American Alpine Journal

Infobox Journal


discipline = Climbing, Mountaineering
website = [http://www.americanalpineclub.org/pages/page/47 AAJ at AAC]
publisher = American Alpine Club
country = United States
abbreviation = AAJ
history = 1929 to present
frequency = Annual
ISSN = 0065-6925

The "American Alpine Journal" is the yearly flagship publication of the American Alpine Club. Its mission is "to document and communicate mountain exploration.""American Alpine Journal", Vol. 44, 76, 2002, p. 14.] It serves as a worldwide journal of record for achievements in climbing, mountaineering, and exploration of mountains. (However coverage of New Zealand and Europe has been far from complete.)

Each issue contains feature stories about notable climbs, written by the participants, as well as a large "Climbs and Expeditions" section containing short notes by climbers about new and noteworthy achievements. Some general articles about mountaineering, mountain medicine, the mountain environment, or other topics are also sometimes included. Each issue includes book reviews, memorials of deceased members, and club activities.

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History

The journal was founded in 1929. In 1957 and 1958, the editor was Francis P. Farquhar. From 1960 to 1995, the editor was H. Adams Carter, who brought the journal to international pre-eminence. From 1996 to 2001, the editor was Christian Beckwith. Since 2002, the editor has been John Harlin III. The overall format of the journal has changed little since at least the 1970s, but current plans include more complete worldwide coverage (particularly including Europe and New Zealand) and electronic/online access (see below).

imilar journals

Other journals of record for climbing include the "Canadian Alpine Journal" published by the Alpine Club of Canada, the "Alpine Journal" published by the Alpine Club (of the United Kingdom), the "Himalayan Journal", and "Iwa To Yuki", a Japanese journal. All of these journals are often used by climbers planning expeditions, especially those who wish to verify that a proposed route would be a new one. Entries in these journals (and others) concerning major Himalayan peaks are indexed in the [http://www.alpine-club.org.uk/hi/index.htm Himalayan Index] .

Online access

In March 2007, the American Alpine Journal inaugurated free, full, searchable [http://americanalpineclub.org/AAJO/ online access] for its issues dating back to 1966. All earlier issues will eventually be added. [http://www.americanalpineclub.org/pdfs/AAJ%20Online%20Release.pdf Press release] (PDF)] A complete index is also available for free download. A complete set of the journal on DVD may eventually be available for purchase.

References

External links

* [http://americanalpineclub.org/AAJO/ Searchable online access]
* [http://www.americanalpineclub.org/pages/page/47 "AAJ" official site] at the American Alpine Club
* [http://www.climbing.com/aaj "AAJ"] at climbing.com ("Climbing Magazine")
* [http://www.alpine-club.org.uk/hi/index.htm Himalayan Index]