The Juneau Icefield is a group of interconnected glaciers just north of Juneau, Alaska that extends into British Columbia, Canada and covers an area the size of Rhode Island. Maybe you’ve heard of the Mendenhall Glacier? It is part of the Juneau Icefield! The Juneau Icefield Research Program (JIRP) has been collecting data on the icefield since 1948.
Identifying Central and Peripheral Thermosensors in Eurythermal and Stenothermal Arctic Fishes
The Arctic Ocean is warming at a rate up to seven-fold the global average, endangering and shifting key subsistence and commercial fisheries. Fish populations are stressed by warming and simultaneously by ocean acidification and oxidation. This study aims to characterize the evolution of sensory proteins that integrate signals of warming, changing pH, and oxidation in the sensory systems of three species of Arctic and sub-Arctic fish: the Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida), saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis), and Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua). Studying the evolution of these sensory mechanisms will provide insight into the sensitivity and responses of fish to climate change but also help us understand these same proteins in humans which are major drug targets that underlie pain, inflammation, itch, and the sensation of heat and cold. During the course of this research, two undergraduates from underrepresented groups in science will be mentored through a summer research program and a K-12 lesson plan will be developed that combines the science from this project with Alaska Native science curricula and values and Next Generation Science Standards.
More Information About This Project
Participants Involved in This Project
Jeanette Pirlo | Educator Fellow
CSU Stanislaus | Turlock, CA
Julia York | Researcher Fellow
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign | Urbana, Illinois
From the Blog
An Unforgettable Adventure Begins As a high school science teacher, the invitation to join Macall Hock on an expedition to study the effects of a warming Arctic ecosystem on stream carbon cycling in Utqiagvik, Alaska, felt like stepping into a thrilling adventure. The beauty of the Arctic wilderness was a sight to behold, but the
Drs. Peter Ungar, Mary Heskel, and Aleksey Sheshukov explained (patiently) their areas of expertise, Arctic research projects, and provided me with a virtual mountain of photographs from their fieldwork. We talked about what projects would be suitable and appropriate for a variety of audiences. What would be engaging to different ages, interests and levels of scientific knowledge? I knew that I wanted my Photoshop class to be involved with this project, so I suggested creating a comic book.
Today we got set up and met the local 8th graders out on the ice! For some of them it was the first time they had been on the land-fast sea ice (which is ice that is "fastened" to the coastline). For some, it was old news. It was quite cold (-30F with the windchill), so many students hid in the tents we had set up. The previous days had been relatively warm, hovering around 0-10F degrees. The students were split into groups and rotated between the stations.
Made possible with funding by the National Science Foundation Award #2221990. The information contained here is those of the author(s) and does not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
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