Watch The American Road To Victory (Trilogy) on PBS. See more from wrlk.

As host of the trilogy, von Seibold, a surprisingly agile and energetic 63 year old, gives viewers the full battlefield experience of three crucial points in World War II from the blood soaked beaches of D Day through Hell’s Highway in Holland and to the frozen Ardennes forests of the Battle of the Bulge. In this first episode, land in Sainte-Mère-Église with the 82nd Airborne, scale the cliffs at La Pointe du Hoc with the Rangers, wade through the surf on Omaha Beach with the Big Red One and the 29th Infantry Division, and take the guns at Brecourt Manor with Easy Company of the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. See the uniforms they wore, the weapons they fired and the equipment they carried.

• KAKM: Thursday, 5/17 at 8:00pm

Polar bear with skin loss on neck and shoulder found during 2012 survey of Beaufort Sea. Photo from US Geological Survey.

Climate change is causing ice withdrawal and creating stress for animals that live on it. When sick seals started showing up on the beaches off Barrow last July, some saw it as the latest evidence of global warming.

As part of our series on climate change, Johanna Eurich reports that tracking clues behind the ring seal’s sickness created an international effort, with Native hunters working with biologists in a way that may provide a model for responding to future changes in the Arctic.

• For additional pictures and information on this series, visit: KNBA: Climate Change Series

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The three primary bidders at today’s sale were Apache, Cook Inlet Energy, and a new player in Cook Inlet, Hillcorp.

Barron says the increased interest in Cook Inlet resources could be attributed to Apache’s earlier exploration efforts

State tax incentives have played a role in luring new development to the Inlet.  There’s no tax on Cook Inlet oil production.  Producers do pay a 5 percent royalty on new discoveries for the first 10 years. Barron says after today’s lease sale, it takes about a year before exploration can begin.

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Photo by Alexandra Gutierrez, KUCB - Unalaska

Like clockwork, the ominous signs show up every May: “Danger Nesting Eagles.” They’re placed near Unalaska’s clinic and post offices, and they feature a silhouette of a bird extending its talons toward a terrified human being.

The city’s Department of Public Safety put them up last Wednesday, after getting the first report of a bald eagle attack this year. According to Deputy Chief Mike Holman, the incident took place outside the Iliuliuk Family and Health Services clinic. Holman says that while bald eagles have wounded people in the past, this attack wasn’t anything serious – just a swooping.

“Nothing that was resulting in injuries — just some fear,” says Holman.

Eagle-human relations are peaceful in Unalaska for most of the year. But once they begin mating, the birds become territorial. The fact that bald eagles are especially plentiful in Unalaska means that encounters with human beings are almost routine. When I call U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokesperson Bruce Woods to learn more about eagle safety, he says he’s been expecting me to get in touch. He says that there are probably more eagle attacks in Unalaska than any other place in the United States. He’s even had a run-in himself.

“I think I told you when we talked about this last year that when I was out there years ago, I got swooped by one just because I was climbing on this little dirt hill to get a look at the nest,” says Woods.

Woods adds that if you want to avoid getting attacked, you shouldn’t do what he did. He says to respect the eagles’ space and to observe them at a distance. If an eagle does start stalking you, you should put your hands up and make yourself as big as possible. And if it comes down to it and an eagle makes contact with you, Woods says you shouldn’t worry too much about legal penalties for swatting the national bird away.

“If they’re not actually trying to hurt the bird, and if they’re waving their arms in the air and they accidentally hit the eagle, it’s not likely to do any harm to the eagle and I can’t imagine that anybody would press any charges over something like that.,” says Woods. “Obviously, if someone shot an eagle or if they took a baseball and tried to knock it out of the sky, that would be a different matter.”

On Tuesday afternoon, clinic finance director Tom Smoll and I decide to take a look at the offending eagle from the safety of the building’s entrance. The nest is about five feet wide and set into a cliff that overlooks the clinic parking lot. Smoll says that this bird has been responsible for a number of attacks over the years.

“From that nest right in front of the clinic here, I’ve heard of two or three that people have come into the clinic to get treated for various scratches and cuts,” says Smoll.

The nest was recently deemed to be a danger to the public, and Fish and Wildlife granted the City of Unalaska a permit to remove it. But because mating season began before the snow started melting, the nest can’t be taken down until at least the fall. Smoll says that people will just have to remain vigilant in the meantime. And if they do get attacked, well, at least they’re in a convenient spot for that to happen.

