A weather surveillance radar model 88–D (WSR–88D) was installed on Pedro Dome, a hill approximately 23 km north of Fairbanks, in the late summer of 1993. The radar commenced operation in September 1993. The Fairbanks radar was the first Doppler weather radar installed in Alaska and the farthest north modern weather radar in the world. During the winter of 1993–1994 the Fairbanks radar gave meteorologists their first detailed look at the meteorology of interior Alaska. The area encompassed by the radar's field of view includes complex terrain—both large flatlands and highlands reaching more than 1 km above the valley floor.

This new opportunity yielded some surprises. Foremost among them is the unanticipated complexity and small scale of meteorological processes during the winter in an Arctic region. Sequences of composite reflectivity show a consistent pattern of considerable change over time spans of 10–30 minutes, as well as large variance of reflectivity over distances of 10 km or less. The reflectivity patterns are often composed of banded structures, with small granular areas of higher echo return embedded within. The large-scale bands can be correlated to synoptic scale patterns of wind aloft, while the smaller cellular structures in the bands may be partly attributed to upslope flow over hills. However, some areas of strong radar return appear to have no relation to topography. The high stability of the airmass over Fairbanks most of the winter would appear to rule out convection. Gravity waves at the top of strong temperature inversions are a possible cause. It is presumed that other processes are at work in this scene, and they remain unexplained.

Geophysical models are usually derived from the idealistic viewpoint that all required external parameters are, in principle, measurable. The models are then driven with the best available data for those parameters. In some cases, there are few measurements available, because of factors such as the location of the phenomena modeled. Satellite imagery provides a synoptic overview of a particular environment, supplying spatial and temporal variability as well as spectral data, making this an ideal source of data for some models. In other cases, although frequent satellite-image observations are available, they are of little use to the modeler, because they do not provide values for the parameters demanded by the model. This paper contains two examples of geophysical models that were derived expressly to utilize measurements and qualitative observations taken from satellite images as the major driving elements of the model. The methodology consists of designing a model such that it can be ‘run’ by numerical data extracted from image data sets, and using the image data for verification of the model or adjustment of parameters. The first example is a thermody namic model of springtime removal of nearshore ice from an Arctic river delta area, using the Mackenzie River as a study site. In this example, a multi-date sequence of AVHRR images is used to provide the spatial and temporal patterns of melt, allowing the required physical observations in the model to be parameterized and tested. The second example is a dynamic model simulating thq evolution of a volcanic ash cloud under the influence of atmospheric winds. In this case, AVHRR images are used to determine the position and size of the ash cloud as a function of time, allowing tuning of parameters and verification of the model.

The ‘Okhotsk Sea Ice Observation Experiment’ 93' was carried out in February 1993 in the southern part of the Sea of Okhotsk and in Lake Saroma, Japan. The aim of the experiment was to investigate how effectively Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) can monitor sea ice in this region. Satellite data from JERS-1/SAR (J-SAR), ERS-1/SAR CESAR), and SPOT-2/HRV, as well as data from airborne sensors and ground-truth data, were utilized. From the overall analysis of those data, several results were obtained. First, the range of backscatter of the ice cover on Lake Saroma was determined, as well as a relation between ice type and backscatter. Second, a method for making SAR mosaic images was developed to monitor sea ice over a wide area. When comparing J-SAR(L-band) data with E-SAR(C-band) data acquired simultaneously over the same area, J-SAR proved to be superior to E-SAR in showing the existence of sea ice. And third, it was confirmed that the backscatter of E-SAR was correlated to the ice thickness, which may be explained by the relation between the backscatter and the ice-surface temperature.

Polar-glow aurora is a diffuse type of polar-cap event that follows bombardment of the auroral ionosphere with high-energy protons from ‘cosmic ray’ flares at times of great solar and geomagnetic activity. Observations of five polar glows are presented together with details of the circumstances surrounding their occurrence. The first three glows were associated with enhanced solar activity between 3 and 15 February 1986 and the fourth and fifth glows with enhanced solar activity between 3 December 1993 and 10 February 1994. Despite the fact that the flares associated with the latter solar outburst were much smaller than those associated with the former, both periods of solar activity showed equally marked geophysical, geomagnetic, and auroral activity.

The general pattern of Antarctic tourism is well known and can be described in terms of numbers of visitors, landing sites, and general activities. However, little is known about the visitors, their behaviour, and other user characteristics. This information is vital for planning effective visitor-management strategies. This article presents and discusses some results from a 1993/94 questionnaire conducted aboard three IAATO member ships and focuses on how visitors rated the behaviour of themselves and others vis-à-vis the IAATO voluntary visitor guidelines. It also identifies how sex, age, educational level, and ship affect guideline violation or adherence. Additionally, passenger responses to hypothetical violations are discussed, which may help to explain why violations occur. This paper stresses not how many violations occur, but why they occur, providing a new insight for future visitor management.

Significant warming in the Arctic is anticipated for doubled-CO2 scenarios, but temperatures in the eastern Canadian Arctic have not yet exhibited that trend in the last few decades. The spatial juxtaposition of the winter station in 1822–1823 of William Edward Parry's Northwest Passage expedition with the modern Igloolik Research Centre of the Science Institute of the Northwest Territories affords an opportunity for historical reconstruction and comparison. Parry's data are internally consistent. The association of colder temperatures with westerly and northerly winds, and wanner temperatures with easterly and southerly winds, is statistically significant. Temperatures are not exactly comparable between the two time periods because of differences in instrumentation, exposure, and frequency of readings. Nevertheless, in 1822–1823, November and December appear to have been cold and January to March mild compared to modern experience. Anomalously, winds were more frequently northerly (and less frequently westerly) in the latter months than in recent observations. Parry recorded two warm episodes in mid-winter, but, overall, it appears that the winter of 1822–1823 was not outside the range of modern experience.