Utqiagvik (Barrow), Alaska: Facts, History, Weather, Climate & Economy

The City of Utqiagvik, formerly known as “Barrow’, is the largest city of the North Slope Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located north of the Arctic Circle and it is the northernmost city in the United States of America. Its community basically depends on the ocean’s unique ecosystem for survival. Like other communities on Alaska’s North Slope, it faces serious threats from pollution due to oil spills and industrial development as well as climate change.

Quick Facts About Utqiagvik (Barrow)

The City of Utqiagvik or Barrow, as it was previously known, has a unique history, environment, weather, climate, culture, and economic system. Here are 12 quick facts about the city:

1. Utqiagvik is the northernmost city in the United States of America and the ninth northernmost city in the world. It is located about 320 miles north of the Arctic Circle.
2. Utqiagvik was known as Barrow from 1901 to 2016, when it voted to restore its Inupiat name, Utqiaġvik.
3. When the sun rises here on May 11 or 12, it doesn’t set again for the next 80 days, which is until July 31 or August 1.
4. When the sun sets here on November 18 or 19, it doesn’t rise again for the next 66 days, which is until January 22 or January 23.
5. Utqiagvik is the economic center of the North Slope Borough but, surprisingly, it is not connected by road to the rest of Alaska.
6. Utqiagvik has a population of about 4,400 with a racial makeup of 57.19% Alaska Native, 21.83% White, 9.41% Asian, and 1.00% Black, among others.
7. The people of this city survive largely by hunting animals such as whales, bears, polar seals, walrus, waterfowl, and fishing in the nearby Arctic Ocean, rivers and lakes.
8. Archaeological evidence indicate that the place was inhabited by the Inupiat people as early as 500 AD, with remains of about AD 800 still at the shore of the Arctic Ocean.
9. A headland known as Point Barrow or Nuvuk, nine miles from Utqiagvik, is the northernmost point of Alaska State. It is where the Chukchi and Beaufort seas meet.
10. Utqiagvik was the setting for 2011’s Hollywood movie “Big Miracle”. The movie was about an effort to rescue three whales trapped in sea ice.
11. On average, Utqiagvik’s high temperature is above freezing point (0°C or 32°F) for only about 120 days per year. The temperatures are at or below zero degrees for the rest of the year.
12. According to scientists, the Arctic region is warming twice faster than rest of the earth. Consequently, former North Slope Borough Mayor Edward Itta refers to Utqiagvik as “ground zero for climate-change science.”

Location, History & Population

Location of Utqiagvik

Utqiagvik is located north of the Arctic Circle. It is the northernmost city in Alaska State and in the United States of America. A nearby headland known as Point Barrow or Nuvuk is the northernmost point in Alaska State and the United States of America.

The city has a total area of 21 mi² (54 km²), out of which 18 mi² (47 km²) is land and 3 mi² (8 km²) is under water. Water makes up 14% of the total area. Utqiaġvik is surrounded by the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska. Also, an ancient crater that is sized about 5.0 mi (8 km), Avak, is located near the city.

Brief History of Utqiagvik

The city was initially known by its native name Utqiagvik until 1901, when it switched its name to ‘Barrow’. The name Barrow was derived from Point Barrow, which was named after Sir John Barrow of the British Admiralty in 1825.

Borrow became popular and later the official name of the city because nonnatives could pronounce it easily as compared to the native name ‘Utqiagvik’. However, through the October 2016 referendum, the residents voted to rename the city its initial name Utqiagvik, officially The City of Utqiagvik.

In 1958, Utqiaġvik was incorporated as a 1st Class City in 1958, when it was still know as me Barrow. In 1965, natural gas lines were installed in the town. This eliminated the then traditional heating sources such as whale blubber.

in 1972, the establishment of the North Slope Borough secured huge financial resources from the settlement revenues and later oil revenues. The resources were used to create roads, sanitation facilities, water and electrical utilities, fire departments, and health and educational services in Utqiagvik and the North Slope villages.

In 1986, the North Slope Borough created the North Slope Higher Education Center, which helped in transforming Iḷisagvik College from Inupiat culture based college to into a community college. Accordingly, the name of the college changed Arctic Sivunmun Iḷisagvik College in 1991 to reflect the transformation.

Population of Utqiagvik

Evidence from archaeological sites in the area indicate the Inupiat people lived around Utqiaġvik as early as AD 500. The remains of 16 sod dwelling mounds, from the Birnirk culture of about AD 800, can still be found on the shore of the Arctic Ocean.

Utqiagvik first featured on the 1880 U.S. Census as an unincorporated Inuit with a total of 225 of its residents, all of which were Inuit. The 2000 US census indicated that there were 4,683 people living in the city while the 2010 US census showed that the population had decreased to 4,212.

Generally, there are about 107 males for every 100 females. The general distribution by age of Utqiagvik is as follows: 27.7% are under 18 years, 13.3% are between 18 and 24 years, 31.6% are between 25 and 44 years, 19.4% are between 45 and 64 years, while 3.4% are 65 years and above.

Weather and Climate

Due to its location in the north of the Arctic Circle, Utqiagvik’s has a cold and dry climate, which is classified as a polar climate. It is also a desert climate, since its precipitation (rainfall) averages less than 5 inches (127 mm) per year.

Winter weather is characterized by a combination of cold and wind and hence can be very dangerous.  However, summers are cool even at their warmest period.

