Alaska

Study analyzes moose-vehicle collision risks, with results that could be used to improve road safety

Published

2 years ago

January 9, 2023

Press Room

Study analyzes moose-vehicle collision risks, with results that could be used to improve road safety

By Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon

Up to date: 1 hour in the past Revealed: 1 hour in the past

A moose standing by the highway in a West Anchorage neighborhood is silhouetted in opposition to the sky at sundown on April 27. A newly printed research discovered that collisions with moose have been extra frequent within the few night hours after sundown than at the hours of darkness morning hours earlier than dawn. (Picture by Yereth Rosen/Alaska Beacon)

Moose-vehicle collisions are a continuing drawback in Alaska. Annually, there are in all probability greater than 800 such collisions within the state, although many go unreported, in line with Alaska Division of Fish and Sport estimates.

Now a brand new research has quantified collisions and produced statistical evaluation which may assist motorists and transportation managers higher plan round dangers.

The research, printed within the journal Environmental Analysis Letters, analyzes the relationships between moose actions, snowpack and site visitors patterns in Alaska and areas of western Canada.

“Collisions with moose will be completely catastrophic for each people and moose. We hoped to grasp the processes that improve the danger of collisions with the intention to cut back the societal and environmental toll,” College of Washington researcher Calum Cunningham, the lead creator, mentioned by e mail.

The elements which are almost definitely to supply moose-vehicle collisions, the research discovered, are night darkness, winter and snow adjoining to the highway that’s lower than 120 centimeters deep, or about 4 ft deep.

Whereas it is probably not stunning that dangers are highest at the hours of darkness winter months, the research places some numbers to these dangers. In Alaska, collisions with moose are 5.7 instances as frequent within the December-to-February interval as within the least collision-prone time of the 12 months, the late spring.

Inside these winter numbers is a revelation: Collisions are far more quite a few within the evening-commute hours than within the pre-dawn morning-commute hours, despite the fact that each durations are darkish.

To coauthor Kyle Joly, a Nationwide Park Service biologist, the reason being not clear.

“Is it an individual factor, or is it a moose factor?” he mentioned.

To Cunningham, it’s probably a individuals factor. Sometimes, car site visitors is heavier within the night than within the morning, he mentioned.

One other distinction revealed was Alaska’s extra accentuated seasonal sample for elevated collision dangers. In British Columbia, which is farther south and due to this fact topic to much less midwinter darkness, the probability of vehicle-moose collisions was lower than half that in Alaska in the course of the December to February interval, the research discovered.

The research used information from 113 GPS-collared moose in 5 research areas in Alaska and Canada’s Yukon Territory and the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. That information was collected over a number of years, from 2001 to 2013; in Alaska, the monitoring information got here from collared moose within the higher Koyukuk area.

The research additionally used evaluation of snow patterns over 4 many years in 2.2 million sq. miles of Arctic-boreal habitat, motor-vehicle site visitors statistics from Alaska and the Canadian areas and statistics on identified collisions. It takes a broad view of collisions throughout a big geographic area. Although it consists of details about collisions inside Anchorage, it doesn’t specify whether or not there are variations between the state’s greatest metropolis and different areas, Cunningham mentioned.

Moose responses to snow diverse considerably in line with vegetation sort, however usually a depth of 100 centimeters, or simply below 40 inches, was the edge at which they flushed out of upper elevations to decrease and extra developed areas the place roads are extra plentiful, the research discovered.

Moose are shifting away from areas which are getting deep snow, “and that will get them into bother,” Joly mentioned.

However when snow was particularly deep in areas close to roads, collisions have been few as a result of moose have been usually unable or unwilling to go to these areas, the research discovered.

Coverage responses might embody lowered nighttime velocity limits from December to February, enhanced driver schooling and lighting enhancements for each roads and automobiles, the research mentioned.

Local weather change can also have an effect on moose actions and vehicle-collision dangers sooner or later, the research mentioned. Very chilly areas are anticipated to get elevated snowfall, whereas hotter areas of the far north are anticipated to wind up with shallower snowpacks as extra of the winter precipitation falls as rain.

