FAIRBANKS -- The U.S. Department of Energy provided a $4.6 million grant to University of Alaska Fairbanks researchers who plan to study the energy-producing potential of a hot springs on the Seward Peninsula. Researchers want to evaluate the geothermal resources at Pilgrim Hot Springs, a largely undeveloped site 37 miles from Nome.

The federal grant requires $1 million in local matching funds, which have yet to be secured.

Gwen Holdmann, the director of UAF's Alaska Center for Energy and Power, says the research will include flights over the geothermal site to take high-powered infrared photos. Holdmann says the technique can examine how much geothermal heat is lost through the ground.