Scientists Study Spring Transition in Bering Strait Waters
The Bering Sea is getting warmer, and sea ice coverage is more unreliable. A team of scientists is trying to understand the details of how that affects the diverse marine life in these waters.
Alaska Native Leaders Imagine Divergent ‘Arctic Futures’
A conference in Nome last week brought together leaders from Alaska Native communities to discuss the challenges — and opportunities — facing an evolving Arctic.
Studying Climate Change, Korean Scientists Warm to Western Alaska
A team of South Korean researchers was in Nome during September to study the effects of climate change on Arctic permafrost ecosystems. “What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic,” one of them says.
A very strange winter thaw
The streets looked like springtime, and the air was so warm – by Alaskan standards, at least – it might have been mistaken for summer. But the date wasn’t in May or June; it was late January. On January 27th, Nome broke a high temperature record not just for the day, but for the winter […]
The polar vortex
With regards to weather, 2014 got off to a very strange start all throughout the United States: in Alaska as well as in the Lower 48, albeit for opposite reasons. In many places in the contiguous 48 states, a “polar vortex” weather pattern was causing abnormally frigid temperatures in early January, while in Alaska, Nome […]
In the wind
You’ll often find KNOM’s dedicated news team – including volunteers Eva DeLappe and Margaret DeMaioribus, pictured – reporting on location in Nome, despite our region’s often-inclement weather. Last month, however, the news was the weather. As Margaret reported, a shifting wind pattern called Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) has been at least partly to blame for […]
The difference weather can make
What a difference the weather can make: especially in Western Alaska, and especially at this time of year. On cloudy days, the dull light blurs the snowy landscape, and depth perception, over long distances, is more difficult. This “flat light” is a challenge for all who travel on land and the frozen sea. On sunny […]
A special sled dog race returns
February 2013 marked the second running of a sled dog race with special significance for Western Alaskans: the Paul Johnson Memorial Norton Sound 450. The NS450 honors the memory of Paul “Putty” Johnson, a dog musher and community leader from Unalakleet (YOU-nuh-luh-kleet), Alaska, a town well within KNOM’s listening range located on the coast of […]
Howling winds outside, and a mentorship in our newsroom
The winds are howling and the snow is flying as Alaska’s winter continues into 2013. The KNOM weather reports help families stay safe and plan their winter travel. However, one unaware traveler recently had to be rescued by helicopter from an ice floe due to extreme north winds (which separated the sea ice nearest Nome from its […]
Weathering the season
Several additional minutes of sunlight greet us each day as we weather the cold, windy days and nights. KNOM weather reports help remote listeners prepare for the harsh conditions experienced throughout western Alaska. Our region’s extreme weather means that getting the right information at the right time is often a matter of life or death. […]