PREPARING PARKER CALKIN'S BROOKS RANGE WORK FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

From 1977 to 1982, Parker Calkin mentored many graduate and undergraduate students on the nuances of geomorphology and geology while mapping and measuring cirque glaciers, moraines, and rock glaciers across the Brooks Range of northern Alaska. The mapping established a Holocene glacial chronology derived from deposits downslope of ~100 cirque glaciers. In addition, snow accumulation and ice ablation were monitored at 3 glaciers over the 5-year period and theodolite & stadia survey maps were created of 3 glaciers and 3 rock glaciers. The maps, landform measurements, and photographs developed by Calkin and his students provide an exceptional and detailed base documenting conditions in the Arctic 25-30 years ago. However, all of the archive is on paper or film, making access limited and difficult for future educational and research purposes.

The scientific value of the data collected by Parker Calkin and his students has increased significantly because of recent concern and focus on climatic change. Fortunately, the advent of new mapping and data-distribution technology can efficiently move this body of work into an accessible digital framework. Four Landsat TM images and USGS DEMs were downloaded and enhanced to provide a regional base that extended across the field areas. Paper maps were scanned and georeferenced to the imagery. These GIS layers, along with ground photographs and physical measurements of each cirque glacier and rock glacier, are now available for viewing with GoogleEarth (kmz's available for downloading from www.ellis-geospatial.com/brooksrange.html). Glacier shrinkage is evident when comparing the 1999-2001 Landsat with the maps generated ~20 years earlier. High-resolution satellite images and historic aerial photographs are being orthorectified to form a more accurate base for the larger-scale survey maps. Measurements taken 25-30 years ago at the glacial and periglacial landforms can be attached as detailed attributes to the GIS maps to support new geospatial analysis. In addition, stacks of GIS maps and images can be distributed with coordinates (“GeoPDFs”) to enable viewing and mapping using free software. The maps and data collected under Parker Calkin's leadership will soon be ready for 21st Century research and teaching.