Satellites help observe glaciers in Alaska

Satellites help observe glaciers in Alaska. Satellites help observe glaciers in Alaska. Today’s Image of the Day from NASA Earth Observatory features Glacier Bay National Park in southeast Alaska. 

The park is well-known for its glaciers that flow into the sea. Most of the glaciers are located deep in the Alaskan wilderness, where it can be challenging for scientists to observe changes.

In the current study, satellite imagery is helping experts forecast changes throughout the region. Satellites help observe glaciers in Alaska

“Glacier Bay National Park is a well-known and visited area that is showing significant ice loss,” said  Christopher Shuman.

“But all the glacier thinning and retreat, as well as increased debris-cover and dramatic landslides, haven’t been fully documented yet.” Alaska ; Aleut: Alax̂sxax̂; Inupiaq: Alaasikaq; Pacific Gulf Yupik: Alas’kaaq; Tlingit: Anáaski) is a U.S. state on the northwest extremity of the country’s West Coast, just across the Bering Strait from Asia. A semi-exclave of the U.S., it borders the Canadian province of British Columbia and territory of Yukon to the east and southeast and has a maritime border with Russia’s Chukotka Autonomous Okrug to the west. To the north are the Chukchi and Beaufort seas of the Arctic Ocean, while the Pacific Ocean lies to the south and southwest.Alaska is by far the largest U.S. state by area, comprising more total area than the next three largest states Texas, California, and Montana combined, and the seventh-largest subnational division in the world. It is the third-least populous and the most sparsely populated state, but by far the continent’s most populous territory located mostly north

Image Credit: NASA Earth Observatory

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By Chrissy Sexton, Earth.com Staff Writer