While industry has had to adapt to changes, many locals are still struggling to find a new normal amidst the shifting seasons.
The storm began Sept. 28 and continued for several days. A handful of Utqiaġvik’s roads were damaged or destroyed, and the community's freshwater source was nearly compromised.
"Yesterday we came over to do an assessment of the high-water flood storm," said Northwest Arctic Borough Deputy Director of Public Services Dickie Moto, who grew up in Deering. "They lost a lot of ground on the front and on the back side of town because of the high water and rough seas.
Aerial surveys this September and October show the bowheads aren’t where they usually are.
The Arctic Sounder - Serving the Northwest Arctic and the North Slope
It's been a challenging year for whalers in Utqiagvik. Crews started going out in September, but found the bowheads weren't appearing in their usual concentrations in the waters closer to shore. On the water Nov. 16 Panigiuq Crew landed the first whale of the season for Utqiagvik, later than many people can remember ever bringing one in before.
The recent storm brought water levels up to the lagoon bank by town. Along the Chukchi Coast, storm surge and tides were expected to raise sea levels four to six feet above the normal high tide line, the weather service noted.
Cleanup and recovery from the recent storm that battered the North Slope coastline may carry a price tag exceeding $10 million.
For one day last week, the village of Deering needed to use a boat to get to the airport.
The North Slope Borough will have access to help with recovery efforts for the autumn storm that pummeled the coastline earlier this year, causing more than a million dollars worth of damage.
Arctic sea ice last month reached its greatest extent for the season, and it was the lowest in the satellite record. Now researchers say that ice is also younger and thinner than it once was.
A new report shows toxins from suppliers to companies like Tyson Foods are pouring into waterways, causing marine life to leave or die
Disaster funds are reserved for single events, and storms that collectively cause much damage aren't often individually large enough to count as disasters.
Residents of the coastal Chumikan village reported two adult whales and one baby on Wednesday afternoon, on a shore of the Uda River that flows into the sea. Alexei Paramonov spent hours protecting the pod from wild animals and poachers and saved the baby whale from hypothermia.
Climate change has allowed spotted seals to find new hunting grounds, but the marine mammals ultimately depend on sea ice to survive.
Three great white sharks broke the border rules big-time on Friday. The sharks were tracking very tight to shore near South Shore communities.
Fuel shipments normally take place during autumn from departure ports such as Murmansk and Arkhangelsk. However, last fall saw a sudden freeze-up and quickly accumulating sea-ice on the Northern Sea Route, including the Kara Sea. Of the two rescued barges, one contained 7,000 tons of diesel fuel, while the other was loaded with 170 tons of kerosene.
Hundreds of Pacific walruses came ashore to a barrier island on Alaska's northwest coast, the earliest appearance of the animals in a phenomenon tied to climate warming and diminished Arctic Ocean sea ice.
The images are shocking, but perhaps not for people who live in the Dominican Republic.'It happens pretty much all the time,' says Cyrill Gutsch
We will have more wacky weather in 2018 as the world continues to warm.
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