Justin Higginbottom

Print and radio journalist

Audio

KSJD •

Chasing Sunlight: Inside the Growing Field of Archaeoastronomy

There’s a growing number of observers finding a connection with solar events and some rock-art panels. The study of these interactions is called archeo-astronomy… or cultural astronomy… or ancient astronomy. And the field relies on the work of amateurs scouring the Southwest for examples. For Rocky Mountain Community Radio, Justin Higginbottom reports from Moab.

Rory Tyler wasn’t in Moab for long before he had a hunch about “The Snake.” He had moved from Oregon in 1993 and soon after hiked with
KZMU •

Modern-day Trappers Are Using Beavers to Fight the Effects of Drought

At the chalky slopes of the Book Cliffs in Southeastern Utah, Christine Sandbach, a graduate student at Utah State University, has a beaver in a cage that she’s trying to get a read on.

“Whenever we interact with them we record their behavior. So she just kind of turned away when I opened up the cage cover. So that would be fearful,” says Sandbach, standing in a leafy oasis along the shallow Price River.

Sandbach is one a number of modern-day trappers searching the state for beavers in a partn
KZMU •

Backcountry Flying Is Taking Off in Southeastern Utah

Gary Hilley’s job as a mechanic usually keeps him grounded during the week. But when he’s free he heads above Southeastern Utah. Today Hilley is in his two-seat plane called a Supercub, a lightweight craft able to take off and land with only a few hundred feet of runway, flying over slot canyons and mesas, heading south with Canyonlands National Park in the distance.

“So all these orange dots are runways around us. But we’re probably going to go either to Mineral [Bottom] or Horseshoe [Canyon]
KSJD •

Among Utah’s wild horses roam a “genetic treasure”

Among Utah’s wild horses roam a special breed with a history stretching back to Spanish colonialists.

They've remained isolated in a mountain range near the Nevada border for hundreds of years which helped keep their bloodline intact.

As the Bureau of Land Management rounds up the herd to protect rangeland health, some say this breed shouldn't be treated like your average mustang.

There’s nearly 100,000 wild horses and burros in the West, according to the Bureau of Land Management.

Utah alon
KSJD •

The Meaning of 'Rez Dog' Is Changing on the Navajo Nation

It's hard to not notice the large number of dogs roaming the rural regions of the Navajo Nation. It's long been considered a problem as the animals can be aggressive or carry diseases. In fact that the Navajo Nation Council recently passed legislation that penalizes owners of animals that bite or attack people

But many of these animals also live a harsh life, and the culture around dog ownership in the area is changing.
Utah Public Radio •

A Natural Gas Operator Begins a Different Type of Extraction: Bitcoin

Operators at Wesco’s Blue Hills natural gas processing plant near Moab, Utah had a problem. After the Greentown pipeline was shut down by regulators who deemed it hazardous, Blue Hills’ gas was left stranded.

“And unfortunately, these oil wells are not like your kitchen faucet where you can turn it on and off at your pleasure,” said Steve Degenfelder, land manager and spokesman for Wesco Operating and Kirkwood Oil and Gas. “And so we had no other recourse than to flare the gas that would have o
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