University of Alaska Fairbanks

Here at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, as wisdom passes from one generation to the next, revolutionary ideas are thriving and a new academic culture is taking shape.

With undergraduates making up 89 percent of the total student body, UAF is a hotbed of diversity and fresh thinking. Whether you’re returning to school to start a new phase of your life or coming in as a recent high school graduate, you’ll quickly make new friends with a similar drive to achieve. And, because our backyard is the vast environmental laboratory of Alaska, UAF attracts exceptional individuals — academic superstars and adventure-seekers alike.

With seven campuses across the state, we are home to more than 11,000 students from all over the world — each in pursuit of something extraordinary.

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Thermokarst ponds, or trough ponds, typically form when the ice in permafrost melts. They can also drain quickly. Anna Liljedahl

Disappearing lakes and AI are helping scientists map Arctic permafrost thaw in near‑real time

Anna Liljedahl, University of Alaska Fairbanks and Ingmar Nitze, Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research

The abrupt disappearance of a lake is one clear sign that the ice below is melting, and a clue to wider permafrost changes.
As temperatures rise, the timing of the ice thaw changes. Vincent Denarie via Arctic Report Card

From record warming to rusting rivers, 2025 Arctic Report Card shows a region transforming faster than expected

Matthew L. Druckenmiller, University of Colorado Boulder; Rick Thoman, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Twila A. Moon, University of Colorado Boulder

The 20th anniversary of the annual report tracks how sea ice, snow cover and many other vital signs of the Arctic have changed, and the impact that’s having on people and wildlife.
Thawing permafrost and changing seasons affect wildlife across the Arctic. Dennis Welker/E+ via Getty Images

Arctic has changed dramatically in just a couple of decades – 2024 report card shows worrying trends in snow, ice, wildfire and more

Twila A. Moon, University of Colorado Boulder; Matthew L. Druckenmiller, University of Colorado Boulder, and Rick Thoman, University of Alaska Fairbanks

Rapid changes underway in the Arctic affect the region’s people and wildlife, and the entire planet.
Giovanna Stevens grew up harvesting salmon at her family’s fish camp on Alaska’s Yukon River. Climate change is interrupting hunting and fishing traditions in many areas. AP Photo/Nathan Howard

Arctic Report Card 2023: From wildfires to melting sea ice, the warmest summer on record had cascading impacts across the Arctic

Rick Thoman, University of Alaska Fairbanks; Matthew L. Druckenmiller, University of Colorado Boulder, and Twila A. Moon, University of Colorado Boulder

The early heat melted snow and warmed rivers, heating up the land and downstream ocean areas. The effects harmed salmon fisheries, melted sea ice and fueled widespread fires.
Rainier winters make life more difficult for Arctic wildlife and the humans who rely on them. Scott Wallace/Getty Image

Arctic Report Card 2022: The Arctic is getting rainier and seasons are shifting, with broad disturbances for people, ecosystems and wildlife

Matthew L. Druckenmiller, University of Colorado Boulder; Rick Thoman, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Twila A. Moon, University of Colorado Boulder

The annual report is also a reminder that what happens in the Arctic affects the rest of the world.
Community members from Utqiagvik, Alaska, look to open water from the edge of shorefast sea ice. Matthew Druckenmiller

2021 Arctic Report Card reveals a (human) story of cascading disruptions, extreme events and global connections

Matthew L. Druckenmiller, University of Colorado Boulder; Rick Thoman, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Twila A. Moon, University of Colorado Boulder

Sea ice is thinning at an alarming rate. Snow is shifting to rain. And humans worldwide are increasingly feeling the impact of what happens in the seemingly distant Arctic.
The Denali Highway as it crosses the Susitna River. Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Infrastructure bill passed by Congress promises billions for bridge repair – rural Alaska shows the growing need as temperatures rise

Guangqing Chi, Penn State; Davin Holen, University of Alaska Fairbanks; Heather Randell, Penn State; Megan Mucioki, Penn State, and Rebecca Napolitano, Penn State

Alaska is warming faster than any other U.S. state, and that’s causing problems, a team of bridge engineers and social scientists explains. The infrastructure bill in Congress would offer some help.
Smoke from wildfires in Siberia drifts east toward Canada and the U.S. on July 30, 2019. NASA

Huge wildfires in the Arctic and far North send a planetary warning

Nancy Fresco, University of Alaska Fairbanks

A researcher based in Fairbanks, Alaska, links 2019’s record-breaking wildfires in far northern regions of the world to climate change, and describes what it’s like as zones near her city burn.
A pod of narwhals (Monodon monoceros) in central Baffin Bay. Narwhals are the most vulnerable animals to increased ship traffic in the Arctic Ocean. Kristin Laidre/University of Washington

As Arctic ship traffic increases, narwhals and other unique animals are at risk

Donna Hauser, University of Alaska Fairbanks; Harry Stern, University of Washington, and Kristin Laidre, University of Washington

Climate change is shrinking Arctic sea ice and opening the region to ship traffic. Whales, seals and other marine mammals could be at risk unless nations adopt rules to protect them.
2016’s warm winter meant not enough snow for the start of the Iditarod sled dog race in Anchorage, so it was brought by train from 360 miles north. AP/Rachel D'Oro

In Alaska, everyone’s grappling with climate change

Nancy Fresco, University of Alaska Fairbanks

For everyone from traditional hunters to the military, the National Park Service to the oil industry, climate change is the new reality in Alaska. Government, residents and businesses are all trying to adapt.

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