The Northern Climate Observer

The Northern
Climate Observer

On August 18, 2014, Virgina Kommack with the Ambler Traditional Council posted an amazing and novel observation to LEO Network. It was about the condition of a river and the fish in northwestern Alaska. "Have you heard about dead salmon on the beaches on the Kobuk? It may be (caused by) the abundance of fish," she wrote. Indeed, while thousands were successfully spawning, there were hundreds of dead chum salmon that had not spawned along the river. Why? Likely a combination of factors, including a huge return of salmon,very high air and stream temperatures, and low oxygen levels. At the time we wondered, how often could this combination of environmental factors possibly occur? Well, here we are in 2019 and a similar and much larger event is occurring, unprecedentedly affecting a variety of species and spanning rivers from Northwest Alaska to Norton Sound and the Yukon Kuskokwim (YK) Delta. Please see the featured article by Anna Rose MacArthur describing the salmon die-off in Huslia and other parts of the YK. See also the observation by Diane Abraham of Twin Hills about the ongoing shearwater event in western Alaska. Mike Brubaker, Editor

	Summer Chum Salmon Die-Off Likely Caused By Heat Stress, Say Scientists Huslia, Alaska, United States Anna Rose MacArthur / KYUK / August 2, 2019 Salmon have been found dead in rivers across Western Alaska this summer. The largest die-off reported comes from the Koyukuk River, a tributary of the Yukon. Read article on KYUK
	Dead Seabirds, Including Shearwaters (genus Ardenna), Found on Beach Togiak, Alaska, United States Diane Abraham and Hillary Burgess / LEO Network / August 3, 2019 "I discovered possibly 43 seabirds and may have missed more on August 3, 2019, just on the southwest side and did not go further on southeast side of our beach. Not sure, maybe they died of hunger." Read post on the LEO Network
	Newfoundland turrs: canaries in the climate crisis St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada Juanita Mercer / The Telegram / August 12, 2019 What caused roughly 60,000 dead murres to wash ashore in Alaska? The answer to this could be very important to the murre (or turr) populations in the Atlantic. Read article on The Telegram
	Drought increases in SE Alaska while July temps break records Petersburg, Alaska, United States Angela Denning / Alaska Public Media / August 12, 2019 Southeast Alaska has suffered from a drought and warmer-than-normal temperatures for about two years now. The month of July broke more records. Read article on Alaska Public Media
	Weird weather brings flooding to Kotzebue Kotzebue, Alaska, United States Shady Grove Oliver / The Arctic Sounder / August 9, 2019 The flooding was caused by a weather system that moved up to the Bering Sea from the tropics, and raised water levels and dumped rain across much of western Alaska. Read article on The Arctic Sounder
	Why Lightning Strikes in an Arctic Gone Bizarro North Pole Matt Simon / WIRED / August 11, 2019 Some rather peculiar weather over the weekend struck 300 miles from the North Pole. Here’s why that may be the new normal. Read article on WIRED
	Sun disappears in bizarre repeat of last year’s blackout Verkhoyansk, Sakha, Russia Siberia Times / August 9, 2019 This time weather experts think the blackout was caused by smoke from wildfires mixing with heavy rain clouds. Read article on Siberia Times

The Northern Climate Observer is published by the Center for Climate and Health. We track news coverage from across the circumpolar north and provide readers with a curated roundup of climate change related events. Thank you for reading our newsletter and for paying attention to our changing world.

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Northern Climate Observer

The Northern Climate Observer is published weekly by the Center for Climate and Health. We track news from across the circumpolar north and provide readers with a curated roundup of climate change related events.

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Northern Climate Observer

The Northern
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