UAF Museum

Home FAQ Fairbanks History Ranch Motel Site Contents
Up ] 

Deutsch

 

University of Alaska Museum of the North Displays Traditional AlaskaUniversity of Alaska Museum

Schedule at least half a day for the University of Alaska Museum - you will need it.

Here you can learn about Alaska's natural history and many cultures in a resource-rich environment. They celebrated their 70th anniversary in 1999, and have just completed their new addition.

If you do not have much time, the museum offers a PDF file you can download here that hits the high spots.

From letters from the Museum:

 University of Alaska Museum of the North
Summer 2009

Summer is in full swing here at the University of Alaska Museum of the North, and the galleries are filled with summer visitors. In addition to our long-term exhibits, keep these summer exhibits and programs in mind for your visiting friends and family:

Special Exhibit
The Last Polar Bear: Facing the Truth of a Warming World

An arctic icon takes center stage in the museum's special exhibit gallery this summer. With large-format color photographs by Steven Kazlowski, "The Last Polar Bear" takes visitors on a journey across the Arctic, showing polar bears in all seasons. Kazlowski dedicated eight years to photographing the polar bears to document the effects of climate change on the polar bear's habitat and behavior. Intimate photographic portraits portray the bears' annual cycle of life from mothers with cubs to adolescents at play to adults on the hunt.

The museum is the only Alaska venue for this extraordinary photographic exhibit, which was organized by the Burke Museum of Natural History at the University of Washington in partnership with Braided River, a branch of The Mountaineers Books in Seattle. The Fairbanks presentation is supported by the Ferguson Foundation, by the City of Fairbanks Hotel-Motel Tax Fund (re-grant by the Fairbanks Arts Association) and by contributors to the museum exhibition enhancement fund.

The exhibit's companion book is available in the Museum Store for $39.95 (hard cover); essays by Charles Wohlforth, Nick Jans, Richard Nelson, Theodore Roosevelt IV and other noted authors complement more than 200 of Kazlowski's color photographs.

Auditorium Shows
Dynamic Aurora and Winter

Dynamic Aurora captures the beauty of northern lights and explains this high-latitude phenomena from scientific and cultural perspectives. Presented in partnership with the UAF Geophysical Institute. 30 minutes. Presented daily at 10 AM, 1 PM, 3 PM, 5PM and 7:30 PM

Winter gives visitors insight into our longest season. Learn about adaptations to life in the cold and the activities that sustain Alaskans through winter into spring. 30 minutes. Presented daily at 11 AM, 2 PM and 4 PM.

Purchase the $5 museum show pass for unlimited access to all shows that day.

Museum Café

The Museum Café is open from 9:30 AM to 4 PM this summer, offering gourmet sandwiches, salads, pastries, light snacks and beverages.

Museum co-hosts national mammal conference

The museum and UAF's Institute of Arctic Biology are proud to co-host the American Society of Mammalogists' annual meeting, June 24-28 in Fairbanks. This is the first time in more than 20 years that the meetings have been held in Fairbanks. More than 400 attendees from across the country are expected to attend.

As part of the conference, community members are invited to attend the June 28 presentation of "Darwin Remembers: A Recollection of Life's Journeys", a one-man play performed by Floyd Sanford. The performance begins at 7 PM in UAF's Davis Concert Hall. Admission is free.

For more information on the mammal meetings, visit the conference website at http://mercury.bio.uaf.edu/asm/index.html.

Membership: the gift that keeps giving

With benefits that include free admission to the museum, invitations to members-only events and a discount at the Museum Store, museum memberships are the gifts that keep giving all year. Gift memberships are available at the individual, couple and family levels.

To purchase your gift memberships, visit the museum admission desk or complete the attached gift membership form and return it to the museum membership office. For more information, contact membership coordinator Barbara Travis at 474-5484 or b.travis@uaf.edu.

Unless otherwise specified, museum admission is charged: $10 for adults, $9 for seniors and $5 for youth 7-17. Admission is free for museum members, UA students (with valid ID) and children 6 and under.

Members receive free admission for one year, a 10% discount in the Museum Store and invitations to exclusive, members-only events.

More detail on these events, is available online at www.uaf.edu/museum/events.

MUSEUM SUMMER HOURS (at least through Sept. 15)
9 AM - 9 PM

24-HOUR INFORMATION
907.474.7505
www.uaf.edu/museum

Be a part of the Museum Family!

With the opening of our new galleries, there's never been a better time to join the museum family. Museum members enjoy a variety of exclusive benefits, including unlimited free admission. For more information, to become a member or to renew your membership, please contact the Membership Office at 907-474-6443, email museum.membership@uaf.edu or join online at www.uaf.edu/museum/membership.

For a complete listing of museum events, visit us online at www.uaf.edu/museum.

Hours and Fees

Holiday Hours
December 26-31 - Noon to 5 PM
Closed Christmas and New Year's Day
Winter/Spring Hours (through May 14)
Weekdays - 9 AM to 5 PM
Weekends - Noon to 5 PM
Summer Hours (May 15 - September 15)
Exhibit galleries & Museum Store: 9 AM - 9 PM Daily
Museum Café: 9 AM - 4 PM Daily

Admission Fees (including special exhibits):
Adults: $10
Seniors: $9
Youth (7-17), UA Faculty and Staff: $5
Children 6 & under and Free Museum members: Free

Museum members receive free admission for one year, a 10% discount in the Museum Store and invitations to exclusive, members-only events.

