Alaska

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Report: Crashed Plane Was Half a Ton Overweight

10 people died when the Bering Air flight crashed Feb. 6 in Alaska

(Newser) - A commuter plane that crashed last month in Alaska was half a ton too heavy for the icy conditions it encountered, according to a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board. The Bering Air flight crashed Feb. 6 while flying from Unalakleet to Nome, a distance of 140 miles....

Alaska Volcano Could Be Getting Ready to Erupt

Mount Spurr is just 80 miles from Anchorage

(Newser) - A volcano near Alaska's largest city is showing new signs of unrest, with experts saying the likelihood of an eruption at Mount Spurr in the next few weeks or months has increased. The Alaska Volcano Observatory said Wednesday that it had measured during recent overflights "significantly elevated volcanic...

States With the Highest Tax Rates in America

Sorry, Illinois residents—WalletHub says it's the worst

(Newser) - "Every year during tax season, Americans are reminded of just how much of their hard-earned income isn't theirs to keep." That's the take offered by Chip Lupo, an analyst for WalletHub, which decided to see which US states claim the lowest (and highest) tax rates as...

Skiers Buried Under More Than 40 Feet of Snow

The avalanche struck Tuesday afternoon near Girdwood, Alaska

(Newser) - Tragedy struck in Alaska Tuesday afternoon, when three men skiing near Girdwood—about 40 miles south of Anchorage—were swept up in an avalanche and buried under snow that measured as deep as a 10-story building in places. Alaska State Troopers on Wednesday said the men were out-of-state clients of...

Lack of Snowfall Confounds Anchorage

Winter events in Anchorage, including the Iditarod, have to adapt this year

(Newser) - Anchorage has reached a new low in snowfall, shaking up the usual winter activities—including the famed Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. Just 4.3 inches was recorded this week at the National Weather Service's Sand Lake gauge, the least to fall between Dec. 1 and mid-February since recordkeeping...

Murkowski: 'In Alaska, It's Denali'
'In Alaska, It's Denali'
Feb 14, 2025 1:16 PM CST

'In Alaska, It's Denali'

Alaska's 2 GOP senators introduce bill to reverse Trump order on mountain's name

(Newser) - Alaska's two senators, both Republicans, are trying to reverse one of President Trump's Day 1 executive orders . Sen. Lisa Murkowski has introduced a bill to change the federal government's name for America's tallest peak back to Denali from Mount McKinley. It was co-sponsored by Sen. Dan...

What We Know About the Alaska Plane Crash

All 10 bodies recovered on sea ice near Nome as investigation continues

(Newser) - Authorities are working to recover the wreckage of a plane crash in western Alaska that killed 10 people while investigators are trying to determine what caused the small commuter aircraft to go down in the icy Bering Sea. Crews on Saturday succeeded in recovering the remains of those killed in...

Plane Carrying 10 Is Missing in Alaska
Wreckage
of Missing Plane
Found on Sea Ice
UPDATED
Feb 7, 2025 7:48 PM CST

Wreckage of Missing Plane Found on Sea Ice

Bering Air plane was last heard from over the Norton Sound

(Newser) - The wreckage of the Bering Air Caravan that went missing Thursday in Alaska has been found, with all 10 people who were on board presumed dead. The Wall Street Journal reports the plane vanished over the Bering Sea and was found on ocean ice. The US Coast Guard in Alaska...

Trump Wants Denali Renamed
Trump Wants Denali Renamed
Dec 23, 2024 6:40 PM CST

Trump Wants Denali Renamed

Alaska's two Republican senators object to changing back to Mount McKinley

(Newser) - Opposition to President-elect Trump's renewed suggestion to change the name of Alaska's 20,310-foot mountain back to McKinley includes many Alaskans, including Indigenous people, and the state's two Republican senators. Sen. Lisa Murkowski advocated for years to remove the name of the nation's 25th president, who...

Bird Deaths Caused by 'Blob' Were 'Way Worse' Than Thought

Alaska seabird die-off was 'largest documented wildlife mortality event in the modern era'

(Newser) - After a marine heatwave called "the Blob" killed off large numbers of a seabird called the common murre along the West Coast between 2014 and 2016, scientists estimated that up to 1 million birds had died . But it was "way worse than we thought," US Fish and...

