Research:
Global climate state:
Temperatures were above average over much of the globe, but much below average over the United States, Greenland and far eastern Russia.
Eurasian snow cover extent and Arctic sea ice extent both ranked second lowest on record for January.
Global tropical cyclone activity was slightly below average with five named storms, three of which occurred in the Indian Ocean.
https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/news/global-climate-202501
2024 was the warmest year in a multi-dataset record of global temperature going back to 1850.
2024 had a global average temperature of 15.10°C; 0.12°C higher than the previous highest annual value in 2023.
2024 was 0.72°C warmer than the 1991–2020 average, and 1.60°C warmer than the pre-industrial level, making it the first calendar year to exceed 1.5°C above that level.
The last ten years have been the warmest ten years on record.
Each month from January to June 2024 was warmer than the corresponding month in any previous year. August 2024 equalled the record warmth of August 2023 and the remaining months from July to December were each the second warmest for the time of year, after the corresponding months in 2023.
There were three record seasons for the corresponding time of the year: boreal winter (December 2023–February 2024), boreal spring (March–May 2024), and boreal summer (June–August), at 0.78°C, 0.68°C and 0.69°C respectively above the 1991–2020 average.
On 22 July 2024, the daily global average temperature reached a new record high of 17.16°C.
U can pull graphs from this site too.
https://climate.copernicus.eu/global-climate-highlights-2024#:~:text=2024%20saw%20unprecedented%20global%20temperatures,and%20impacts%20of%20climate%20change.
Understanding Climate Change in Alaska:
Overview of global climate change
The last ten years have been the warmest ten years on record.
2024 was the warmest year in a multi-dataset record of global temperature going back to 1850.
Eurasian snow cover extent and Arctic sea ice extent both ranked second lowest on record for January.
Just in the last 800,000 years, there have been eight cycles of ice ages and warmer periods, with the end of the last ice age about 11,700 years ago marking the beginning of the modern climate era — and of human civilization.
Natural fliuctations this time is diffrentthis time its notably human caused and much more drastic agreed upon by science
https://science.nasa.gov/climate-change/evidence/
Why alaska is melting twice as fast
Source Thoman, Rick and John Walsh. 2019. Alaska’s Changing Environment. International Arctic Research Center, University of Alaska Fairbanks.
This means the effects of climate change are hosting us twice as hard anyway
Ice albedo feedback loop
This loop describes how warming reduces the area of snow and ice, leading to less reflectivity and more absorption of solar energy, which then further warms the surface, causing more ice and snow melt
Albedo is ability to reflect sunlight
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08545-z#Abs1
Brief overview of big events where we first hand saw the effects
Ketchikan Landslides
2009 Spring Flood
Beginning April 28, 2009 Excessive snow pack and ice thickness throughout Interior and Northwest Alaska combined with rapid spring warming has caused ice jams and severe flooding in the communities of Crooked Creek, Red Devil, Sleetmute, Aniak, Napaimiut, Eagle, Salcha, North Pole, Kobuk, Chalkyitsik, Chistochina. Damage also occurred along the Alaska Railroad. These severe conditions caused an imminent threat of further severe flooding and ice jam damage for areas along the Yukon, Tanana, Kuskokwim, Susitna, Porcupine, Kobuk, and Copper rivers as well as the Kotzebue Sound and Seward Peninsula River Drainages.
5.1 magnitude quake shakes Southwest Alaska, https://alaskapublic.org/news/environment/2025-04-03/5-1-magnitude-quake-shakes-southwest-alaska
The quake, which struck at about 8 p.m. Monday, was centered about 37 miles east of Egegik. Its shake could be felt up to roughly 190 miles away, according to experts. Elisabeth Nadin is a geologist and communications manager at the Alaska Earthquake Center. “The earthquake itself was unusual because of how big it was,” Nadin said. “There hasn't been an earthquake that big in that area in over a decade.”
Indigenous knowledge on climate change:
Many Indigenous traditional practices offer effective climate solutions, such as sustainable agriculture systems and climate-resilient water management. By safeguarding key ecosystems that act as carbon sinks and protect biodiversity, Indigenous Peoples provide an environmental service to the rest of the world.
Indigenous Peoples are custodians of unique knowledge and practices that emphasize the balance between humans and the natural world.
https://climatepromise.undp.org/news-and-stories/indigenous-knowledge-crucial-fight-against-climate-change-heres-why#:~:text=Many%20Indigenous%20traditional%20practices%20offer,the%20rest%20of%20the%20world.
In the U.S., most Native tribes relocated to the country’s least desirable lands, which have limited resources and infrastructure to buffer the impacts of climate change. In the Southwest, for instance, the Navajo Nation faces a severe water shortage as prolonged drought intensified by climate change further limits access to clean water. In Oklahoma, Cherokee’s heirloom crops are becoming harder to grow, threatening their food security and cultural heritage. Colorado edu https://www.colorado.edu/today/2023/11/20/how-indigenous-knowledge-can-help-solve-climate-crisis
The paper, published in the journal Arctic Science, outlines results and lessons from the Alaska Arctic Observatory and Knowledge Hub, the largest and longest network of its kind. AAOKH is a network of Iñupiaq community observers from five northern Alaska communities collaborating with University of Alaska Fairbanks researchers at the International Arctic Research Center.
“We are working directly with the Indigenous people who have been monitoring and stewarding the Arctic environment since time immemorial,” said UAF research assistant professor Donna Hauser, the project’s lead scientist and the primary author of the paper. “We are trying to elevate and center Indigenous knowledge and perspectives in a way that most scientists have not historically.”
AAOKH began in 2016 to provide coastal Alaska’s Arctic communities with resources and scientific support to share local expertise on changing environmental conditions and their impacts. Guided by a steering group of Indigenous leaders and academic researchers, the research is designed with significant Indigenous input and focuses on questions relevant to their needs.
The backbone of the project is a collection of almost 10,000 unique environmental observations from community members. Critically, the reports include Indigenous knowledge and local perspectives.
“Our language was not written, so remembrance is important to what happened years before with the environment and how it affected our subsistence way of life,” said Robert Shaeffer, one of the observers. “I remember my father observing changes in our climate and environment and how they affected the animals and fish. As I grew older, I started noticing changes as well because he embedded into me being observant of the environment.”
Schaeffer, an Iñupiaq elder in Kotzebue, has been working with AAOKH for about three years. He worries about what kind of world his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren will wake up to. He wants the world to know that his people are concerned.
“We’re living in ground zero,” said Schaeffer, who has also lobbied for climate action. “I try to encourage those that are doing studies worldwide, especially when it comes to global warming, that local voices be involved because we live it, we're experiencing it, and we all notice the changes.” https://www.uaf.edu/news/research-elevates-arctic-indigenous-voices-to-understand-climate-change.php
Alaska Native communities know their land intimately; they’re also disproportionately impacted by climate change. That’s why they should be equitably involved in Arctic research and land management, says Ropati, yet they’re often underrepresented in STEM fields. In response, in 2023 she cofounded lilnativegirlinSTEM, a global network linking Indigenous girls and women with science resources.
“People have so much to learn from us,” Ropati says. “When we have access to scientific spaces, we bring a unique—and needed—perspective.”Charitie
A man holding a line kneels at the edge of a hole in the ice filled with slushy water.
Photo by Donna Hauser
Community observer Vincent Schaeffer takes an oceanographic measurement.
Observers like Schaeffer create reports that include their own perspectives with environmental data.
https://www.belfercenter.org/publication/science-rapid-climate-change-alaska-and-arctic-sea-ice-land-ice-and-sea-level#footnote-2