The high temperature is above freezing for only about 120 days per year. The rest of the days experience lower temperatures, with 106 days with a maximum at or below 0 °F (−18 °C).

In Utqiagvik, freezing temperatures and snowfall can occur in any month of the year. However, snow generally starts falling during the first week of October, when temperatures fall below freezing point. This culminates in the heaviest snowfall of up to 9.1 inches (23 cm) in the city later in the same month.

Endless Daylight (Midnight Sun) and Polar Night

Starting from May 11 or 12, the sun remains above the horizon the entire day, a phenomenon known as the midnight sun. The sun does not set for about 80 days, until July 31 or August 1. In June, the average temperature rises above freezing, 35.7 °F (2.1 °C), and the mean temperature remains above freezing until mid-September. July is the warmest month of the year in Utqiaġvik, with a normal mean temperature of 40.9 °F (4.9 °C).

Starting from November 18 or 19, the sun remains below the horizon the entire day, a phenomenon known as polar night. It does not rise for about 66 days, until January 22 or January 23, when it begins to partially show up and then rises completely over the horizon by January 27 or 28.

Utqiagvik experiences clouding and is one of the cloudiest places on this planet. Peak cloudiness occurs in August and September when the ocean is ice-free. Ice fog is very common during the winter months. Dense fog occurs mostly in the summer months.

Serious weather begins in January, and February is generally the coldest month with temperatures of about −14.2 °F (−25.7 °C). By the beginning of March, there is some sun and temperatures begin to warm, but winds are usually higher. There are less extreme temperatures in April, about 1.8 °F (−16.8 °C). The temperatures are relatively much warmer, about 21.2 °F (−6.0 °C).

Consequences of Global Warming

Global warming is mainly attributed to the inevitable greenhouse gas emissions resulting from human activities, such as oil and gas extraction and industrialization around the world.

The effects of global warming are adverse in the Arctic region with warming estimated to be twice as fast as the global average.  The shoreline of the city is eroding rapidly and has been steadily encroaching on buildings for several years.

Equally, the city’s infrastructure, especially water, sanitation, power and road are left exposed to danger. This puts the existence of Utqiagvik at its current location to doom in a relatively short term.

Arts, Culture and Sports

Utqiagvik residents participate in many arts cultural evets and sports, which are held at various times during the year. Notable events include:

1. Kivgiq, The Messenger Feast. This is officially held every two or three years in late January or early February, but is now held almost every year.
2. Piuraagiaqta, the Spring Festival. This is held in mid-April and includes many other outdoor activities
3. Nalukataq, the Blanket Toss Celebration. This is held on many days starting from the third week of June to celebrate each successful spring whale hunt.
4. Eskimo games, July 4, the Independence Day. The winners proceed to compete at the World Eskimo Indian Olympics
5. Whaling. The hunting of wales by indigenous people. This generally takes place during the second week of October.
6. Qitik, Eskimo Games, also called Christmas Games. This games are held  from December 26 through January 1.

Other Sports

In 2006, Barrow High School football team started participating in football competitions. They played their first official football game in the Arctic against Delta Junction High School on August 19, 2006. They recorded their first ever state championship in 2017.

In 2015, the boys’ basketball team of Barrow High School won the Alaska Class 3A State Championship with a 50–40 victory against defending state champions, Monroe Catholic. The team also won the 2014–2015 season with a 24–3 record. Also, the girls’ team basketball of Barrow High School easily won the ACS tournament in 2015

Education

The schools in Utqiaġvik city include Ipalook Elementary School, Hopson Middle School, Barrow High School, and Kiita Learning Community which is an alternative learning center.

The Iḷisagvik College, the only tribal college in Alaska, offers associate’s degrees in various fields and a bachelor’s degree in business administration. It also offers adult education courses and certificates in various programs.

Economy and Infrastructure

Utqiagvik is the economic center of the North Slope Borough, which is the city’s primary employer through state and federal agencies. Other sources of income include the numerous businesses that provide support services to oil field operations in the area. Additionally, they get monetary income from tourism, arts and crafts which midnight sun attracts.

Nevertheless, many residents rely upon subsistence food sources because transporting food to the city is very expensive. They harvest whale, bear, seal, polar walrus, waterfowl, caribou, and fish from the region’s coast or nearby rivers and lakes.

Transport

There are no roads connecting the city to the rest of Alaska State. Residents within the city use the several radio taxi services available in the city, whose roads are not paved due to the permafrost.

Utqiaġvik is the transportation hub for the North Slope Borough’s Arctic coastal villages. There are multiple aircraft of different sizes and designs for transportation of humans and goods.

Healthcare

In the City of Utqiaġvik, Samuel Simmonds Memorial Hospital is the primary healthcare facility for the whole of North Slope region of Alaska. Residents of the city seeking medical care are able to access the hospital by road.

However, clients from the surrounding communities and towns – such as Prudhoe Bay, Point Hope, and Wainwright –  have to be airlifted into the city by plane, helicopter, or air ambulance due to lack of roads.

Communication

In Utqiagvik, the modes of communication include phone and mail. There is also a public radio station, a cable TV station and a newspaper for mass communication:

• KBRW radio station broadcasts via both AM and FM in Utqiaġvik and via FM repeaters in all of the North Slope Borough villages.
• Television programs are broadcast by the Alaska Rural Communications Service through the stations are K04KS and K11NN.
• The newspaper called The Arctic Sounder is published weekly by Alaska Media, LLC. It covers news of interest to the North Slope Borough including Utqiaġvik, and other regions.