28 December 2016

Hump Day Edition: Alaska Factoids

We received a couple more inches of snow overnight, but driving isn't too bad this morning. The roads have slick spots, because our temps have been warmer for a few days, in the mid- to upper-twenties.
 
But today's forecast is for more snow, with temps falling to around 10° by late afternoon, and then around -5 tonight. That's better, for both walking and driving, as the colder, the less slick.
 
* * * * *
 
There is no news of import outside this immediate area, so I won't bore you with this auto accident, or that restaurant fire.
 
 
  • Aurora borealis (northern lights) can be seen an average of 243 days a year in Fairbanks. The northern lights are produced by charged electrons and protons striking the earth’s upper atmosphere.
  • Alaska is less than 50 miles from Russia.
  • While it is legal to shoot bears in Alaska, waking a sleeping bear for the purpose of taking a photograph is prohibited.
  • The average temperature for Fairbanks in the month of January is -1 degree Fahrenheit.
  • The highest temperature recorded in Alaska was 100 degrees Fahrenheit in Fort Yukon in 1915.
  • The lowest temperature recorded in Alaska was -80 degrees Fahrenheit at Prospect Creek Camp in 1971.
  • Alaska is the only state name that you can type on one row of a keyboard.

  •  
    49things-mckinley
    • Of the 20 highest peaks in the United States, 17 are in Alaska, including the highest peak in North America (20,320 ft. above sea level), Denali.
    • Alaska contains more than 100 volcanoes and volcanic fields which have been active within the last two million years.
    • Alaska is the only state that does not collect state sales tax or levy an individual income tax (some cities have sales tax, however).
    • The fishing and seafood industry is the state’s largest private industry employer.
    • The largest salmon ever caught was at the Kenai River. It weighed in at 97.5 pounds.
    • There are more than 3,000 rivers and 3 million lakes in Alaska.
    49things-iliamna
    • Alaska’s largest lake, Lake Iliamna, is roughly the size of Connecticut.
    • Alaska has more coastline than the rest of the United States combined (more than 34,000 miles).
    • Alaska has more inland water than any other state (20,171 square miles).
    • Alaska is the only state to have coastlines on three different seas: the Arctic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and Bering Sea.
    • The state bird of Alaska is the willow ptarmigan.
    • During the Klondike gold rush in 1897, potatoes were so highly valued for their vitamin C content that miners traded gold for them.
    • The only battle during World War II that was fought on American soil took place in 1943 after the Japanese invaded the Aleutian Islands.
    • The state sport of Alaska is dog mushing, which was once the primary mode of transportation in most of Alaska. The Iditarod dog sledding race is the state’s largest sporting event.
    • More than half the world’s glaciers can be found Alaska.
    49things-glacier
    • About 5 percent of Alaska is covered by the 1,000-plus glaciers in the state.
    • Alaska has the lowest population density in the nation at one person per square mile.
    • If New York City had the same population density as Alaska, only 16 people would be living in Manhattan.
    • Bennie Benson designed Alaska’s flag in 1926 at age 13. It would become the official state flag upon Alaska’s adoption into the Union in 1959.
    • Outsiders first discovered Alaska in 1741 when Danish explorer Vitus Jonassen Bering sighted it on a voyage from Siberia.
    • Barrow, 800 miles south of the North Pole, has both the longest and shortest day. When the sun rises on May 10, it doesn’t set for nearly three months. When it sets on November 18, Barrow residents do not see the sun again for nearly two months.
    • Each year Alaska has about 5,000 earthquakes including 1,000 that measure above 3.5 on the Richter scale. Of the 10 strongest earthquakes ever recorded in the world, three have occurred in Alaska, including a 9.2-magnitude temblor in 1964.
    • Giant vegetables are common in Alaska due to the extremely long days in summer. Alaska has grown a record cabbage weighing in at 94 pounds.
    • The Pribilof Islands are home to the largest seal colony with over one million seals.
    • About 52 percent of Alaskans are men – the highest percentage of any state.
    So there: you've been edified. :)
     
    Thanks for stopping by, friends.

    14 comments:

    deb harvey said...

    very interesting.
    sounds like a good place to find a husband.

    Rev. Paul said...

    Deborah, I can only tell you what the ladies here all say: "The odds are good, but the goods are odd." :^)

    Rob said...

    Ya sure don't ya know that da northern lights are cause Paul Bunyan and babe his ox are rough housing up by the Nord Pole.

    Rev. Paul said...

    Dear Yooper, ya sure that might be it. But at least it's entertaining. :)

    Rob said...

    insert any sarcastic remark......

    Toirdhealbheach Beucail said...

    All very cool. I like the keyboard thing...like most really cool things, I never really thought of it before...

    Rev. Paul said...

    It's all about simplicity up here, TB. :) For example, the town of Chicken, Alaska is called that simply because when the Post Office showed up, no one could spell the name they'd been using prior to that: Ptarmigan.

    Terry said...

    Chicken, Alaska? Chickenmom should be the mayor. :)

    Rev. Paul said...

    It wouldn't surprise me. Heh.

    LindaG said...

    So we had global warming in 1915, too...

    Thanks for the edification! ^__^

    Have a safe, Blessed New Year.

    Rev. Paul said...

    Linda, the climate has been in flux since Creation. :) And you're welcome, ma'am.

    LindaG said...

    Exactly right on the climate, Reverend. I keep telling people exactly what do they think we can do about the climate when we are not God.

    ^_^

    Rev. Paul said...

    Linda - you realize you're preaching to atheists, right? But by all means, carry on. Their reactions should be amusing, if it weren't so sad.

    LindaG said...

    I know they do not listen, yes. But I do continue.
    Have a Blessed afternoon/evening. ^_^