This three-year Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Polar Programs will support the creation of a geographic information system (GIS) database and map of marine and terrestrial glacial features related to mid- to late-Pleistocene Arctic Ocean glaciation. Funded at $229,955, the award was issued on May 1, 2023 to the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) to be completed by April 30, 2026.
Under the grant, UAF researchers will synthesize existing datasets from marine surveys, sediment cores, and terrestrial records of glacial erratic boulders and ancient raised beach ridges. This will allow for testing of the hypothesis that extensive glaciation occurred in the western Arctic Ocean during the Pleistocene. The GIS database will improve understanding of the timing and extent of glaciation in the region as well as the main ice sources that contributed to ice sheet buildup. Results aim to provide insight into high-latitude ice sheet behavior during climatic change. The NSF Polar Programs grant supports the University's work in line with the agency's mission to advance polar knowledge through basic research.