SH – NOAA Alaska Fisheries Science Center

Fig. 1 Sea surface temperature anomaly made using NOAA satellite data from July 1, 2015. A strong El Nino year and Blob co-occurred in the Pacific Ocean, creating warmer than usual temperatures (seen in red, orange, and yellow).

Seabirds and humpback whales give early warning to marine heatwaves

March 27, 2024

Lauren Bien from Prince William Sound Science Center and Mayumi Arimitsu from USGS, Alaska Science Center and additional contributors, John Moran and Rob Suryan, Alaska Fisheries Science Center explain how seabirds and humpback whales provide early warning signals during extreme marine heatwaves.

Image: © Alaska Department of Fish and Game

Forage fish: Pacific herring in Alaska

January 2, 2024

W. Scott Pegau and Hayley Hoover discuss the plight of forage fish, with a particular emphasis on understanding the lack of recovery of Pacific herring in Prince William Sound, Alaska.

Climate, heatwaves, nearshore ecosystems and the sunflower sea star

October 24, 2023

Sarah Traiger, Biologist at the U.S. Geological Survey, in this wide-ranging analysis, examines climate, heatwaves, nearshore ecosystems, and the plight of the sunflower sea star.

The atmosphere is surreal at dawn in the Jokulsaron lagoon, where seals and a few lucky people can enjoy an endless spectacle, where icebergs float and move slowly dragged by the current.

Food webs and fish: Ocean climate change in Alaska

July 5, 2023

Open Access Government talks to ocean climate expert Dr. Robert Suryan, who is the lead of an ecosystem studies program at the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s Auke Bay Laboratories.

"Large fishing boat anchored in Valdez, Alaska bay. Chugach Mountains in background."

Gulf Watch Alaska: Long-term research and monitoring in the Gulf of Alaska

April 3, 2023

Within the Gulf of Alaska, in the North Pacific Ocean, three major events - both natural and human-caused – resulted in large-scale ecosystem changes during the last 50 years.

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