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Visitors: 2024

Researchers

Cryosphere, hydrology, and climate change in Shár Shaw Tagà Valley

Organizations: ÉTS Montreal, McGill University, and Ohio State University
Principal Investigator: Dr. Michel Baraër (ÉTS Montreal)

For the past 9 years, Dr. Michel Baraër has been studying the hydrology of glacier valleys in the St. Elias Mountains. This year, his team of hydroglaciologists from ÉTS Montreal, McGill, and Ohio State continued field work in Shár Shaw Tagà (Grizzly Creek) Valley. They are researching the interactions between glaciers, permafrost, buried ice, flowing water and how it all is affected by climate change. Using multiple methods and tools (time lapse cameras, geophysical surveys, water sampling, GPS, thermal imaging, and drone surveys), they collect data in the field, and their sensors continue to monitor processes year-round.

The team presented their work at a KLRS community night and created a poster for the KLRS Open House. They also participated in KFN’s National Indigenous Peoples Day events at Thechàl Dhâl visitor centre, where they enjoyed helping make stew with Elders. They published the following paper in 2024:

  • Tjoelker, A. R., Baraër, M., Valence, E., Charonnat, B., Masse-Dufresne, J., Mark, B. G., & McKenzie, J. M. (2024). Drone-Based Ground-Penetrating Radar with Manual Transects for Improved Field Surveys of Buried Ice. Remote Sensing16(13), 2461. DOI: 10.3390/rs16132461.

Kluane Climate Futures – Supporting Climate Change Adaption in KFN Traditional Territory

Organizations: Kluane First Nation, University of Ottawa, Université de Montréal, Yukon University, Parks Canada
Principal Investigator: Dr. Sonia Wesche (University of Ottawa)

KLRS hosted a group from Yukon University, the University of Ottawa, and the Université de Montréal who are working on the Kluane Climate Futures project with Kluane First Nation (KFN) and Parks Canada: “The project aims to build climate change decision-making capacity within Kluane First Nation, using a collaborative, community-engaged, co-learning approach. The goal is to recognize what information the community needs to understand and adapt to climate change and to make that available to support KFN in planning for the future. We aim to take a collaborative approach that involves citizens and community members in bringing together scientific, local, and Traditional knowledge to develop climate change adaptation tools and strategies for the region.”

Working directly with KFN, the team hired a KFN citizen project coordinator and organized a winter Polar Festival for the community of Burwash Landing, Yukon. They presented in a Dän Keyi Renewable Resources Council Meeting, and attended KFN Elder’s council meetings, lunches, and other community events. The researchers also created a poster for the KLRS Open House and collaborated with KLRS in outreach days for Kluane Lake School and St. Elias Community School.

Glacier dynamics and monitoring

Organizations: University of Ottawa, University of Waterloo and Cardiff University
Principal Investigators: Dr. Luke Copland and Dr. Christine Dow

Glaciologists from Dr. Luke Copland’s group at University of Ottawa, Dr. Christine Dow’s group at the University of Waterloo, and Dr. Mike Prior-Jones’ group at Cardiff University came to KLRS for their ongoing collaborative work on the glaciers flowing out of the St. Elias Icefields.

Using hot water, they drilled into the Dän Zhùr (Donjek) Glacier to install wireless equipment that measures tilt, pressure, conductivity, and temperature. The data, which will be used to model glacier dynamics (movement, interaction with surroundings and climate), is sent through the ice to the surface and is picked up by a satellite. The wireless nature of the equipment allows it to last much longer than traditional hardwired instruments, where cables are often severed by ice as the glacier flows. Part of this work was filmed by Yukon University’s Virtual Geology Project and will be featured on their website in the coming months.

