Posted by Sawzaw:

"In mid-June, I was surprised to see snow still at sea level in Prince William Sound," said U.S. Geological Survey glaciologist Bruce Molnia. "On the Juneau Icefield, there was still 20 feet of new snow on the surface of the Taku Glacier in late July. At Bering Glacier, a landslide I am studying, located at about 1,500 feet elevation, did not become snow free until early August.

"In general, the weather this summer was the worst I have seen in at least 20 years."

"Never before in the history of a research project dating back to 1946 had the Juneau Icefield witnessed the kind of snow buildup that came this year. It was similar on a lot of other glaciers too."

Living in Alaska, I can attest that the summer of 2008 was a wet, chilly one. It will evidently go down in history that way, because it is frequently referenced locally.

The summer of 2009, on the other hand, was gorgeous. Instead of being the normal "drizzle two weeks and 2 days sun" it was the other way around. That summer too will go down in history.

And neither one has a thing to say about global warming or climate change.

What is true is that the glaciers in Alaska are thinning, retreating, breaking up.

Incidentally, why the U.S. Geological Survey glaciologist Bruce Molnia chose to refer to the Taku Glacier beats me. We are well aware that the Taku is one of the few that is still growing. It    is in the Taku River valley where they routinely experience 35 feet of snow or more each winter; perhaps that is why. You will find no deer there evidently for that reason although there are moose.