Kotzebue Ocean and Sea Ice Monitoring

Since 2019, AAOKH has worked collaboratively with the Native Village of Kotzebue to monitor ocean and sea ice conditions in Kotzebue Sound. These monitoring efforts provide insights into environmental changes that affect the safety of travel and access to important traditionally harvested foods for Qikiqtaġrumiut in Qikiqtaġruk (Kotzebue).

Each year near the outflow of the Noatak and Kobuk Rivers, a community-monitored sea ice mass-balance station is installed on the sea ice together with an ice-tethered oceanographic instrument deployed under the ice. The instrument continuously measures ocean temperature and salinity (how salty the ocean is) beneath the ice. Approximately weekly, an environmental monitor from the Tribe also takes casts of the ocean conditions with a handheld instrument and also takes measurements of sea ice and snow thickness.

This is a critical area both for wildlife and for people traveling across the sea ice to access important harvest locations. When paired with regular environmental observations contributed to AAOKH Kotzebue observer Bobby Schaeffer, this combined monitoring effort provides some of the only community-based and winter season ice and ocean measurements in coastal Arctic Alaska - telling a rich, holistic story of winter conditions and impacts to the community (see example).

Two men, one with shovel and the other drilling a hole in the sea ice.
Native Village of Kotzebue's Tyson Kramer and Bobby Schaeffer drilling ice to measure thickness.
Two men stand in front of hole in ice next to sled full of scientific equipment.
Native Village of Kotzebue's Tyson Kramer and Bobby Schaeffer lowering the oceanographic instrument that will measure the ocean temperature and salinity.

Pairing Observations with Oceanographic Data

Here's an example from Hauser et al. (2023), showing time series of oceanographic events detectable from oceanographic measurements of salinity, temperature, and chlorophyll-a (a measure of primary production) near Kotzebue, from April to August 2019. When set alongside observations and photos from Kotzebue, we can see the impacts to animals, harvesting, and travel of unusually warm ocean conditions.

Annotated graph showing salinity, temperature, and chlorophyll measurements between April and August.
Maya Russin drilling hole in sea ice.
UAF graduate student Maya Russin drills holes to set up the sea ice mass balance station to collect measurements of sea ice thickness and snow depth.

Find the Data

Visit our Facebook Page for regular updates on ice and ocean conditions at the station casts in Kotzebue Sound. For data use, contact aaokh@alaska.edu.