Ice and Fire

In mini-episode four, we listen to part of the glacier travel story shared in the book Do Glaciers Listen?  for a second time. Frank Olive from the University of Alaska Fairbanks shares risk mitigation strategies, like roping up to avoid injury during crevasse falls.

topics and purpose: safety, why we rope up for travel on snow-covered glaciers

terms defined: crevasse, snow bridge

In episode three we hear from Judy Ramos in Lingít Aaní. She tells us about the history of glacier travel in the region, and about the Spirit of the Glacier.

topics and purpose: Indigenous people in Alaska and Canada have been traveling on glaciers for hundreds to thousands of years, oral stories in the region about glaciers, historic glacier advance and retreat impacted communities, Spirit of the Glacier, glaciers respond to people

terms defined: Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Indigenous science

In episode two of the Ice and Fire podcast, we are atop the Kennicott Glacier in Wrangell-St. Elias National Park with Dr. Eric Petersen and his field team.

topics and purpose: audio capture of glacier melt occurring in real-time, continue place-based themes from the surface of a glacier, connect listeners with field research and techniques, share how glacial retreat is measured and how rapidly retreat is occurring

terms defined: ablation, ablation stake, ablation zone; glacial retreat; dead glacier; Heucke drill

notes: Philipp Arndt, PhD student, contributed to this episode with explanations for how to set an ablation stake

​In this introductory episode of season one of the Ice and Fire podcast, hear from your host, Theresa Soley, as she shares her unexpected interest in glacial ice.

topics and purpose: geological history and glacier change, an introduction to characters, scene-setting: Wrangell Mountains Center in McCarthy, Alaska – the end of the road and Wrangell St.-Elias National Park; visualizing the presently glaciated landscape from above during a flyover

terms defined: glacier, icefield, debris-covered glacier

notes: the Hardware Store in McCarthy is typically referred to as the Old Hardware Store