UAF’s Museum of the North unveils ‘Observing Our Dynamic Planet’ Satellite Exhibit
By Amber McCain
Photo by Bryan Whitten UAF/GI - Roger Topp, right, and his team discuss the setup for a model of the antenna that sits atop the University of Alaska Fairbanks Elvey Building.
Created in partnership with the Alaska Satellite Facility, an exhibit at the University of Alaska Museum of the North “Observing Our Dynamic Planet” opened May 24. This exhibit shows how synthetic aperture radar, or SAR, data is used to monitor natural events like volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, sea ice loss and permafrost thaw, allowing visitors a closer look at satellite technology that tracks Earth’s rapidly changing environments.
More than 60 satellite and airborne-derived images, taken from research missions, are featured, showing landforms undergoing change. The imagery captures environmental changes over days, weeks and months, giving a powerful perspective on floods, wildfires, coastal erosion, and changes in agriculture and forestry.
Visitors can interact with hands-on displays and digital features, including a scale model of the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-1 satellite, a 4-foot replica of Alaska Satellite Facility’s (ASF) AS-2 antenna, and time-lapsing image sequences that bring to life global environmental changes.
Photo by Bryan Whitten UAF/GI - An interactive display shows how velocities of flowing glacier ice can be calculated using ASF satellite imagery data.
Staff from the Alaska Satellite Facility at the University of Alaska Fairbanks collaborated on the project. ASF operates UAF’s satellite data-acquisition ground station and serves as NASA’s Distributed Active Archive Center for SAR data playing a big role in receiving and distributing radar data used worldwide.
The SAR data that is shown in the exhibit is helpful when it comes to understanding and responding to environmental changes that are affecting communities worldwide, from monitoring natural disasters, such as tracking flooding and storm impacts during hurricanes like Dorian, to managing natural resources.
The Museum of the North has been part of UAF since 1922, when its first collection was displayed in the office of UAF’s founding president, Charles Bunnell. The museum’s current building, completed in 2006, features permanent exhibits that explore over 2,000 years of Alaskan art and culture, along with scientific collections representing Alaska’s diverse regions (more than 2.5 million artifacts and specimens in total). Through rotating exhibits like “Observing Our Dynamic Planet”, the museum continues to engage visitors with both creative works and scientific discoveries.
Photo by Bryan Whitten UAF/GI - A Museum of the North staff member makes sure a label is level while installing the exhibit titled “Observing Our Dynamic Planet.”
For those who are unable to visit in person, the museum offers a free mobile app where users can virtually explore galleries and take a self-guided walking tour of the museum grounds using GPS, or browse the content from anywhere.
The exhibit will remain on display through Jan. 3, 2026.
The museum is open daily 9 a.m. – 7 p.m. and general admission is free for UAF students.