So, just returned from Talkeetna, Alaska. While there we were going to take a boat ride up the Susitna River. Our trip had to be shortened because the river was so low. The guide piloting the boat said they had never seen the river that low. This river is glacier fed and their explanation was that it was so cold up at the glacier that it was starting to freeze up already.
Now I’m not trying to get into the whole global warming issue but this really surprised me. Googling has failed me in trying to find some facts to support this.
Are there any online sources for temp readings at the glaciers to verify this?
Have heard that the arctic is cooling faster than normal this year.
Can’t remember when / when / but in the last 4-5 months I am pretty sure.
I am so helpful. :::: preen ::::::
http://m.dailyjournal.net/view/story/637a110317b7476da84818ade26d15bb/AK--Warm-Water-Fish-Deaths
This article from mid-August says a lack of winter snow (last season) and summer rain is the cause. Seems to have impacted most of south-central Alaska. I’d say the river guide was a little confused about causation. Perhaps parts of Alaska being too cold is much less scary (and less livelihood-threatening) than parts of Alaska being too warm.
It could be a double whammy as well.
Less snow last winter and less rain this summer means the river was already low and then an early “cooling” slows/stops the melting that was happening, making it even worse.
That’s how many extremes in nature happen…an alignment of two or more unusual conditions working in tandem to get out there on the edge of the bell curve.
If you think conceptually about a glacier, it’s sort of a conveyor belt that takes snow from high elevations where the snow-and-ice season is very long, down to low elevations where the melting season is longer. When glaciers recede, it’s the lower elevation part that does. It makes a certain amount of sense that if you’ve got a glacier-fed stream, the glacier receding results in a shorter runoff season because the portion of the year when the glacier is actively melting is a lot shorter because what’s left of the glacier is at higher elevation.
Good point there GreasyJack.
The Susitna River is a braided river between Talkeetna and the headwaters, so is pretty shallow to begin with. Combined with the low snowfall this past winter, it’s not surprising that it’s become impassible in some areas, especially that far upstream.
Sorry about the font size in my post - having issues with using iphone to post.