Alaska

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Bird Deaths Caused by 'Blob' Were 'Way Worse' Than Thought

Alaska seabird die-off was 'largest documented wildlife mortality event in the modern era'

(Newser) - After a marine heatwave called "the Blob" killed off large numbers of a seabird called the common murre along the West Coast between 2014 and 2016, scientists estimated that up to 1 million birds had died . But it was "way worse than we thought," US Fish and...

Coast Guard Suspends Search for Crew of Capsized Boat

Authorities believe 5 people were on the Wind Walker when it capsized in the Gulf of Alaska

(Newser) - The search for five people believed to be aboard a fishing vessel that capsized in rough seas in the Gulf of Alaska has been suspended, the Coast Guard said Monday. The search lasted nearly a day and covered more than 108 square nautical miles. "We stand in sorrow and...

Squirrel for Thanksgiving? Not With This Pilot in the Skies

Alaska residents get a meal and a smile thanks to the Alaska Turkey Bomb

(Newser) - In the remotest reaches of Alaska, there's no relying on DoorDash to have Thanksgiving dinner—or any dinner—delivered. But some residents living well off the grid nevertheless have turkeys this holiday, thanks to the Alaska Turkey Bomb. For the third straight year, a resident named Esther Keim has...

Bears Break Into Military Base, Eat Very Well

Another bear was found in a Humvee at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson

(Newser) - Bears trying to put on weight before hibernation may have found the stuff of their dreams at an Alaska military base. Authorities at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson say black bears broke into a storage room and chowed down on Meals Ready to Eat, leaving a huge mess behind, CNN reports. Photos...

Last Vote in 2024 Election Will Be Cast Here

Alaska's remote Adak Island gets the honors

(Newser) - On a desolate slab of island tundra in western Alaska, a resident of Adak will again become the last American to cast an in-person ballot for president, continuing a 12-year tradition for the nation's westernmost community. The honor of having the last voter in the nation fell to Adak when...

It's a Poignant Win at This Year's Fat Bear Week

Mama bear beats male bear who fatally attacked one of her cubs this summer

(Newser) - The winner of Fat Bear Week 2024 is, for the first time in the contest's history, a mama bear who was actively caring for a cub at the time of her win. Not only that, but 128 "Grazer" also won last year's competition , giving her back-to-back titles,...

Viewers 'Stunned' by Fat Bear Week's Gory Start

Contestant unveiling is delayed after one bear is killed by another in Alaska's Katmai National Park

(Newser) - Voting is scheduled to start this week for Katmai National Park & Preserve's annual Fat Bear Week , despite a grisly setback. The AP reports that the 10th annual "chunk-off"—which lets fans pick which bear in that part of the Alaska Peninsula is the plumpest after a...

'Startling' Video Shows Encounter Between Russian Jet, US F-16

Russian fighter jet swoops within feet of the US aircraft

(Newser) - Military officials have released new video of a startling encounter between a Russian fighter jet flying near Alaska and a US Air Force F-16 sent to intercept it, the AP reports. In the video released Monday, the Russian plane comes from behind the camera and swoops by the US jet,...

It's That Time Again: Alaska's Fat Bear Week Is Upon Us

Contestants for Fat Bear Jr. contest have been announced

(Newser) - An Alaska national park's yearly celebration of the beefy, brown, and bristly is getting underway as some of the chunkiest bears on the planet fatten up for their long winter slumber. Fat Bear Week doesn't officially start at Katmai National Park and Preserve until Oct. 2, when fans...

Alaskan Island Is On the Hunt for a Solitary Rat

Residents of Alaska's St. Paul Island are desperate to keep invasive rodent away after reported sighting

(Newser) - On an island of windswept tundra in the Bering Sea, hundreds of miles from mainland Alaska, a resident sitting outside their home saw—well, did they see it? They were pretty sure they saw it. A rat. The purported sighting wouldn't have gotten attention in many places around the...

As Russia Keeps Popping Up Near Alaska, US Sends in Troops

US deploys 130 soldiers to remote Aleutian island amid uptick in Russian planes, vessels

(Newser) - The US military has moved about 130 soldiers along with mobile rocket launchers to a desolate island in the Aleutian chain of western Alaska amid a recent increase in Russian military planes and vessels approaching American territory. Eight Russian military planes and four navy vessels, including two submarines, have come...

