Land of Enchantment
View of the Sandia Mountains on my morning walk
Hit the Ground Running
My flight home to New Mexico was smooth sailing, with a last glimpse of Mount Denali from the plane…
Farewell, Alaska
Today is my last day here in the north country. As I walk for the last time along Stampede road to the research cabin, I am surprised at how quickly autumn has arrived here. Seems…
Tundra CHICKENS!
Ptarmagan showing her white feathers in anticipation for winter
Seven lovely ptarmigans trotted through our site today. They are starting to show their little white bloomers!…
Friday Night Talk
Marguerite Mauritz and I presented to Denali Park visitors on Friday night. Marguerite explained the CiPEHR project, and I talked about PolarTREC and my experience as a research…
The tundra - home to the cryptogams; moss and lichen
Tangled Up in Classification
Classifying and organizing living organisms helps us to understand patterns and functions in the natural world.…
Scientists Help Each Other
Today, we worked on a project called "Deep Roots", a project that belongs to Becky Hewitt and Michelle Mack. These scientists are collecting data to understand how plants…
Denali visitors enjoying sphagnum moss
Denali National Park Visitor Education
You may know that the National Park Service helps to educate the public about the natural history of the parks,…
Research Routine
Each morning I rise early and greet the day with a black cup of coffee, a few yoga stretches and a brisk three mile walk to the main research cabin. These morning walks are usually…
AKA Fungus
I dont know the name, but I love this Yellow LIttle Hat Mushroom!
Another name for a fungus is mycellium. If I were to have another life, I think I would like to be a mycologist, a…
Scientists Relax
Research Takes a Small Break
Long hours are given to work in the field and lab here in Healy, Alaska. Often the scientists are up early and out of the cabin by 6:00 am and…
Capturing Tundra Soil Respiration
Another way to estimate how much carbon dioxide is being respired in response to a warming tundra is to capture the gas emitted from the soil environment and…
Karen Temple Beamish looks good in RED!
Refresher on Light Energy
Visible light energy emitted from the sun is absorbed by the chlorophyll in green plants to be used in photosynthesis.…
