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Weekly Highlights for 04-30-2009

I. Departmental/Bureau News

A. Upcoming Events

USGS Science at American Water Resources Conference
USGS Alaska Science Center (ASC) hydrologist Tim Brabets and research ecologist Chris Arp will give presentations at a special conference titled "Managing Water Resources Development in a Changing Climate" sponsored by the American Water Resources Association (AWRA), May 4-6 in Anchorage. The conference will provide a multi-disciplinary overview of potential impacts on water resources by changing climate conditions. Brabets will present research on streamflow trends in the Yukon River Basin and Arp will present research on lake change in the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area. Along with Arp, ASC hydrologists Janet Curran and Jeff Conaway will moderate sessions.
Contact: Christopher Arp Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7119

USGS Presentation on Impacts of Volcanic Eruptions to Aviation
USGS Alaska Volcano Observatory scientist Christina Neal will present the luncheon talk at the upcoming Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airports Division Alaskan Region Partnership Conference on May 19 at the University of Alaska Rasmussen Hall in Anchorage. The conference brings together airport managers, maintenance experts, and various state and federal government managers, regulators and contractors to discuss Alaskan airport operations and planning for the future. Neal will speak about recent eruptions affecting aviation and airports in Alaska and how the USGS works to mitigate these impacts.
Contact: C. (Tina) Neal Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7458

B. Current

Redoubt Eruption and Monitoring Continues
The eruption of Redoubt Volcano continues into its seventh week and USGS Alaska Science Center staff at the Alaska Volcano Observatory (AVO), visiting staff from the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, and the USGS Cascades Volcano Observatory continue to monitor and investigate ongoing activity. A blocky lava dome, several hundred feet high, is growing in the summit crater, producing an elongate tongue of lava down the upper north flank and releasing large amounts of volcanic gas into the atmosphere. Occasional rockfalls from the face of the dome produce very minor ash falls on the volcanic edifice. The aviation Color Code remains at ORANGE with the Alert Level at WATCH. Over the past week, AVO conducted a gas and observation flight. Data from real-time seismic networks, web cameras, ground-based radar, GPS stations, an infrasound instrument, and near-real imagery from satellites are monitored by AVO staff 24/7. AVO continues to post daily updates of Redoubts condition on the AVO website (http://www.avo.alaska.edu/activity/Redoubt.php). AVO is a partnership among the USGS, the State of Alaska Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys, and The University of Alaska Geophysical Institute.
Contact: C. (Tina) Neal Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7458

New Publication on Genetic Diversity in Sea Otters
USGS Alaska Science Center biologists Daniel Monson and Brenda Ballachey are co-authors of a new publication appearing in the journal Marine Mammal Science titled "Stress-related hormones and genetic diversity in sea otters (Enhydra lutris)." All extant sea otter populations have experienced a population bottleneck and thus have lost genetic variation, which may lead to reduced fitness or "inbreeding depression". Inbreeding depression may result in reduced ability to respond to stressful stimuli because of increased levels of stress-related adrenal glucocorticoid hormones. We investigated correlations of cortisol and corticosterone with genetic diversity in sea otters from five populations. We found a significant negative correlation between genetic diversity and both mean population-level and individual-level corticosterone values. The strength of the correlations suggests potential negative consequences for overall population health, particularly for the California population, which has the lowest genetic diversity. The abstract can be found at: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/121509534/abstract.
Contact: Daniel Monson Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7161

USGS Publication on Matanuska-Susitna Valley Streams, Alaska
USGS Alaska Science Center hydrologist Janet Curran and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service hydrologist William Rice have coauthored a new USGS Scientific Investigations Report titled, "Baseline Channel Geometry and Aquatic Habitat Data for Selected Streams in the Matanuska-Susitna Valley, Alaska" and posted online at http://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2009/5084/. Streams in the Big Lake basin were drawn from aerial imagery and field measurements of channel geometry and habitat attributes were collected for 16 miles of Meadow Creek and Little Meadow Creek as well as three additional sites representative of various types of small streams that support anadromous and resident fish in the rapidly developing Matanuska-Susitna Valley.
Contact: Janet Curran Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7128

II. Press Inquiries/Media

From April 23 - 29 USGS scientists at the Alaska Volcano Observatory answered media inquiries from CBS affiliate KTVA-TV (Ch. 11, Anchorage) about the current period of unrest at Redoubt Volcano.
Contact: C. (Tina) Neal Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7458

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