Tina Buxbaum

ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA – Quarterly Climate & Weather Report: March – May 2021

May 30, 2021

This climate map details major weather highlights for Alaska and Northwestern Canada from March to May 2021. In Alaska, Nome experienced six late-season blizzards, Bettles hit a record April low of -39°F (-39.4°C), and Cordova broke records for both its coldest late-spring temperature (2°F / -16.7°C) and earliest warm temperature (71°F / 21.7°C) within a single week. Klawock recorded Alaska's earliest 75°F (23.9°C) high temperature on record on April 18. In Canada, Yellowknife was 3.4°F colder than normal, while Whitehorse saw its 11th wettest spring on record. Meanwhile, Old Crow and Prince George experienced standard normal spring conditions.

Snowy in Nome, cold in northern Alaska and Canada, and warmer and wet in southern Alaska and Canada.

ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA – Quarterly Climate & Weather Report: December 2020 – February 2021

February 28, 2021

This climate summary map highlights regional weather anomalies across Alaska and Northwestern Canada from December 2020 to February 2021. In Alaska, Nome saw unusually late near-shore sea ice formation on December 11, Fairbanks recorded its fourth-lowest December-to-January snowfall at 4.1 inches (10.4 cm), and Haines suffered severe rainfall with over 10 inches (254 mm) in two days, causing multiple landslides and two fatalities. Further south, Anchorage tied its record for the lowest February maximum temperature at 30°F (-1.1°C), while Cold Bay experienced its tied third-warmest February on record, averaging 7.2°F (4.0°C) above normal. In Canada, Whitehorse recorded its third-wettest winter since 1943 alongside warmer-than-normal temperatures, whereas Old Crow marked its sixth-driest winter since 1952 with just 1 inch (25.4 mm) of precipitation. Yellowknife experienced slightly colder-than-normal conditions, while Prince George recorded its second-driest winter since 1943 with warmer-than-average temperatures.

Dry and cold in the north, warm and wet in the south

ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA – Quarterly Climate & Weather Report: September – November 2020

November 30, 2020

An infographic map titled "ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA Weather & Climate Highlights and Impacts, September–November 2020; Climate Outlook January to March 2021" highlights regional climate anomalies with specific weather icons and text callouts.In Alaska, Utqiaġvik experienced its 3rd-warmest November and 4th-warmest autumn on record, Denali Park received a historic 20.2 inches of October snow, Cold Bay saw its 2nd-earliest autumn freeze on September 4, and southeastern areas faced heavy rains, landslides, and Ketchikan's 5th-wettest November.In Canada, dry conditions prevailed in Old Crow (3rd driest since 1953), Burwash (2nd driest since 1967), and Yellowknife (11th driest since 1943). Meanwhile, Watson Lake marked its 14th-coldest autumn since 1939, and Prince George recorded its 12th-wettest autumn since 1943.The map is jointly produced by NOAA, ACCAP, and Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Northern Alaska was warm, central Alaska was snowy, Yukon and NWT was dry and BC was wet.

ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA – Quarterly Climate & Weather Report: June-August 2020

August 31, 2020

An infographic map titled "ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA Weather and Climate Highlights and Impacts, June–August 2020; Climate Outlook October–December 2020" displays regional weather anomalies with local icons and text callouts. In Alaska, Kotzebue had its driest summer since 1977, Fairbanks tied its record with 19 thunder days, and the state recorded its lowest wildfire acreage since 2008 with only 181,000 acres burned. Meanwhile, the Alaska Panhandle saw record-breaking wetness, including Ketchikan's highest summer rainfall on record. In Canada, Old Crow marked its 18th-driest summer since 1953. In contrast, extreme wetness hit Burwash (3rd wettest), Yellowknife (3rd wettest), and Watson Lake (13th wettest), while Prince George recorded its 13th-coldest summer since 1943.The graphic is jointly credited to NOAA, ACCAP, and Environment and Climate Change Canada.

While wildfires burned across Siberia, Alaska and the Canadian North experienced very little wildfire activity. Wildfires in Yukon and Northwest Territories burned a combined 32,600 hectares , their lowest seasonal total since 1988. Alaska had the lowest area burned since 2002.