The research was funded by NASA’s Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment, or ABoVE.

Initially printed by the Alaska Beacon, an impartial, nonpartisan information group that covers Alaska state authorities.

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Alaska

Western Alaska storm and southerly flow drives warmth back into the state

Published

3 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

Western Alaska storm and southerly flow drives warmth back into the state

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Gusty winds and heavy snow has begun to spread into Western and Southwest Alaska, with a surge of warmer air. Temperatures in Southwest Alaska is already 10 to 35 degrees warmer than yesterday morning. This warmth will spread across the rest of the state through the weekend, with some of the most pronounced warmth along the Slope. We’ll see many areas this weekend into next week remaining well-above average.

SOUTHCENTRAL:

Temperatures are slowly warming across Southcentral, with many areas seeing cloud coverage increasing. While we could see some peeks of sunshine today, most locations will see mostly cloudy conditions. While we can’t rule out light flurries for inland locations, most of the precipitation today will occur near the coast. Snow looks to be the primary precipitation type, although later this evening a transition to rain or wintry mix will occur. This comes as temperatures quickly warm across Southcentral.

We’ll see highs today in the upper 20s and lower 30s for inland areas, while coastal regions warm into the 30s and 40s. The southerly flow aloft will remain with us for several days, pumping in the warmth and moisture. As a result, Kodiak could see over an inch of rain today, with gusty winds.

While most of the precipitation this weekend remains near the coast, inland areas will see the best chance for wintry mix Sunday into Monday. Little to no accumulation is expected.

The key takeaways for this weekend, is snow transitioning to rain, with some gusty winds likely for parts of Southcentral this weekend.

SOUTHEAST:

Another fairly quiet day is expected across Southeast today, outside of some light snow near Yakutat. We’ll see a mix of sun and clouds with temperatures remaining on the cooler side. Parts of the Northern Panhandle may stay in the upper 20s today. The stretch of quiet weather will stay with us through the first half of Saturday, followed by an increase in precipitation and winds. This upcoming system may bring some heavy snowfall to Southeast, so be prepared for that potential this weekend. Temperatures warm into next week, back into the upper 30s and lower 40s for many areas.

INTERIOR:

While temperatures this morning have bottomed out as low as -30 near Fort Yukon, temperatures will warm into the weekend. A wind advisory for the Alaska Range goes into effect at 9 Friday morning, where winds up to 60 mph will warm the Interior. Temperatures today for many locations will warm into the single digits, with some of the greatest warming arriving Saturday through next week. It’s likely we’ll spend most of next week with temperatures in the 20s and 30s, with the warmest locations near the Alaska Range. While we will largely stay dry, there is a chance for some light snow arriving Sunday night into Monday.

SLOPE/WESTERN ALASKA:

Temperatures will remain slightly above average for parts of the Slope today, with warming winds to build into the Slope this weekend. This comes as our area of low pressure in the Bering Sea continues to move farther north. Be prepared for gusty easterly winds along the Slope, leading to blowing snow and reduced visibility. We’ll see temperatures quickly warm well above average, with highs climbing into the 20s and 30s along the Slope into next week. While some snow is possible through the weekend, the heaviest activity will occur for the Brooks Range. We’ll see the potential for 4 to 12 inches of snowfall, with the highest amounts occurring along the southern slopes of the Brooks Range near Kobuk Valley. Winds could gusts as high as 45 mph, leading to greatly reduced visibility.

Heavy snow is impacting Western and Southwest Alaska this morning, with winds gusting up to 50 mph. Numerous winter weather alerts, as well as a coastal flood advisory is in effect. The heaviest snow will fall for the Seward Peninsula and east of Norton Sound, where up to a foot or more of snow is to be expected. The heaviest amounts will fall today, with the activity set to lighten up through Sunday. In addition to the snow, gusty winds will lead to areas of blowing snow. Visibility could be reduced down to less than half a mile at times. As southerly flow continues to pump in warmth, we’ll see a transition from snow to rain later today into Saturday for parts of Southwest Alaska.

