GI Press Releases
Fairbanks, Alaska—Nearly one year ago, a repurposed NASA spacecraft flew by the comet Hartley 2. As a result, a multitude of high-resolution images were gathered over 50 days that allow scientists to understand the nature of the comet’s surface and it’s hidden interior. 
Fairbanks, Alaska—With an estimated 34,000 square miles of ice, about the size of Maine, Alaska’s multitude of glaciers have a global impact.
FAIRBANKS, ALASKA— Clear skies and fair weather are the only requirements needed for the third and final sounding rocket to launch from Poker Flat Research Range this year. At midnight on April 27, 2011, a Terrier Black Brant will take off, flying through the upper atmosphere to a peak altitude of more than 183 vertical miles. Scientists from NASA will study the rocket’s performance and test a variety of recovery aids packed into the rocket’s 22.5-foot payload.
Fairbanks, Alaska—Each year, humpback whales migrate from the cool waters of Alaska to the warmth of Hawaii or Mexico. But while most animals and people might prefer to spend the mild winters in Hawaii and summers in Alaska, some humpbacks remain in the north during fall and winter.
Fairbanks, Alaska—In early August 2008, Kasatochi Volcano in the Aleutians violently erupted. The green and lush island, formerly the home of hundreds of thousands of seabirds, became a sterile mountain of mud and ash. Scientists thought all life was wiped out on Kasatochi, but researchers found a few unlikely survivors on the island during a visit one year after the eruption.
Poker Flat Research Range, Alaska—Scientists launched a NASA sounding rocket at 11:11 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 4, 2011 in an attempt to learn more about the concentration of nitric oxide in the upper atmosphere from a rocket that arced about 160 miles above northern Alaska.
Fairbanks, Alaska—As one of the worst oil-related disasters of our time, the recent Gulf of Mexico oil spill has sparked an investigation into understanding what went wrong and what can be done to prevent future spills of its magnitude.
Fairbanks, Alaska—For many years now, scientists have been tracking the thaw of permafrost throughout the Arctic. Since permafrost with the highest ice content is usually found closer to the ground surface where our structures are, Alaskans and other Arctic communities face major changes in the future if the degradation continues. Ecosystems, buildings, roads, and pipelines will likely lose their stability as the ground beneath them shifts.
Scientists launched a NASA sounding rocket at 1:49 a.m. on the morning of Friday, January 28, 2011, achieving their goal of gathering an image of the Whirlpool Galaxy from a rocket that arced about 150 miles above northern Alaska.
“We were on target,” said Professor Jim Green of the University of Colorado, who led the launch team. “It behaved exactly the way we thought it should.”
Scientists at Poker Flat Research Range north of Fairbanks are preparing to launch two NASA sounding rockets for two experiments. The launch window for both experiments opens on Jan. 26 and extends until Feb. 15.
