About two weeks ago, Jan Straley was sailing Sitka Sound,
photographing as many as 40 whales feeding in the cold waters
near Southeast's outer coast. While many humpbacks have left the
region for the winter, the marine mammals she saw still have
time to head south to breed in warmer waters. "They can get to
Hawaii in a month in time for the mating season," Straley said
from her office at the University of Alaska Southeast's Sitka
campus. "It's a staggered migration." Straley, a marine biology
professor, is the first of four University of Alaska scientists
talking about their areas of expertise during the Science for
Alaska lecture and slide-show series, which begins Monday. The
free programs will run at 7:30 p.m. Mondays in February at
Centennial Hall. Other topics are "Exploring the Secrets of the
Aurora Borealis" on Feb. 10, "Spying on Volcanoes from Space" on
Feb. 17 and "Linking Alaska's Landscape to Salmon Populations"
on Feb. 24. The programs are sponsored by the University of
Alaska and the Alaska Scie