What would the greenhouse effect do to Alaska, native habitat of the igloo? Would it be good news or bad news?

In a state where winter temperatures of -50ºF are common and cold snaps can go below -70ºF, weather is always big news. Adaptation to extreme climate has been the key to human survival there since the earliest humans arrived. The fisheries and forests which form much of Alaska's economic base today are shaped directly by climate.

But even though a significant part of the state lies above the Arctic Circle, stereotypes of Alaska as a frozen white expanse dotted with igloos hardly capture the state's real diversity. It also has some of the largest and lushest rain forests in the northern hemisphere. Any estimate of climate change impacts must take geographic particulars into account.

Alaska is an ecologically diverse state covering 586,400 square miles. It has more than 31,000 miles of coastline on three different seas: Arctic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and Bering Sea. It has more than three million lakes, 270,000 square miles of wetlands, and 29,000 square miles of glaciers, covering 5 percent of the state. An estimated 80 percent of Alaska's surface, including its continental shelf, is underlain by permafrost - ground that has been frozen for two or more years. Alaska also has 17 out of 20 of the highest mountains in the United States.

Because of its size, Alaska's climate is variable. The southeastern and south central coastal regions are wet and fairly mild, the interior is cool and dry, and the northern region is very cold and dry weather.

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