Chena Hot Springs is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and hot spring resort in the

Fairbanks North Star Borough The Fairbanks North Star Borough is a borough located in the state of Alaska. As of the 2020 census, the population was 95,665, down from 97,581 in 2010. The borough seat is Fairbanks. The borough's land area is slightly smaller than that o ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

, United States, 56.5 miles northeast of Fairbanks near the

Chena River State Recreation Area Chena River State Recreation Area is a state park in the U.S. state of Alaska, located east of Fairbanks. The recreation area is centered on the Chena River. Facilities include campgrounds, hiking, ATV, snowmachine and sled dog trails, a shoot ...

. The resort makes use of the first low-temperature binary geothermal power plant built in Alaska, and is working on several alternative energy projects, including production and use of

hydrogen Hydrogen is the chemical element with the symbol H and atomic number 1. Hydrogen is the lightest element. At standard conditions hydrogen is a gas of diatomic molecules having the formula . It is colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic ...

and vegetable oil for fuel. The resort is conducting collaborative experiments in greenhouse production of

vegetable Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, ...

s with the

University of Alaska Fairbanks The University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF or Alaska) is a public land-grant research university in College, Alaska, a suburb of Fairbanks. It is the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. UAF was established in 1917 and opened for c ...

Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.

History

Chena Hot Springs was founded over 100 years ago by two gold mining brothers, Robert and Thomas Swan. In 1905, Robert Swan was suffering from rheumatism and needed a place to calm his pain and be comfortable. The two brothers set out to find the hot springs. It took them a little over a month to reach the hot springs after searching for it in

Interior Alaska Interior Alaska is the central region of Alaska's territory, roughly bounded by the Alaska Range to the south and the Brooks Range to the north. It is largely wilderness. Mountains include Denali in the Alaska Range, the Wrangell Mountains, and ...

’s harsh landscape. In 1911, twelve small cabins were built to accommodate visitors. The twelve cabins developed, establishing it as a resort in the interior of Alaska. The

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

sent chemists to analyze the water. Warning sign at Chena Hot Springs (40756466683)

Demographics

Chena Hot Springs has never formally reported a population on the U.S. Census. The USGS reported it had an estimated summer population of 10 for the resort.

Weather

The coordinates for Chena Hot Springs Alaska are 65'03'' N and 146'03'' W (65.05, -146.05). The average yearly temperature for the area is , with the highest temperature being in July at and the lowest temperature being in January at . Annually the average amount of precipitation is . The average snowfall amount in Chena Hot Springs is annually. Chena Hot Springs has visibility of the

Aurora borealis An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

, especially around the March equinox.

Aurora Ice Museum

The Aurora Ice Museum contains carved ice sculptures and is located at the hot springs resort is open throughout the year. Some of the sculptures depict igloos, a large chess set, and jousting knights on horseback.

Geothermal Power Plant

Chena Hot Springs Resort uses two 200kW

Organic Rankine cycle In thermal engineering, the Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) is a type of thermodynamic cycle. It is a variation of the Rankine cycle named for its use of an organic, high-molecular-mass fluid whose vaporization temperature is lower than that of wate ...

(ORC) geothermal energy power plants to generate energy, the first in Alaska. The resort moved the diesel generators used in the past to a backup role since July 2006, and it is successful in reducing the cost from 30 cents/kWh to 5 cents/kWh.

DC6 On Display

Everts Air Cargo retired the

Douglas DC-6 The Douglas DC-6 is a piston-powered airliner and cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1958. Originally intended as a military transport near the end of World War II, it was reworked after the war to compete with t ...

A N6174C “Good Grief” on October 2, 2016, after it made the final flight from Anchorage to Chena Hot Springs, after its 62-year flight career.Alaska - Canada News, Former Everts DC-6A on Display at Chena Hot Springs Resort – May 12, 2019
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References

External links

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Renewable Energy Center

Ice Museum and Geothermal Power Plant

Wildlife
from the

Alaska Department of Fish and Game The Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) is a department within the government of Alaska. ADF&G's mission is to protect, maintain, and improve the fish, game, and aquatic plant resources of the state, and manage their use and development in ...

Weather
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