Fieldwork in Kluane Lake, Yukon Territory (2019)

Glaciers in southwest Yukon and Alaska account for 14% of the cryosphere not including the Greenland and Antarctic Ice Sheets. Temperatures in SW Yukon have been increasing by 2°C between 1948 and 2008 and is projected to rise by another 3-3.5°C in this region by 2099. The St. Elias Mountains extend from Alaska to British Columbia and Kaskawulsh Glacier, a located in Kluane National Park is ~70 km long. This temperate valley glacier influences local hydrology and landscape evolution downstream, which directly impacts the Kluane Lake, the largest lake in the Kluane First Nation territory. It has historically been monitored as a part of the Icefield Ranges Research Project and has been retreating overall since 1836.

I spent two weeks in Kluane Lake Research Station with the University of Calgary as part of the International Partnerships for Excellence in Education and Research (INTPART) project “Arctic Field Summer Schools: Norway-Canada-USA collaboration”. This was the third field-school as part of the collaboration and fully funded by the Norwegian Government. We did classwork for glaciology and permafrost research under the supervision of Dr. Vladimir Alexeev, Dr. Anthony Doulgeris and Dr. Brian Moorman - all part of the collaborating universities. In addtion, we attended guest lectures for current and ongoing research happening at Kluane Lake Research Station and talked and interacted with the local First Nation. Finally, we gained fieldwork and data analysis experience working on data available for Kaskawulsh Glacier.

Recommended scientific papers:

Shugar, D. H., Clague, J. J., Best, J. L., Schoof, C., Willis, M. J., Copland, L., & Roe, G. H.(2017). River piracy and drainage basin reorganization led by climate-driven glacier retreat. Nature Geoscience, 10(5), 370. doi: 10.1038/ngeo2932.
Foy, N, Copland, L, Zdanowicz, C, Demuth, M, Hopkinson, C (2011). Recent volume and area changes of Kaskawulsh Glacier, Yukon, Canada. Journal of Glaciology 57 (203), 515- 525. doi:10.3189/002214311796905596.