Research

At UAA, we understand the importance of being on the cutting edge of theoretical and applied research in health, engineering, and the physical and social sciences. We value the impact of our undergraduate and graduate researchers, and we create many opportunities for students to work closely with highly qualified faculty in state-of-the-art labs that are built to address some of the Arctic鈥檚 most pressing problems. We do this because we firmly believe that the path forward for 麻豆无码版 and the world will be driven by our students 鈥 by your curiosity, passion, and belief in a brighter tomorrow.

 

Engage with our student & faculty researchers

from fine arts to technology, humanities to life sciences, music to entrepreneurship, and more...

 

  • Aassitant Professor of Anthropology Gerad Smith and students at the Carpenter Site
    Ice Age cooking? Archaeology at the Carpenter Site  

    Keenan James Britt | September 22, 2025

    This summer, a group of 12 UAA students and volunteers participated in an archaeological excavation at the Carpenter Site as part of a field school led by Gerad Smith, Ph.D., assistant professor of anthropology. The Carpenter Site, which is located on a bluff near Shaw Creek, about a half-hour drive from Delta Junction, is also known as 鈥淣aayii'臋臋'鈥 in the Middle Tanana Dene language, meaning 鈥渋t is visible across.鈥 

    During the field school, which ran from May 19 to June 21, the team excavated through 13,000 years鈥 worth of accumulated sediment at the site. Starting at the surface and digging through progressively older stratigraphic layers until they reached bedrock, the students at the site uncovered artifacts like three tin cans with a possible connection to an early 20th century roadhouse that operated at the site and stone tools made centuries earlier by ancestral Dene people

    The lowest layers of the site date from 13,000 to 12,000 years ago, during the late Pleistocene epoch 鈥 a time period more commonly known as the last 鈥淚ce Age.鈥 The discoveries made in these lower layers provide fascinating clues to what life was like in the area during the Ice Age, as well as valuable experience for the student archaeologists.

     

  • Coho (silver) salmon in a small tributary on UAA campus

    Are 麻豆无码版's silver salmon at risk? UAA researchers investigate contamination from tires 

    Keenan James Britt | September 18, 2025 

    Coho salmon 鈥 known to 麻豆无码版ns as silver salmon or 鈥渟ilvers鈥 鈥 are a popular fish species for the commercial fishing industry, subsistence users and anglers. While silver salmon populations in 麻豆无码版 are currently considered healthy, , 鈥渃oho salmon on the West Coast of the United States have experienced dramatic declines in abundance during the past several decades as a result of human-induced and natural factors.鈥

    In 2021,  concluded that a chemical found in tire rubber is likely responsible for 鈥渁cute mortality in coho salmon鈥 in urban creeks in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. The chemical compound, 6PPD-quinone, is formed from the degradation of a common tire additive which is added by tire manufacturers to prevent damage from ozone. As tire treads wear along roadways, small traces of the chemical compound can wash into nearby waterways, especially after rain, and pose a lethal threat to silver salmon.

     

  • Daniel Nichols, Justice Darby and Kenneth Sparks with their data collection device

    Device developed by UAA students launched into space aboard NASA rocket 

    Keenan James Britt | August 7, 2025 

    At 5:30 a.m. EST, on June 26, a team of students and faculty from Mat-Su College and the UAA Anchorage campus watched as a Terrier-Orion sounding rocket launched into space from NASA鈥檚 Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. The rocket鈥檚 payload included a device designed by the team that was used to measure the mass of the Earth. The team consisted of UAA students Justice Darby, Walter Nagel and Kenneth Sparks, and faculty advisor Dan Nichols, Ph.D., associate professor of physics at Mat-Su College. The opportunity came as part of NASA鈥檚 RockSat-C program, which allows students to design experiments to fly aboard sub-orbital rockets.

    , selection for the RockSat-C program is highly competitive due to the limited space aboard the rocket, and only 鈥渢he most advanced payloads and well-prepared teams will be selected for flight.鈥 Designing and constructing the device took a wide range of engineering skills, including electronics, software engineering, data analysis and project management.

