On Thursday, August 15th, residents from the Tłı̨chǫ region and Yellowknives Dene First Nation were given the opportunity to take part in a special collaboration between the GNWT and NASA.
Thursday’s flight was part of vital data collection efforts that NASA will be conducting in the area until August 30th. This is part of their Arctic-Boreal Vulnerability Experiment, which is a field campaign led by NASA’s Terrestrial Ecology Program.
These flights will monitor the same regions studied in prior flights through the 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022 campaigns, focusing on tracking changes in permafrost, thermokarst, post-fire degradation, and boreal forest structure. Their main research areas include the Peace-Athabasca Delta, Yellowknife, Inuvik, and other regions in Alaska and Yukon.
Sean Erasmus, a Regulatory Trainee from the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, said that he is “thrilled about the opportunity to fly with NASA in the ABoVE Mission and meet both the scientists and flight crew. What interests me about the NASA Above flight the most is its remote sensing; it will help the scientists to determine the effects of climate change. Climate change is really happening.”
The GNWT has been working with NASA on this program for the past ten years, and the departments of Environment and Climate Change and Industry, Tourism, and Investment have been working to include Indigenous governments and organizations to have them more involved in the discussions.
