafrostECRs

Follow PYRN on BlueSky for updates on upcoming talks and PYRN activities: @pyrn-official.bksy.social

2 pm on June 2, 2025 | Virtual
Zoom Link

The Arctic Studies 2025 annual ‘Burch Lecture’ will feature Dr. Aron L. Crowell. Dr. Aron L. Crowell is an Arctic archaeologist and former Alaska Director of the Smithsonian Institution’s Arctic Studies Center in Anchorage. His research in collaboration with Alaska Native communities has examined cultural adaptations to coastal ecosystems, historical ecology, cultural landscapes, tectonic and glacial impacts, and Indigenous ecological knowledge. His recent books and edited volumes include Laaxaayík: Near the Glacier: Indigenous History and Ecology at Yakutat Fiord, Alaska (Smithsonian Scholarly Press 2024) and Arctic Crashes: People and Animals in the Changing North (with Igor Krupnik, Smithsonian Scholarly Press, 2020), and Archaeology and the Capitalist World System: A Study from Russian America (Plenum Press, 1998). Crowell has led or cocurated Smithsonian exhibitions includingLooking Both Ways: Heritage and Identity of the Alutiiq People (2001); Gifts from the Ancestors: Ancient Ivories of Bering Strait (2009), and Living Our Cultures, Sharing Our Heritage: The First Peoples of Alaska (2010).

PSECCO Conference Travel Grant Program – Now Open!

The Polar Science Early Career Community Office (PSECCO) Conference Travel Grant Program is now accepting applications. Travel awards to attend and present polar-related work at a conference are open to polar early career scientists and educators.

In this Summer 2025 funding cycle, PSECCO will distribute up to $5,000 in total awards. Applicants may request a reasonable amount of funding up to $900 per person to support travel to/from a conference, with priority given to those with demonstrated financial need. An additional $100 is available for awardees who organize a PSECCO social event at the conference.

🗓 Application Deadline: June 2, 2025, at 11:59 PM MT

You can learn more about the opportunity, eligibility criteria, funding requirements, and how to apply on the PSECCO website here.

Travel grants can be used to support:

• Transportation
• Accommodation
• Per diem
• Meeting registration
• Abstract submission
• Dependent care costs (if applicable)

Other costs may be considered depending on need and explanation.

If you have questions, please email: psecco [at] colorado.edu

We look forward to seeing your applications!