Coast Guard Suspends Search for Crew of Capsized Boat

Authorities believe 5 people were on the Wind Walker when it capsized in the Gulf of Alaska

(Newser) - The search for five people believed to be aboard a fishing vessel that capsized in rough seas in the Gulf of Alaska has been suspended, the Coast Guard said Monday. The search lasted nearly a day and covered more than 108 square nautical miles. "We stand in sorrow and...

Squirrel for Thanksgiving? Not With This Pilot in the Skies

Alaska residents get a meal and a smile thanks to the Alaska Turkey Bomb

(Newser) - In the remotest reaches of Alaska, there's no relying on DoorDash to have Thanksgiving dinner—or any dinner—delivered. But some residents living well off the grid nevertheless have turkeys this holiday, thanks to the Alaska Turkey Bomb. For the third straight year, a resident named Esther Keim has...

Bears Break Into Military Base, Eat Very Well

Another bear was found in a Humvee at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson

(Newser) - Bears trying to put on weight before hibernation may have found the stuff of their dreams at an Alaska military base. Authorities at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson say black bears broke into a storage room and chowed down on Meals Ready to Eat, leaving a huge mess behind, CNN reports. Photos...

Last Vote in 2024 Election Will Be Cast Here

Alaska's remote Adak Island gets the honors

(Newser) - On a desolate slab of island tundra in western Alaska, a resident of Adak will again become the last American to cast an in-person ballot for president, continuing a 12-year tradition for the nation's westernmost community. The honor of having the last voter in the nation fell to Adak when...

It's a Poignant Win at This Year's Fat Bear Week

Mama bear beats male bear who fatally attacked one of her cubs this summer

(Newser) - The winner of Fat Bear Week 2024 is, for the first time in the contest's history, a mama bear who was actively caring for a cub at the time of her win. Not only that, but 128 "Grazer" also won last year's competition , giving her back-to-back titles,...

Viewers 'Stunned' by Fat Bear Week's Gory Start

Contestant unveiling is delayed after one bear is killed by another in Alaska's Katmai National Park

(Newser) - Voting is scheduled to start this week for Katmai National Park & Preserve's annual Fat Bear Week , despite a grisly setback. The AP reports that the 10th annual "chunk-off"—which lets fans pick which bear in that part of the Alaska Peninsula is the plumpest after a...

'Startling' Video Shows Encounter Between Russian Jet, US F-16

Russian fighter jet swoops within feet of the US aircraft

(Newser) - Military officials have released new video of a startling encounter between a Russian fighter jet flying near Alaska and a US Air Force F-16 sent to intercept it, the AP reports. In the video released Monday, the Russian plane comes from behind the camera and swoops by the US jet,...

It's That Time Again: Alaska's Fat Bear Week Is Upon Us

Contestants for Fat Bear Jr. contest have been announced

(Newser) - An Alaska national park's yearly celebration of the beefy, brown, and bristly is getting underway as some of the chunkiest bears on the planet fatten up for their long winter slumber. Fat Bear Week doesn't officially start at Katmai National Park and Preserve until Oct. 2, when fans...

Alaskan Island Is On the Hunt for a Solitary Rat

Residents of Alaska's St. Paul Island are desperate to keep invasive rodent away after reported sighting

(Newser) - On an island of windswept tundra in the Bering Sea, hundreds of miles from mainland Alaska, a resident sitting outside their home saw—well, did they see it? They were pretty sure they saw it. A rat. The purported sighting wouldn't have gotten attention in many places around the...

As Russia Keeps Popping Up Near Alaska, US Sends in Troops

US deploys 130 soldiers to remote Aleutian island amid uptick in Russian planes, vessels

(Newser) - The US military has moved about 130 soldiers along with mobile rocket launchers to a desolate island in the Aleutian chain of western Alaska amid a recent increase in Russian military planes and vessels approaching American territory. Eight Russian military planes and four navy vessels, including two submarines, have come...

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