ALEUTIANS:

Gusty winds and heavy rain will fall through the Aleutians today, where up to .75″ of rain is possible. As the area of low pressure moves north, we’ll see a new low form just south of the Eastern Aleutians. This will lead to additional rain and winds into the weekend. Winds could gusts upwards of 50 mph through the Eastern Aleutians and through the Alaska Peninsula. With ridging to our east, more rain and winds remain with us into early next week. There is the potential that the Pribilof Islands see a return to snow Sunday, as colder air moves into the Bering Sea.

OUTLOOK AHEAD:

Well above average warmth will stay with us as we close out January. While one more short-lived cold snap is possible, we may have to wait until February before we tap into warmer conditions. Temperatures through the close of January will keep average monthly temperatures 5 to 12 degrees above average for much of the state. The overall trend still favors a wetter pattern, although with warmer weather the southern parts of the state will favor more rain or a mixed bag of precipitation.

Have a wonderful and safe holiday weekend.

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Alaska

Alaska governor, ally of Trump, will keep flags at full-staff for Inauguration Day • Alaska Beacon

Published

11 hours ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

Alaska governor, ally of Trump, will keep flags at full-staff for Inauguration Day • Alaska Beacon

Alaska will join several other Republican-led states by keeping flags at full-staff on Inauguration Day despite the national period of mourning following President Jimmy Carter’s death last month.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced his decision, which breaks prior precedent, in a statement on Thursday. It applies only to flags on state property. Flags on federal property are expected to remain at half-staff.

Flags on state property will be returned to half-staff after Inauguration Day for the remainder of the mourning period.

The governors of Indiana, Idaho, Iowa, Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Oklahoma, North Dakota, Nebraska, Montana and Alabama, among others, have announced similar moves.

U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, said on Tuesday that flags at the U.S. Capitol would remain at full-staff on Inauguration Day.

Their actions follow a statement from President-elect Donald Trump, who said in a Jan. 3 social media post that Democrats would be “giddy” to have flags lowered during his inauguration, adding, “Nobody wants to see this, and no American can be happy about it. Let’s see how it plays out.”

Dunleavy is seen as a friend of the incoming president and has met with him multiple times over the past year. Dunleavy and 21 other Republican governors visited Trump last week in Florida at an event that Trump described as “a love fest.”

Since 1954, flags have been lowered to half-staff during a federally prescribed 30-day mourning period following presidential deaths. In 1973, the second inauguration of President Richard Nixon took place during the mourning period that followed the death of President Harry Truman.

Then-Gov. Bill Egan made no exceptions for Alaska, contemporary news accounts show, and no exception was made for Nixon’s inauguration in Washington, D.C., either.

A spokesperson for Dunleavy’s office said the new precedent is designed to be a balance between honoring the ongoing mourning period for former President Jimmy Carter and recognizing the importance of the peaceful transition of power during the presidential inauguration.

“Temporarily raising the flags to full-staff for the inauguration underscores the significance of this democratic tradition, while returning them to half-staff afterward ensures continued respect for President Carter’s legacy,” the spokesperson said.

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Alaska

Federal disaster declaration approved for Northwest Alaska flooding

Published

19 hours ago

January 16, 2025

Press Room

Federal disaster declaration approved for Northwest Alaska flooding

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – President Joe Biden announced the approval of federal disaster assistance on Thursday for recovery efforts in areas that sustained damage from flooding and storms in October 2024.

Those areas include the Bering Strait Regional Educational Attendance Area (REAA) and the Northwest Arctic Borough area where many structures were damaged by a severe storm from Oct. 20-23, 2024.

Jerry Jones and his two children were rescued Wednesday after being stranded overnight on the roof of their flooded cabin about 15 miles north of Kotzebue during a large storm impacting Western Alaska.(Courtesy of Jerry Jones)

In a press release, FEMA announced that federal funding is available on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work to the state of Alaska, tribal and eligible local governments, and certain private nonprofit organizations.

The announcement comes just a few days after Biden released the major disaster declaration approval for the August Kwigillingok flooding.

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