The Ukpeaġvik Inupiat Corporation (UIC) invites registration for the 75th Anniversary of the Naval Arctic Research Laboratory. This event will take place in Utqiaġvik (formerly Barrow), Alaska and online.
Events during the week, will include the Enhancing Arctic Science and Engineering Workshop, Regional Development Tours, and forums on the Arctic science to plan for the next 25 years of Arctic research. In-person activities will include tours of Utqiagvik (Barrow), Barrow Arctic Research Center, Inupiat Heritage Center, Illisagvik College, Search and Rescue Facility, and NOAA Facilities.
Organizers invite all interested scientists and engineers, Indigenous leaders, Arctic community members, policymakers, government organizations, and businesses to register.
The community of Utqiaġvik has been ground zero for Arctic research dating as far back as the first International Polar Year of 1881 when the Signal Corps and the Smithsonian sponsored the establishment of a permanent station for meteorological, magnetic, tidal, and pendulum observation. This was followed by the establishment of the Arctic Research Laboratory (ARL), later known as the Naval Arctic Research Laboratory (NARL). NARL was under the auspices of the United States Navy beginning in the early 1940s to support petroleum exploration and Arctic research in what is now known as the Naval Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPRA). The research facility operated until 1980 when it was decommissioned due to the high cost of operations. The facility was then transferred to UIC in 1984 and UIC Science, a subsidiary of UIC, continues to operate it today.
Organizers hope to celebrate the past foundation building the Inupiaq Elders and past researchers completed to ensure a successful future for Utqiaġvik and North Slope-based Arctic science with this NARL 75th Anniversary Celebration.
Registration deadline: 31 July 2022.