The Following may or may not still be available:

Aurora Program and Cultural Presentations

The museum has joined forces with the World Eskimo Indian Olympics to provide the dual productions--named "Northern Interpretations."

The program includes "Dynamic Aurora," a 50 minute presentation on the northern lights, and "Northern Inua," a cultural performance based on traditional storytelling, dance and athletic presentations.

Daily performances will start on June 1 and continue through Aug. 31.

Featured Exhibit

Forced To Leave:

The Detention of Alaskan Japanese Americans and Aleuts During World War II. "Forced To Leave" looks at the civilian impact of the WW II military campaign in Alaska. Under the circumstances of war, two groups of Alaskans experienced those years under particular duress: the Alaskan Japanese Americans and the Aleuts. Located in the Southwest Gallery.

Keeper of the Seal

The Art of Henry Wood Elliott Henry Wood Elliott (1846-1930) created watercolor sketches, paintings, maps, and cartoons in his crusade to save the Pribilof Island fur seals from probable extinction. His works document this rich and remote region of Alaska during the late 19th Century.

Focus on Fairbanks

Celebrate Alaska's Golden Heart City — Past, Present and Future There’s still gold in those hills! A hundred years after Felix Pedro struck gold in the hills north of town, Fairbanks is a thriving city ­ rich in culture and resources. Explore the Museum’s galleries to learn about the gold rush days, building the Alaska Highway, the aurora borealis ­ and what we’re planning for the future. In the Interior Gallery, UAF Museum. Opened 10/14/02, Goes at least through November; may be extended.

Museum Gallery Exhibits

The main museum gallery is divided into five geographical regions of the state with exhibits detailing everything from dinosaur bone discoveries to intricate ivory carvings and a cross section of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline. Their web site gives more information.

Blue Babe, a 36,000-year-old steppe bison, is on permanent display at the museum. The bison was preserved in permafrost near Fairbanks until recovered several years ago. Its skin is blue from oxidized minerals in the ground, and it is so well preserved that claw scratches from a predator are still visible in the skin.

The museum also offers visitors a look at why everybody rushed to Alaska in the first place. It is home to one of the largest gold  displays in the Interior.

The museum is recognized for its vast collection of Native American ethnographic objects and archaeological artifacts. The Geophysical Institute is internationally renowned for its aurora borealis research. Both are located on the West Ridge of the UAF campus.

Alaska Quaternary Center Lectures

The AQC invites visiting Quaternary scholars to present public lectures and brown bag seminars throughout the semester. Call the AQC at 474-5033 for more information. 

Book Readings

7 - 9 p.m. UAF English Department invites contemporary authors to give both craft talks and book readings at the Museum throughout the semester. Information: English Department, 474-7197.

Explainer Talks, Offered throughout the day. Free with museum admission. Explore Alaska's wildlife and culture in these 20-minute hands-on presentations.

bulletAlaska Native Games & Culture
bulletBears of Alaska
bulletWolves of Alaska

Saturday Family Programs

Saturday Family Programs are designed to engage children and their parents/guardians in learning activities related to the Museum collections. The programs are designed for children ages 7-12 with a parent or adult mentor. Registration is $15 per child per session. Activities range from art instruction to science experiments.
The programs are scheduled throughout the school year.

bullet

One adult must accompany child.

bullet

Programs last two hours.

bullet

Reservations are recommended.

bullet

Enrollment is limited. Sign up early!

bullet

Discounted fees available. February

Annual TOTE Family Fun Fest

Artists and Scientists: (Junior Curators Camp)

June 7

Call 474-6948 for information/reservations

The museum offers free daily explainer programs; brief 20-minute presentations on such topics as Alaskan archaeology, bears, wolves and Yup'ik Masks. These free walk-in programs give visitors an opportunity to touch and feel the museum's extensive hands-on collection.

Outdoor exhibits on the museum grounds include two nature trails, totem poles, contemporary sculptures, a mining stamp mill, a trans-Alaska oil pipeline cleaning pig, a remote sensor, and an auroral research rocket.

"Reflections," the museum's newspaper is your free guide to the museum's exhibition galleries with updates about museum collections, research and education activities. 

Features also include a UAF campus map and visitor site descriptions and mail order information for museum store products.

The Museum is open year-round.

Call (907) 474-7505 for 24-hour information

University of Alaska Museum
907 Yukon Drive, 
PO Box 756960, 
Fairbanks AK 99775-6960

 

Back to Top

For questions regarding this site, Fairbanks, or for site updates, please e-mail our webmaster at "thewebmaster" @ "fairbanks-alaska.com" after first removing the spaces and quote marks. See the FAQ for info on advertising on this site. This site of information is provided & Copyright©1998-2009 by , (907) 452-4783, All rights are  reserved. Click for motel Cancellation Policy. This page last modified: Saturday, June 06, 2009.

Site built and maintained by ,   member of The HTML Writers Guild Certified and experienced in securing high ranking keywords on search engines. ! Certified in Search Engine Positioning