On glaciers around Kluane National Park and Reserve, the group has been servicing and maintaining GPS stations, weather stations, and timelapse cameras, and using a helicopter-based ice penetration radar system to determine glacier ice thickness in the region. The team also conducted aerial photography surveys to create highly accurate ice surface maps using photogrammetry techniques. The team created and led outreach activities for the CAFN/BGC/YU youth camp, presented at a KLRS community night, and created a poster for the KLRS Open House. They published the following papers in 2024:

  • Main, B., Copland, L., Flowers, G., Dow, C., Van Wychen, W., Samsonov, S. and Kochtitzky, W. 2024. Topographic and hydrological controls on partial and full surges of Little Kluane Glacier, Yukon. Journal of Glaciology, 1-14. DOI: 10.1017/jog.2024.35.
  • Painter, M., Copland, L., Dow, C., Kochtitzky, W. and Medrzycka, D. 2024. Patterns and mechanisms of repeat drainages of glacier-dammed Dań Zhùr (Donjek) Lake, Yukon. Arctic Science, 10(3), 583-595. DOI: 10.1139/as-2023-0001.

Wind Erosion and Landscape Changes in the Ä'äy Chù Valley

Organizations: Université de Montréal, University of Calgary, Université Grenoble Alpes
Principal Investigator: Dr. James King (Université de Montréal)

Dr. James King (Université de Montréal) is studying changes in the Ä'äy Chù valley that have led to the erosion and deposition of soil sediments by the wind. In collaboration with the University of Calgary and an intern from Université Grenoble Alpes, high precision drone imagery was collected to create a digital model of the sand dunes that form in the valley due to the strong winds. Dr. King has other instruments in the valley to measure how much sand and dust gets moved during windstorms. The Ä'äy Chù valley is a unique place for geomorphologists to study dunes because they are actively forming in real time, as opposed to most dune fields around the world that have already formed in the past.

The team presented at a KLRS community night and created a poster for the KLRS Open House. They collaborated with KLRS in outreach days for local schools (Kluane Lake School and St. Elias Community School), showing students their drone and instruments in the Ä'äy Chù valley. The following paper was published in 2024:

  • Pouillé, Sophie & Talbot, Julie & Tamalavage, Anne & Kessler‐Nadeau, Max & King, James. (2024). Impacts of Mineral Dust on Trace Element Concentrations (As, Cd, Cu, Ni and Pb) in Lichens and Soils at Lhù’ààn Mân’ (Yukon Territory, Canada). Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences. 129. DOI: 10.1029/2023JG007927.

Dust emissions, climate, and feedbacks

Organizations: Colby College, Université de Montréal, Uppsala University
Principal Investigator: Dr. Bess Koffman

Supported by INTERACT Transnational Access, Dr. Bess Koffman of Colby College visited KLRS to study the interaction between glaciers, dust, and the landscape. Collaborating with researchers from Université de Montréal and Uppsala University, they are developing and dating records of loess (wind blown dust) to learn about the history of dust accumulation and distribution in the past. The team also sampled meltwater from glacial-fed rivers to learn about trace metals and potential input of nutrients into the Gulf of Alaska. The team presented their work at a KLRS community night and created a poster for the KLRS Open House.

Ground-truthing remote sensing techniques to map vegetation

Organizations: Queen’s University
Principal Investigator: Dr. Ryan Danby

Dr. Ryan Danby’s PhD student Sandra Yaacoub from Queens University is studying spruce bark beetle infested forests in Kluane using remote sensing. Her fieldwork included measuring tree diameters, heights, shrub abundance and composition, seedlings, saplings, and fallen trees. To support this project, undergraduate Amelia Moise took canopy photos and collected tree cores to date when the infestation occurred at each site. 

The team presented at a KLRS community night and created a poster for the KLRS open house. They took locals out in the field to show their research, including KFN Land Guardian Coordinator Simon Johnson and the Yukon Youth Conservation Corps. Sandra completed the Yukon First Nations 101 course.

Changes in vegetation phenology at subarctic tree line

Organization: Queen’s University
Principal Investigator: Ryan Danby

Nahuel Deltrozzo, a PhD Candidate with Dr. Ryan Danby at Queen’s University, is studying alpine treeline phenology (timing of biological seasonal events) using both satellite and field-based approaches. He installed trail cameras at different treeline sites near Lhù’ààn Mân (Kluane Lake) to monitor seasonal changes in vegetation colour. These photos will be compared with satellite imagery and other environmental variables (temperature, snow onset/offset and depth). This work will help ground-truth the use of satellite methods to monitor ecological changes in the area.

