: Today So Far

If Bob Ross were painting around Washington today, I imagine it would go something like this:

"And here, let's add a little stream coming down the mountain ... it's a sad stream because it misses its friends, the glaciers that used to be high up in the mountains. We're gonna need a lot of liquid white for this, which is good since we didn't use much of it for the glaciers ... because they've disappeared ... oh, and by the way, I want to introduce you to my squirrel friend..."

Bob Ross isn't painting these days, may he rest in peace. But there are a handful of hiking artists who are trekking up the Olympics and Cascades with researchers to document the decline of the region's mountain glaciers. They also create paintings related to salmon, landscape loss, and reforestation.

"That means sharing information or stories about science in ways that are more accessible, or maybe they can just reach different audiences than the more traditional ways of sharing science," Jill Pelto told KUOW's Soundside, adding that she incorporates actual data into her paintings.