He's Never Lived in Alaska. He's in Prison, and He's on the Ballot
New York Inmate
Will Stay on Alaska Ballot
UPDATED
Sep 13, 2024 10:05 AM CDT

New York Inmate Will Stay on Alaska Ballot

Alaska Democratic party sued to have Eric Hafner taken off ballot for state's lone House seat

(Newser) - An inmate serving a 20-year sentence in a federal prison in New York can remain on the ballot for Alaska's sole US House seat, Alaska's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday. The court affirmed the Tuesday ruling of an Anchorage Superior Court judge who dismissed a lawsuit from the...

This Is America's Hardest-Working State

North Dakota takes the top spot, per WalletHub

(Newser) - Americans are known for working around the clock and while hard work is admirable, a WalletHub analyst notes that "people in the hardest-working states may need to consider taking a break once in a while, as a lack of leisure time can have a negative impact on people's...

Man Was Tackled by a Bear. Seconds Later, He Was Shot
Man Was Tackled by a Bear.
Seconds Later, He Was Shot
in case you missed it
Aug 24, 2024 4:25 PM CDT

Man Was Tackled by a Bear. Seconds Later, He Was Shot

Hunter attacked on Alaska's Kenai Peninsula remarkably leaves hospital the same day

(Newser) - A hunter was attacked by a brown bear, then shot in the midst of the mauling, on Alaska's Kenai Peninsula on Saturday. The 32-year-old was airlifted to an Anchorage hospital and discharged later Saturday, reports KDLL . Authorities have not named the individual, but a former Soldotna resident now living...

Anchorage Police Fatally Shoot 16-Year-Old Girl

Easter Leafa refused to drop knife before approaching police, according to APD

(Newser) - Anchorage Police say they shot and killed a 16-year-old girl who approached officers with a knife days before she was to start her junior year of high school. A 911 caller first reported her sister had threatened her with a knife around 11:30pm Tuesday. Police said they arrived at...

Family of 4 Missing After Boat Capsizes in Alaska

Parents, two sons are from Texas

(Newser) - A Texas family of four is missing after the boat they were in capsized near Homer, Alaska, reports the Anchorage Daily News . Authorities say David and Mary Maynard, ages 42 and 37, and sons Colton, 11, and Brantley, 7, were in a 28-foot aluminum boat with four other people when...

Abandoned Walrus Calf Is 'Sassy,' Being Spoiled a Lot

Calf was discovered on a beach in Utqiagvik, Alaska, after her herd left

(Newser) - A walrus calf seemingly left behind by her herd near Alaska's northernmost city is alert and "sassy" as she receives care at a nonprofit wildlife response center hundreds of miles from where she was rescued, said a center spokesperson, per the AP . Alaska SeaLife Center rep Kaiti Grant...

This Is the Most Dangerous State in America

New Mexico tops the list, while Rhode Island is deemed the safest

(Newser) - Perhaps no one knows better than personal injury lawyers how dangerous simply existing can be these days—especially in the US, where death rates are about 2.5 times higher than the average rates in other high-income nations, per Newsweek . That's why the Caputo and Van Der Walde Injury...

Alaskan Glaciers Are Melting at 'Incredibly Worrying' Pace
Amid Alaskan Glaciers,
a Possible 'Death Spiral'
NEW STUDY
Jul 3, 2024 10:25 AM CDT

Amid Alaskan Glaciers, a Possible 'Death Spiral'

Researchers say Juneau Ice Field saw ice melt in 2010 to 2019 at double the rate it had previously

(Newser) - Since the late 1700s, the Juneau Ice Field, interconnected glaciers that stretch across 1,500 square miles of Alaska and British Columbia, has lost about a quarter of its volume. But it's an "incredibly worrying" phenomenon that took place between 2010 and 2020 that has scientists especially concerned:...

Baby Moose Saved From Lake as Mama Watches

All ended well in scary Alaska incident

(Newser) - An Alaska man and two police officers rescued a baby moose from what police described as "a sure demise" after it fell into a lake and got stuck in a narrow space between a floatplane and a dock, the AP reports. Spencer Warren, who works for the outdoor tourism...

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