First thing in this Monday Morning, I install frost tube at Nordale Elementary, Fairbanks.

great 4,5, and 6 grades students together! they listening and understand good and good questions!

I am sorry, I could not update the blog during Mars Polar Conference. There are many interesting discussion going on. Especially Phenix mission is interesting because only spacecraft landing on polar region. Here is some picture from NASA’s Phenix mission. Yes, ice we can see. the best hypotheses is  ice lens (segregation ice). It interesting that surround soil is silt more like similar Fairbanks area! Silt is good to develop ice lens!!

Here is another potential ice under the lander…

NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona/Texas A&M University

We just finish for the field trip of  Mars Polar Conference today. I am grad weather hold nicely. And the great participants from all of the world.  It was bit busy but wonderful day!!

The refrigeration unit at Fox Permafrost Tunnel is down!! Tunnel getting warmer!!!! Permafrost (tunnel wall) temperature is almost -1dC. Hope this fix soon, otherwise tunnel will go to shout down. I am in the tunnel with Kevin (CRREL). It usually we cannot see natural(!) temperature condition inside of the tunnel. One of the organic rich ice was melting. This would be very interesting discovery! Some of the ice could melt before much lower than 0dC. We are sampling and trying to understand the reason of the freezing point dropping.

You will see wet surface on the organic color potion.

Temperature was -0.8 to -1.3dC

We are continue to flying to Fairbanks. It seems long time ago when we waiting King Salmon airport in this morning. Enjoy cursing along the Richardson HWY.

Mud volcano near the Drum.

Gennallen junction and school

Gulkana airport and drill site (38m of permafrost)

 

We could see HAARP site with their HF Antenna array.

Summit lake

Canwell Glacier (right) and Eel Glacier

 

Rock Glaciers along the Denali Fault

Castner Glacer

Unusual small rock glacer is on the left ridge

Black rapid glacier had debris and moving since Earthquake.

Sand wedge polygons near Delta

Salcha Elementary, we are almost there!

We arrived Fairbanks little after 7pm!

We are little bit busy day today. We have to cross Cook inlet, Kenai Peninsula, Prince William Sound…

Beautiful mooring sun shine with Augustin and Barren Islands (left)

I wake up 5am to download Naknek site. No bugs dark in the morning not like last night (picture above)! You will see many nuts around me in this picture. Mosquito is minority here!

Morning fog delay to leave King Salmon Airport. Airport finally open at 8:45am.

First stop is Iliamna airport to visit Newhalen school next of Iliamna Lake

Students are great!! I had a good time teachers and students! I’d like to stay more but should leave at 11.

Newhalen school taking care of two communities, Iliamna and Newhalen

 

Crossing next of volcano Iliamna also good view of Readout

We flew over Ninilchik, All clams are under the sea now.

Then Seward

It seems big cruse ship is in

Kenai fjord

Bike is working great at this trip. I did quick trip between Chenega Bay school and runway,

At the Cordova, Rain getting very hard…

After Cordova, we flew along the Copper River because weather so bad. Here is  the million dollar bridge with Childs Glacier

I seems many glaciers had debris on the ice (maybe 2003 earthquake flow??) (Heney Glacier)

Weather changed in inland, Beautiful autumn day in Kenny Lake

 

From the air, we could see many polygonal ground!

Lake Brooks meet Naknek Lake!

Valley of 10,000 smokes seems presence of permafrost since 1912!

Ash layer is great insulator, glacier is still under the ash since 1912.

Here is southern limit of permafrost in AK -Naknek-

Beautiful evening at Naknek.

Foggy morning at Bethel, we wait 45 minutes at airport to leave!

Fog getting clear before Aniak.

Rainy, but calm Sleetmute.

We made cross divide to the Koliganek

Many ice wedge polygons are seen in this area.

I am Lower Kuskokwim School District (LKSD) today. We stop 7 schools hit and run by Cessna & Bike. Most of the runways are far from communities. So bike is ideal method to quick travel. I cry fighting with strong wind all day.

First stop was Kasigluk!

Then Atmautluak then Quinhagak, Active layer thickness was 70cm at Quinhagak.

The Goodnews Bay, Platinum. I saw polygonal ground at Platinum!!

Then Eek, we back to Bethel once visibility drop less then a mile.

Dave and I start fall Cessna trip. we visited 7 communities today. the wind was crazy 40mph gusting.

Grayling with Yukon River, weather was great until here!

Beautiful fall color at mining ditch

St. Mary’s

Solifluction near Mountain View

Relict (?) solofluction between bushes. Ground surface temperature is +3.2 degree C, 1m below is +0.5dC.