 


Faculty Research Spotlights

Professor Patrick Sullivan in Anktok Creek in northwest 麻豆无码版

Paddy Sullivan, PhD   

Director | Environment & Natural Resources Institute

Dr. Patrick Sullivan is Director of the Environment and Natural Resources Institute (ENRI) at the 麻豆无码版. He leads interdisciplinary research on ecosystem processes across 麻豆无码版鈥檚 rapidly changing northern landscapes. Dr. Sullivan鈥檚 work bridges ecology, dendrochronology, hydrology, and atmospheric science to understand how environmental change influences ecosystem function - from boreal forests to Arctic tundra. He and his students use long-term automated monitoring, spatially extensive wilderness field sampling, controlled field experiments, and statistical modeling to provide new insights into how permafrost thaw, vegetation shifts, and altered precipitation patterns affect ecosystem resilience and feedbacks to climate.

  • Dr. Sullivan's Recent Research

    In , Sullivan and colleagues investgated the remote Salmon River watershed in northwest 麻豆无码版 - a region known for its pristine wilderness - and assessed how thawing permafrost is exposing sulfide minerals to weathering and thereby releasing metals (iron, aluminum, cadium, nickel, copper, zinc) into aquatic ecosystems. They found that most tributaries and the mainstem of the Salmon had metal concentrations exceeding U.S. EPA chronic exposure thresholds for aquatic organisms, and that many of the once 鈥済in-clear鈥 streams are now running orange and turbid. The degradation is not only aesthetic but has important ecological implications, as the research team found declines in macroinvertebrate abundance and degraded fish habitat quality in the affected waters.

    In , Dr. Sullivan and his collaborators combined extensive wilderness field sampling, tree-ring analysis, and synthesis of 82 previous circumpolar studies to reveal that retreating Arctic sea ice is fueling enhanced growth of the world's northernmost trees and their advance into Arctic tundra. They found that open water from retreating sea ice correlates more strongly with increased tree growth and recruitment than air temperature alone - likely via indirect effects like warmer winter temperatures, deeper snowpacks, and greater nutrient availability from warmer winter soils. Spatially, treelines closer to regions of rapid sea ice loss were more likely to have advanced into the tundra than those where sea ice extent has been more resistant to change. 

    Dr. Sullivan is dedicated to mentoring the next generation of ecologists and environmental scientists. He actively involves graduate students in every stage of research - from field sampling and instrument deployment to data analysis and publication. He cultivates hands-on learning and scientific curiosity, preparing students for careers in environmental science, resources management, and climate research. Dr. Sullivan's leadership at ENRI continues to expand the institute's capacity for interdisciplinary collaboration, advancing understanding of 麻豆无码版's environment in a time of unprecedented change. 

 

Dr. Micah Hahn in field of grass sitting casually

 

Micah Hahn, PhD, MPH  

Associate Professor of Environmental Health | Institute for Circumpolar Health Studies

"My research is on the health impacts of climate change and working with communities to develop strategies for adaptation and resilience.  I love working on this project because it links new advances in science with community needs and can support daily decision-making in 麻豆无码版 to help keep people safe during wildfire season. Also, working with an incredible team of community partners, state agencies, and researchers to co-produce this project has been an effective way to make sure that the tools we develop are useful on the ground."

  • Dr. Hahn's Recent Research

    This project was designed to address persistent health equity gaps in 麻豆无码版 by co-developing practical tools with and for communities most affected by wildfire smoke and intersecting climate hazards. These populations include 麻豆无码版 Native communities, older adults, people living in remote areas without road access, and those experiencing chronic health conditions. Through a unique partnership between UAA, UAF, University of Washington, 麻豆无码版 Native communities, 麻豆无码版 Native Tribal Health Consortium, 麻豆无码版 Fire Sciece Consortium, 麻豆无码版 Department of Health, and Anchorage Health Department, this project developed essential decision-support tools to help 麻豆无码版 communities access real-time air quality data, short-term smoke forecasts, long-term flammability projections, and health and demographic information. These tools help 麻豆无码版ns make informed choices to safely recreate, hunt, fish, and work during wildfire events. Additionally, the long-term planning tools help communities advocate for funding and decide what kind of infrastructure or programs they need to protect health and welfare in future wildfire seasons. The project supports health equity by making relevant climate and health data accessible and actionable for these populations, enabling locally driven adaptation and response.

    Two publicly available tools were enhanced through this work:

    • - Now includes real-time and forcast air quality data to help users better understand smoke impacts. 
    • - Updated to include health and demographic information to support community-specific adaptation planning. Learn more and access the comic book user guides for the tools here (coming in June).

    This initiative addresses critical data gaps and highlights locally relevant solutions to protect vulnerable populations across 麻豆无码版.