The team created a poster for the KLRS Open House.

Potential earthquake-induced landslides

Organization: Simon Fraser University
Principal Investigator: Dr. Sergio Sepúlveda

Dr. Sergio Sepulveda and PhD candidate Catalina Pino-Rivas from Simon Fraser University are studying potential earthquake-induced landslides in the Kluane Region. They chose this area because it has seismic activity related to the Denali Fault and permafrost (frozen ground), making it important to understand how permafrost and natural disasters might behave in a future earthquake scenario. They visited landslides mapped by the Yukon Geological Survey to study the landforms and link them to what triggered the slides. With these observations, they will develop a landslide susceptibility analysis for the region. Next year, they plan to return to conduct a geotechnical assessment on two landslides that have been linked to earthquakes and contain permafrost.

The team provided a poster for the KLRS Open House and completed the Yukon First Nations 101 course.

Yukon Virtual Geology

Organizations: Yukon University
Principal Investigator: Dr. Joel Cubley

Dr. Joel Cubley, Mary Samolczyk, and Quinn Worthington from Yukon University Earth Sciences were in Kluane National Park and Reserve capturing imagery and video for the Yukon Virtual Geology Project. This virtual field experience will look at different geologic features in the St. Elias Icefields, discuss the history of a few notable glaciers, and touch on the changes seen in this landscape observed in recent times.

The team created a poster for the KLRS Open House and presented preliminary content from the Icefields field experience at the Yukon Geoscience Forum in November. The complete field experience will be available online in early 2025.

Trophic interactions at high latitude ecosystems

Organizations: University of Turku
Principal Investigator: Dr. Mikhail V. Kozlov

Dr. Mikhail V. Kozlov and his colleagues from the University of Turku in Finland visited KLRS through INTERACT (International Network for Terrestrial Research and Monitoring in the Arctic) Transnational Access. They are working on a global ecological project measuring herbivory (consumption of plant material by animals) in different locations around the world. Their fieldwork aimed to study herbivory both belowground (root herbivory) and aboveground (leaf herbivory). To estimate root herbivory, they collected samples of soil, plant roots, and root-feeding insects. To estimate leaf herbivory, they collected samples of leaves from the most abundant woody plant species and measured the area removed or damaged by insects.

Glacial meltwater and snow accumulation on Eclipse Icefield

Organization: University of Maine
Principal Investigator: Dr. Karl Kreutz

Dr. Karl Kreutz and his team, including Dr. Seth Campbell and PhD Candidate Inga Kindstedt, have been examining meltwater percolation in relation to snow accumulation on Eclipse Icefield in Kluane National Park and Reserve. Their objective for 2024 was to conduct ground-penetrating radar (GPR) surveys and take snow and firn (old, recrystallized snow) cores. This data would be used to measure variations in density and water content, to understand their influence on the chemistry of snow, firn, or ice within cores used for reconstructing past climate. They were unable to execute fieldwork in 2024 due to poor weather conditions in the icefield.

All team members took the Yukon First Nations 101 course.

Snowshoe hare habitat and population cycles

Organization: Trent University
Principal Investigator: Dr. Dennis Murray

Dr. Dennis Murray has been studying snowshoe hares in the Kluane region for several decades. His PhD student, Francis Quinby, is researching if snowshoe hare habitat preference changes throughout their 9-to-11-year population cycle. To compare hare density and habitat, he used fecal pellet counts to monitor population trends and drone imagery to create a 3D model of the landscape and forest structure.

Francis provided a poster for the KLRS Open House and presented his research to two of the schools that visited KLRS.

Worldviews of Ice

Organization: Bielefeld University
Principal Investigator: Svenja Holste

Svenja Holste, PhD Candidate at Bielefeld University in Germany, is pursuing a social science project about how natural scientists conduct research in (sub)arctic regions. She came to KLRS after an international permafrost conference in Whitehorse. At the station, she interviewed a group of glaciologists about their research and fieldwork preparations.

Svenja completed the Yukon First Nations 101 course and submitted a poster for the KLRS Open House.


