These images show the vicinity of Yakutat Bay, Alaska. Russell Fiord is the narrow body of saltwater connected to the bay and extending southeast. The Hubbard Glacier lies where Russell Fiord meets the bay.

In May 1986, the Hubbard Glacier surged down from the mountains, blocking the outlet of Russell Fiord and creating "Russell Lake". All that summer the new lake filled with runoff; its water level rose 25 meters, and the decrease in salinity threatened its sea life.

Around midnight on October 8th the dam began to give way. In the next 24 hours an estimated 5.3 billion cubic meters of water gushed through the gap, and the fiord was reconnected to the ocean at its previous level.

The fiord could become dammed again, and perhaps permanently. If this happens, the fiord could overflow its southern banks and drain through the Situk River instead, threatening trout habitat and a local airport.

Click here to read a short journal article a written by two USGS scientists explaining this phenomenon.

References

Walker, K., M., and Zenone, C., 1988, Multitemporal Landsat Multispectral Scanner and Thematic Mapper Data of the Hubbard Glacier Region, Southeast Alaska: Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, vol. 54, no. 3, March, p. 373-376. (Click here to read this article.)

Eliot, John, L., and Johns, Chris, 1987, Glaciers on the Move: National Geographic Magazine, vol. 171, no. 1, January, p. 106-119.

Satellite images

LT5062018008521910 (Landsat 5 TM, 7 August 1985)

LT5062018008625410 (Landsat 5 TM, 11 September 1986)

Special Projects Images

The 7 August 1985 image is available as Special Projects Image E-1564-810CT. The 11 September 1986 image is available as Special Projects Image E-1566-810CT. Contact the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Center for Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Customer Services.

Maps

U.S. Geological Survey, 1986 (compiled in 1973, revised in 1986), State of Alaska; Map B (east half): scale 1:1,584,000.

U.S. Geological Survey, 1982 (1959, limited revisions 1982), Yakutat, Alaska-Canada: scale 1:250,000 (spliced to the Mt. St Elias map).

U.S. Geological Survey, 1983 (1959, limited revisions 1983), Mt. St. Elias, Alaska-Canada: scale 1:250,000 (spliced to the Yakutat map).

This article was released 14 February 1997.