[A-CC25] Glaciology in the new normal

[ACC25-01] Fieldwork under the COVID19 circumstances –Examples from Alaska and Siberia–

★Invited Papers

*Go Iwahana¹ (1.International Arctic Research Center, University of Alaska Fairbanks)

Keywords:COVID19, Fieldwork, Alaska, Siberia

This presentation introduces the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on field research in Alaska and Siberia and the research communities' responses. Fairbanks, Alaska, where the presenter lives, is a base for fieldwork in terrestrial Alaska. Researchers across the United States and worldwide have used research infrastructure such as the University of Alaska. Since March 2020, out-of-state travelers have been required to quarantine themselves for two weeks. University of Alaska constituents have been working from home except for persons with special permits. In Alaska, fieldwork season usually starts before or after the snowmelt, and most field activities are carried out in the snow-free summer. However, COVID19 influenced all the fieldwork activities in the 2020 season. Alaska's local community, which is only accessible by plane, is particularly vulnerable to pandemics due to the limited healthcare resources. They placed substantial restrictions on external human traffic, and the research community could not conduct a field survey for the 2020 season. Besides, major scientific research foundations in the United States (NSF, DOE, etc.) restricted fieldwork also at research sites accessible by road from Fairbanks and Anchorage, which have international airports. Even if permitted, two weeks or more self-quarantine period hindered most out-of-state (including international) researchers to plan the fieldwork in Alaska. Under these circumstances, the presenter was allowed to conduct fieldwork in Fairbanks' vicinity and supported some field research activities for Japanese researchers who could not visit Alaska by themselves. On the other hand, the presenter could not conduct field surveys scheduled in Siberia and relied on collaborators' help to minimize the impact of COVID 19 on research plans. Having these experiences and comparing responses by various communities against the COVID 19 pandemic, the transition to "New Normal" in cryosphere studies, which often depends on field surveys, will be discussed.