Field Courses

Law of Modern Treaties

Organization: University of Calgary

Law students from the University of Calgary stayed at KLRS as part of their Law of Modern Treaties course. The course explored the history, goals, and effects of modern treaties in the Yukon. During their trip, the class met with leaders and Elders from Kluane First Nation and Champagne & Aishihik First Nations to learn about the perspectives of the Nations on the land and their Final Agreements.

Sea to Sky

Organization: University of Maine

The Sea to Sky program from University of Maine visited KLRS as a part of their capstone project. The students explored the Kluane region, creating art and studying geophysics, rock samples, and water contamination. They flew with Icefield Discovery to view glaciers in the St. Elias Icefields.

Sustainable Systems Engineering

Organization: University of Calgary

University of Calgary’s Sustainability Systems Engineering held their first field school at KLRS. The course was designed to study energy, food, and water in remote communities and how climate change impacts each area. The class learned from local experts on different topics such as Yukon energy, Kluane ecology, and food sustainability.

Boreal Ecology

Organization: University of Exeter

Bioscience students from Exeter University visited KLRS for their ecology field school. The class learned about the boreal forest, population cycles/predator-prey relationships, fire ecology, animal migration, and Beringia. Local guest speakers included a wolf biologist, fire ecologist, and First Nation interpreters.

Sir Winston Churchill High School

Calgary’s Sir Winston Churchill High School offers an Environmental Sciences trip for Grade 11 and 12 students. The group came to the station for a week to explore the Kluane region and learn about its rich history and unique environment. The students enjoyed activities and presentations from local First Nation interpreters, Parks Canada representatives, and researchers.


Other Groups

KFN Women’s Retreat

Dates: Aug 30 – September 2, 2024

KLRS provided accommodation for the Uyinjí Nàtsät Yu - She is Brave Women’s Land and Wellness Retreat based at neighboring Kluane Outdoor Inspirations (KOI). Participants used the cabins, washroom/shower facilities, and had bonfires at KLRS, while retreat events took place nearby at KOI. Our Station Manager Kim was immensely grateful to be invited to partake in the retreat. KLRS is privileged to be located in Lhù’ààn Mân Keyí (Kluane Lake Country) and felt honoured to host Kluane First Nation citizens and community members for this retreat in their beautiful traditional territory.

Drone workshop

Organizations: YG, KFN, CAFN, TH, LSCFN, Parks, CMI, ECCC, Yukon U, Trent U, UBC, UVic, UAlberta

A drone workshop was hosted at KLRS by Environment Yukon, with representatives from First Nation, territorial, and federal governments, and several universities. The group of forty-three spent two days learning how to use drones to collect habitat data, including planning the study design, flying the drones, processing the data, and using the data to answer research questions.

Mars Polar Science pre-conference

Organization: Led by York University

A group of planetary scientists visited KLRS for a pre-conference field trip before the Mars Polar Science conference in Whitehorse. The scientists gained hands-on experience with geomorphological features also found on Mars, including rock glaciers, dunes, and crossbedding. They flew into the icefields to view the glaciers and drew analogies to the polar ice caps on Mars. The group also enjoyed learning about the history and people of Kluane from cultural centres and guided walks with KFN interpreter Pauly Sias.

Yukon Youth Conservation Corps

The Green Team from Yukon Youth Conservation Corps (Y2C2) visited KLRS to help with research and maintenance. They assisted researchers from Queen’s University with forest plots for their fieldwork investigating spruce beetle infestation. They also cleared brush around the weather station and “fire-smarted” around cabins. Y2C2 returned to KLRS for the Community Ecological Monitoring Program (CEMP), where they counted snowshoe hare feces, pinecones, berries, and mushrooms in the surrounding Kluane area.

The Howl Experience

The Howl Experience stayed at KLRS for their Yukon program, which aims to create relationships between youth, communities, and ecosystems. The group enjoyed many experiences connecting with locals and nature, including a Southern Tutchone language lesson, walks/talks with First Nation and Parks Canada interpreters, and volunteering at the CAFN Youth Centre greenhouse.

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