Alaska
Earthquakes under a volcano near Alaska's largest city raise concerns
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An increase in the number of earthquakes under a volcano near Alaska’s largest city this year has geologists paying attention.
Mount Spurr, about 80 miles (129 kilometers) northwest of Anchorage, last erupted in 1992, spewing an ash cloud nearly 12 miles (19 kilometers) into the air, prompting flights to be canceled and people to don masks. Another eruption at the 11,100-foot (3,383-meter) stratovolcano could be severely disruptive to the city, according to the Alaska Volcano Observatory.
The observatory raised its alert status for Mount Spurr in October — from green to yellow — when the increase in seismic activity became pronounced and a ground deformation was spotted in satellite data. Observatory scientist David Fee said Friday there have been about 1,500 small earthquake below the volcano this year, compared to about 100 in a normal year.
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While that might seem like a lot, it’s “not an enormous amount,” Fee said. It could be a precursor to an eruption — or not. Similar seismic unrest occurred from 2004 to 2006 before subsiding without an eruption.
“We don’t see any significant change in our data that would tell us that an eruption is imminent,” Fee said. “Things have been kind of this low-level unrest for a while now and we’re, of course, watching it very closely to detect any changes and what that might mean.”
Scientists are monitoring seismic stations, global satellite data and a webcam for additional changes that would signal an impending eruption. If magma is moving closer to the surface, there would be an increase in earthquakes, ground deformations, the creation of a summit lake or fumaroles, which are vents that open in the surface to vent gas and vapors.
The volcano last erupted in 1992 from the Crater Peak flank vent, located about 2 miles (3 kilometers) south of the summit. The eruption dropped about a quarter-inch of ash in Anchorage that year, prompting residents to stay inside or to go out donning masks, and the cloud drifted as far as Greenland.
A similar eruption from the same vent happened in 1953. The last known eruption from the summit was more than 5,000 years ago.
Volcanic ash is angular and sharp and has been used as an industrial abrasive. The powdered rock can cause a jet engine to shut down, which prompted Anchorage and other nearby airports to close during the 1992 eruption.
Closing airports is always an inconvenience in a state with few roads, but can be more than just inconvenient. Business would also be impacted since the Anchorage airport today is among the world’s busiest cargo hubs with Memphis, Hong Kong and Shanghai, mainly because of Alaska’s proximity to Asia.
Mount Spurr, located on the Volcanic Ring of Fire, is one of 53 volcanoes in Alaska that have been active within the last 250 years.
Alaska
Lavrov Challenges Rubio: Kremlin Says Trump-Putin Reached Deal as Moscow Questions Washington’s Neutrality
The Kremlin has pushed back against US claims that no agreement was reached between US President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin during the August 2025 Anchorage summit in Alaska.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Washington presented proposals to settle the war in Ukraine during the talks and that Moscow accepted them.
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Lavrov was responding to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who has publicly rejected Russian claims that Washington and Moscow reached an agreement on Ukraine during the Alaska summit, saying no deal was ever finalized.
As reported by DRM News, Rubio said the summit produced only a proposal, not a binding agreement.
He added that the US remains ready to play a constructive role in bringing the parties together and helping end the war, but stressed that while proposals were discussed in Alaska, “there was no agreement.”
Lavrov struck back by calling the response “not very elegant.”
“When my colleague says that in Alaska there were only proposals and no agreement, I wonder what we mean by agreement,” Lavrov said.
“If one side, in this case the US, put proposals on the table, and the other side expressed agreement, then saying there was no agreement is somehow not very elegant,” he added.
According to Lavrov, White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff visited Moscow days before the summit and delivered the same US settlement plan.
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“Already in Anchorage, when the two presidents sat down for talks, Putin began listing the American proposals point by point. After each point, in the presence of Trump and Rubio, he asked Witkoff whether he had correctly described the ideas brought to Moscow. Witkoff answered affirmatively to each question,” Lavrov said.
He called for clarification from Washington, adding that recent US statements about playing a constructive role in ending the war sounded like an attempt to position itself as a mediator.
Previous claims
In early June, Lavrov claimed Russia had accepted what he described as US proposals presented at the Alaska summit.
Lavrov alleged that Washington initially acted as a mediator but later stepped back from the process after failing to pressure Ukraine to accept the proposed terms.
This week, he also suggested that the Alaska summit may have been used to “buy time” for Ukraine to rearm itself, further arguing that Russia no longer views the West as a credible broker amid sanctions pressure.
Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov also said Moscow remained committed to implementing the understandings reached in Alaska, while accusing Washington of “apparently [failing] to complete its part of the process.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov argued that Washington cannot be considered fully neutral in the war because of its military support for Ukraine.
“If we’re talking about absolute neutrality, then, of course, the term is probably inapplicable, because the United States supplies the majority of weapons to Ukraine and provides other forms of assistance,” Peskov said.
At the same time, he said Moscow highly values Washington’s willingness to help resolve the war, as well as its influence over European allies and Kyiv.
Peskov also dismissed remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron, who recently said at the G7 Summit that Washington had abandoned neutrality and was now openly backing Ukraine’s territorial integrity, continued aid, and sanctions against Russia.
“Regarding President Macron’s statements, it is difficult to judge. I don’t think President Macron can in any way claim to be Washington’s lawyer or press secretary,” Peskov added.
Alaska
Alaska, Hawaiian Airlines expand free Wi-Fi on flights
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Free Wi-Fi is available on more Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines planes.
The company said that 150 aircraft are now equipped with Starlink.
“For years, T-Mobile has played a key role in keeping our guests connected, and we’re proud to now offer Starlink, the fastest Wi-Fi in the sky, to Atmos members for free, made possible through our work with T-Mobile,” said Shane Jones, Senior Vice President of Fleet, Products and Guest Experience. “We’ve seen an overwhelmingly positive response from our guests, and we couldn’t have done it without T-Mobile as we continue to raise the bar for the experience across Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines.”
Passengers must now be Atmos Rewards members to take advantage of the free service. The company said a new onboarding portal started in June, with the experience to become standard by mid-July.
Existing Atmos Rewards members will connect automatically, and new guests can sign up in just a few steps.
“Our relationship with Alaska Airlines has helped redefine what travelers can expect from inflight connectivity, and today’s milestone is another important step forward, said Mike Belcher, Head of Partnerships and Business Development at T-Mobile. “Bringing complimentary inflight Wi-Fi to more travelers across both Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines makes it easier to stay connected throughout their journey. The new, streamlined experience for accessing Wi-Fi reflects our shared commitment to delivering a better, more seamless travel experience.”
The airline expects to finish installing Starlink across its remaining mainline fleet by 2027.
Alaska
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