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This week on State of Art we’re learning about RKP Productions‘ upcoming play “Tanker on the Rocks or the Great Alaskan Bad Friday Fish Spill of ’89.” It’s a parody of the 1989 Exxon Valdex oil spill, but you won’t need to be a history buff to enjoy it. Dick Reichman wrote the play after…

Sea ice floats in the Bering Strait off Cape Prince of Wales. (UAF photo by Gay Sheffield) There is less sea ice in the Bering Sea now than at any time in at least 5,500 years. That’s the finding of a new study by the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the U.S. Geological Survey in…

Sea ice floats in the Bering Strait off Cape Prince of Wales. (UAF photo by Gay Sheffield) Stories are posted on the statewide news page. You can subscribe to Alaska Public Media’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @AKPublicNews Friday on Alaska News Nightly: State health officials begin preparing to distribute a COVID-19 vaccine, when…

The Brother Francis Shelter in July, 2020. The shelter has been operating at about half of its normal capacity due to the COVID-19 pandemic and is currently able to house 114 people. (Lex Treinen/Alaska Public Media) At least one person who stayed at the Brother Francis Shelter has died of COVID-19, according to city officials,…

There are many places to get outdoors in Alaska from basic car camping to remotemountains and rivers. One can hike from almost any village, town, or city in Alaskaand leave civilization in no time, including Anchorage. Chugach State Parkborders Anchorage and is then bordered by Chugach National Forest. Combinedthey are almost 7 million acres of…

Luna makes her drag debut during the Glitz Drive-In Drag Show on Saturday August 29, 2020 in Juneau, Alaska (Photo Courtesy of Rashah McChesney) Stories are posted on the statewide news page. You can subscribe to Alaska Public Media’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @AKPublicNews Thursday on Alaska News Nightly: Climate change is drawing…

The Bartlett High School Golden Bears face off against the Chugiak Mustangs at Mulcahey Field in Anchorage for the 2017 state football semi-final. Casey Grove/Alaska Public Media) The Anchorage School District says its high school sports teams can move from conditioning-only workouts to full practices starting Friday with games beginning as early as next week.…

Wild blueberries grow in many areas of Alaska. Berry picking is a popular activity during the summer (Photo courtesy of Kirsten Swann) Stories are posted on the statewide news page. You can subscribe to Alaska Public Media’s newsfeeds via email, podcast and RSS. Follow us on Facebook at alaskapublic.org and on Twitter @AKPublicNews Wednesday on Alaska News Nightly: Student athletes at the University of…

An arch in Utqiaġvik made from bones of a bowhead whale. (Arctic Council Secretariat / Kseniia Iartceva) As cases of COVID-19 spike in Alaska’s North Slope Borough, Mayor Harry Brower has issued a two-week “hunker down” order and mask mandate for the region’s hub town, Utqiaġvik. Brower issued his emergency order Tuesday, requiring the town’s…

YKHC Nurse Kerry Cobbledick hands out swabs at a station set up for coronavirus testing outside of the Alaska Airlines airport terminal in Bethel, Alaska. (Katie Basile/KYUK) There are new rules during the pandemic for anyone residing in or traveling to Bethel. Passengers who get off at the Alaska Airlines terminal in Bethel will now…

A satellite image of the Red Dog Mine from August 16, 2020, shows the active Aqqaluk pit (top) flooded with water. It came from Red Dog’s tailings reservoir, as problems connected to permafrost thaw and global warming blocked the mine from discharging into a nearby creek and caused water in the reservoir to back up.…

A worker counting absentees at the Division of Elections in Anchorage in 2012. (Annie Feidt/Alaska Public Media) Civil rights groups are asking Alaska’s lieutenant governor not to enforce the requirement that voters get a witness to sign the envelope of their mail-in ballots. They say enforcing the requirement disenfranchises many voters. “So we write to…

The Anchorage Economic Development Corporation recently held a virtual luncheon for their annual 3-Year Outlook. The event featured speakers and a presentation on how COVID-19 has affected the economy, a look at employment statistics and the Consumer Optimism Index. FULL PROGRAM: SPEAKERS: Anchorage Mayor Ethan BurkowitzAEDC Board Chair Lynn Rust HendersonAEDC President and CEO Bill…

Brother Francis Shelter in Anchorage, Alaska (Jeff Chen/Alaska Public Media) The number of known COVID-19 infections linked to the Brother Francis Shelter in Anchorage grew to 79 by Monday, according to city officials.  Municipal Manager Bill Falsey said the city is hopeful that the outbreak at the downtown shelter is under control. “We’re cautiously optimistic that…

This satellite image of the Red Dog Mine shows the tailings reservoir at bottom left, the main pit on the center right and the active Aqqaluk pit (with orange color at the bottom) above. (Google Earth, data from CNES/Airbus and Maxar Technologies). The multinational company that operates the massive Red Dog Mine in Northwest Alaska…

The Anchorage Pioneer Home on Aug. 31, 2020 (Lex Treinen/Alaska Public Media) A resident from the Anchorage Pioneer Home has died of COVID-19, the state health department said Monday. It’s the second Pioneer Home resident who has died with the disease. The state announced the first resident’s death last week. The Alaska Department of Health…

Vehicles light Igiugig’s runway on Friday, August, 28, 2020. (Photo courtesy Ida Nelson) Late Friday night a child in Igiugig needed to be medevaced to Anchorage.  The small Southwest Alaska village is right at the mouth of the Kvichak River on the south end of Iliamna Lake. LifeMed sent a King Air flight over from…

Mayor Berkowitz speaks at a news conference on Aug. 28, 2020 (Screenshot from Mayor Berkowitz’s Facebook) After a month-long attempt to curb the surge of COVID-19 cases, the Municipality of Anchorage is loosening restrictions on businesses. Starting Monday restaurants, bars, breweries and nightclubs will be allowed to resume indoor, sit-down service, provided they limit capacity…

(Airn Carl/KYUK) School is underway across the state, but it’s a wide ranging mix of in person and distance learning for students. How will rural students access course materials in areas with little or no broadband? What was learned from the disruption of sudden school closures in the spring that can help keep students engaged…