“Fifty feet away from the clinic doors, and we can patch them up and get them on their way,” says Smoll.

The clinic’s staff will be standing by for eagle-related visits through July, when nesting season ends.

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Cook Inlet Oil, Gas Lease Sale Nets Over $6.8 Million

Ellen Lockyer, KSKA – Anchorage

State officials say Wednesday’s Cook Inlet oil and gas lease sale netted more than $6.8 million. Preliminary results indicate the sale is the second largest in Cook Inlet in a dozen years. Bill Barron, state Department of Natural Resources oil, says an gas division director, says five groups bid on 44 tracts.

The three primary bidders at today’s sale were Apache, Cook Inlet Energy, and a new player in Cook Inlet, Hillcorp.

Barron says the increased interest in Cook Inlet resources could be attributed to Apache’s earlier exploration efforts

State tax incentives have played a role in luring new development to the Inlet.  There’s no tax on Cook Inlet oil production.  Producers do pay a 5 percent royalty on new discoveries for the first 10 years. Barron says after today’s lease sale, it takes about a year before exploration can begin.

Naknek Residents Take On Logistical Recycling Endeavor

Dave Bendinger, KDLG – Dillingham

Recycling in rural Alaska can be an expensive logistical endeavor. And as recyclable material makes its way to local landfills, some electronics can threaten groundwater supplies. As part of our ongoing series on recycling across the state, KDLG’s Dave Bendinger looks at one Naknek resident’s effort to establish an economically viable means to recycle electronics in Bristol Bay.

Work Between Native Hunters, Biologists Lays Groundwork For Future

Johanna Eurich, KNBA – Anchorage

Climate change is causing ice withdrawal and creating stress for animals that live on it. When sick seals started showing up on the beaches off Barrow last July, some saw it as the latest evidence of global warming.

As part of our series on climate change, Johanna Eurich reports that tracking clues behind the ring seal’s sickness created an international effort, with Native hunters working with biologists in a way that may provide a model for responding to future changes in the Arctic.

Shell Oil Hopes To Begin Exploratory Drilling This Summer

Lori Townsend, APRN – Anchorage

Shell Oil officials are hoping to begin exploratory drilling in the Chukchi Sea this summer, searching for off shore oil and gas. Environmental organizations have filed suit throughout the permitting process, claiming not enough is known about the fragile arctic ecosystem. But Shell leaders say there is a substantial amount of science from numerous sources that has been compiled over at least four decades. Michael Macrander is the lead scientist for Shell Arctic research. Shell is using acoustic monitoring to better understand how whales respond to noise. This is a sample of the whale calls they’ve recorded.

Another Weak Yukon River Chinook Run In The Forecast

Dan Bross, KUAC – Fairbanks

Another weak king salmon return is forecast for the Yukon River.  Alaska Department of Fish and Game Yukon area management biologist Steve Hayes says this summer’s Chinook run is predicted to be up to 146,000 fish, in line with weak runs since 1997.

Bald Eagles Back On The Attack

Alexandra Guiterrez, KUCB – Unalaska

In Unalaska, there are a few big signs that spring has arrived. The crocuses are coming up, the snow is starting to melt, and most significantly, the bald eagles are on attack. As KUCB’s Alexandra Gutierrez reports, trouble with the birds has started up again.

Anchorage Residents React To Morning Quake

Heather Aronno, APRN – Anchorage

An earthquake struck Anchorage this morning just as many residents were beginning their day. The 4.7 magnitude quake shook the city at 7:03 a.m.. There were no reports of damage, but the earthquake was centered right in town, so it felt very strong to most residents.

Investigators want to speak with anyone who might have sold or traded a .44-caliber revolver in the last year, specifically a Smith and Wesson model 29, a Smith and Wesson model 629 or a .44 magnum Taurus model. FBI Spokesperson Eric Gonzales says the agency is searching statewide for information that will lead them to the murder weapon.

The FBI has contacted gun dealers in Kodiak and questioned several people who had booths at a local gun show in March. Two weeks ago the Coast Guard Investigative Service recruited over 120 members of the community to search for the weapon along Aton Larsen Bay road and in an area in Bell’s Flats.

Officials have been tight-lipped about the investigation. A suspect has yet to be identified; however the FBI has assured Kodiak residents that they’re safe.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.