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How does Urbanization Affect Water Temperature in the Chena River in Interior Alaska?
Organization(s):Department of Natural Resources and Environment
Country:United States of America
Student(s):Catherine Smith, Jesi Lobato
Grade Level:Undergraduate
GLOBE Educator(s):Christina Buffington
Contributors:Arctic and Earth STEM Integrating GLOBE and NASA Project, International Arctic Research Center, US Fish and Wildlife Service
Report Type(s):Standard Research Report
Protocols:Air Temperature, Surface Temperature, Water Temperature
Language(s):English
Date Submitted:12/01/2023
This study aimed to investigate whether there was a significant difference in water temperatures between a rural and urban location on the Chena River in Interior Alaska during the first two weeks of October 2023 (see Maps). Our research question was “How does Urbanization Affect Water Temperature in the Chena River in Interior Alaska?”. GLOBE data included water, air and surface temperatures as well as total snowpack depth. We analyzed each variable using a T-test with a significance level of α = 0.05. It was found that there was no statistically significant difference in water temperatures between the urban location in downtown Fairbanks and the rural location near the Chena Lakes State Recreation Area east of North Pole. Differences in air temperature, surface temperature and snowpack were observed. The results suggest that further sampling during multiple seasons is needed to understand how urbanization affects water temperatures. Furthering this research can provide insight into how impervious surfaces in urbanized areas can create a "heat island effect" and thereby increase the temperature of water bodies.