Introducing the Bering Strait Research Consortium:

coordination and integration

Jessica Cherry, IARC/INE@UAFPeter Schweitzer, EPSCoR/Anthro @UAF

Mission

The Bering Strait Research Consortium, otherwise known as BSRC, is a voluntary group of academic, government, private sector, and other researchers who are interested in better coordinating data and research in the Bering Strait Region, as well as improving the communication of research results to the public and among themselves. Projects coordinated by BSRC encompass physical, biological, and human observations, including indigenous knowledge of the society, culture, land, ocean and atmosphere. Currently our office is based out of Fairbanks, Alaska, but we are looking to establish a home near the Bering Strait in Nome, Alaska.

National Priority Area

Increased Ship Traffic

Partners & ‘Board members’

University of Alaska Fairbanks and the Northwest Campus, the International Arctic Research Center, Kawerak Native Corp, Nome Eskimo Community, National Park Service. Potential: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (new Western LCC)

Web Portal: www.beringstraitresearch.org

Plan for improved communication

Ship activity, moored + cabled Observatories

Transect lines proposed to be occupied by ships transiting Bering Strait, including research vessels of Canada, China, Korea, the United States and Russia

Stakeholder Earth System Relevant data     Norton Sound Economic Development Corp (Fisherman) Ocean/coastal Weather forecasting, wave height, sea iceTraditional sea mammal hunters Ocean/coastal

Sea mammals, sea ice, shipping traffic, pollution, ecosystem health

Reindeer Herder's Association Terrestrial Vegetation, climate, snow hydrology

National Park Service Terrestrial/coastalVegetation, climate, weather, hydrology, geology, paleoclimate, fire science

Miners Terrestrial/coastal Weather, hydrology, vegetation, geology

Shipping industry Ocean/coastalSea ice and weather forecasting, marine mammal safety

Subsistance hunting/trapping Terrestrial Weather, river ice, snow depth

Tourism (birders) Terrestrial/riparian Weather, storm surgesState of Alaska, Village governments Terrestrial

Infrastructure stability, weather, permafrost state, storm surges

US Coast Guard Ocean/coastal  

Native Corporations Terrestrial/coastalTraditional knowledge, human health and safety, cultural resources

Stakeholder data needs: Bering Strait area

Hundreds of Projects Including• Arctic Water Resources Vulnerability Index (Kliskey, Alessa, et al.)• Bering Strait Freshwater Ethnography (Schweitzer, Yamin-

Pasternak, et al.)• Climate monitoring (Cherry, NPS, etc)• Village-based Permafrost Monitoring (Yoshikawa)• State of the Permafrost (Romanovsky, Grosse, Marchenko, B.

Jones, et al.)• Sea Ice Monitoring (Eicken)• Paleohydrology from Peat Cores (M. Jones, NPS)• Ungulate research (Finstad, Ihl, Kawerak Reindeer herders assoc.)• Physical and biological oceanography (Cooper, Grebmaier,

Woodgate, Weingartner, etc)• Fire/permafrost interactions (JAMSTEC/JAXA)

Seward Peninsula Hydrometeorological Station Network: Inherited from ATLAS project, 5 full met towers w/shallow boreholes & snow sensors, 2 repeater met towers, 2 hydrologic stations, 2 mothballed hydrologic stations, 6 partner permafrost stations (Romanovsky group), 2 partner DOT stations (GWS)

Modeled Permafrost Stability, Seward Peninsula Alaska

Early 20th and Present Comparison Present to Late 21st century, Max Planck ECHAM 5 GCM SRES A1.B Scenario Comparison

Busey et al., 2008

EPSCoR Pilot Project/Now NSF Funded

Comiso, 2006

Attributing the source of observed temperature & precip changes can help determine future impacts

Data Rescue

• Digitized 1970s NOS aerial photography for use in change detection (SP flight lines)

• Digitizing early 20th century daily climate records and mid-late 20th century water data

• Assembling station histories• We are hoping to produced a gridded product

(this part unfunded)• Supported by UAF’s Nx2020 project (Thanks,

Hajo!)

CD

Climate Stations on/near the Seward Peninsula

1900

1925

1953

1919

1897

1953

1922

1922

1917

1941

1920

19431937

Cherry, in prep

1895

1901

Example of NOS Color image (Elim/Moses Point) on SP

Future for BSRC

• Increase community participation in BSRC, particularly on Russian side

• Make it a community resource• Enhance website content• Find funding for physical space and a staff• Use BSRC as an instrument for coordination

and integration

Permafrost characteristics of AKJorgenson, et al., 2008

Thermokarst

Jorgenson, et al., 2008

Ground ice

Jorgenson, et al., 2008