Understanding Alaska’s temperature trends gets easier with new Statewide Temperature Index Tool

July 30, 2020

A new tool for easily understanding temperature trends across the state of Alaska is now available on the ACCAP website. The new Alaska Statewide Temperature Index provides easy access to statewide temperature data by building an index of temperatures from across the state, and tracking that daily temperature index over time.

Bering Science report released

June 18, 2020

Cover of Bering Science in Spring 2020 - Bering region ocean update - learn what's changing. Aerial shot of community surrounded by bay and ocean.

The Bering Sea continues to see dramatic changes in its climate, sea ice conditions and wildlife, according to a new publication called “Bering Science: Spring 2020 Bering Region Ocean Update.”…

ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA – Quarterly Climate & Weather Report: March – May 2020

May 31, 2020

An infographic map titled "ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA Weather, Climate Highlights & Impacts, March to May 2020; Climate Outlook July to September 2020" displays regional weather anomalies with local icons and text callouts.In Alaska, Utqiaġvik hit a record low of -20°F on April 29, the Kuskokwim River ice break-up at Bethel occurred over a week early on May 3rd, Kodiak had its driest spring since 1972, and a harmless waterspout was spotted in Juneau on March 26. In Canada, Old Crow marked its 12th-warmest spring since 1952. Significant spring dryness affected Dawson (14th driest), Yellowknife (6th driest), and Watson Lake (4th driest), while Prince George recorded its 11th-coldest spring since 1943. The graphic is jointly credited to NOAA, ACCAP, and Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Spring is typically the driest season of the year over most of mainland Alaska, but this year precipitation was unusually high, thanks to a wetter than normal March and April

ACCAP at the 2020 Juneau Innovation Summit: Business in a Changing Climate

March 31, 2020

In Feb 2020, ACCAP played a prominent role in leading the Business in a Changing Climate track of the Juneau Business Innovation Summit. ACCAP lead, John Walsh delivered a plenary talk as…

ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA – Quarterly Climate & Weather Report: Dec 2019 – Feb 2020

February 28, 2020

An infographic map highlights extreme weather records across Alaska and northwestern Canada. Severe cold anomalies are noted in the north and center, including Utqiaġvik's top 20 coldest February at -26.1°F (-32.3°C), Fairbanks' lowest January high on record at 4°F (-15.6°C), and below-normal winter averages in Old Crow, Dawson, and Yellowknife. Conversely, Cold Bay set a February record high of 54°F (12.2°C), while McGrath's snowpack exceeded twice its normal accumulation. Precipitation varied greatly along the southern coast, with Sitka recording its highest winter precipitation since 1991 at 29.71 inches (755 mm), while Watson Lake experienced its 21st driest winter alongside warmer-than-normal temperatures.

Overall, the winter period, December 2019 to February 2020, was colder than normal in almost all of Alaska and most of central and northern YT and NT.

ALASKA and NORTHWESTERN CANADA – Quarterly Climate & Weather Report: Sept–Nov 2019

January 2, 2020

An overview map of Alaska and northwestern Canada highlights extreme weather records from autumn 2019 using red thermometer, blue snowflake, and blue raindrop icons. In Alaska, Utqiaġvik and Anchorage both experienced their warmest autumns on record, while Bettles hit a record three-day snowfall total of 28.3 inches, and Tok saw its highest autumn snowfall in 31 years. Additionally, Bethel reached 178% of its normal autumn precipitation, and Ketchikan broke a dry spell with its first above-normal autumn rainfall since 2015. Across northwestern Canada, three specific daily records were broken in November 2019: Old Crow set a daily maximum temperature record of 26.4°F on November 28, Watson Lake recorded a record single-day precipitation of 0.32 inches on November 17, and Prince George reached a record daily maximum temperature of 53.4°F on November 17. The map also displays several other regional towns and cities for geographic reference.

Autumn 2019 began with drought or abnormal dryness in southern Alaska and ended with rain. However, overall dry conditions have been in place for a couple years, and ecosystem services (e.g. fish flows) sensitive to long term precipitation will require more rain and higher elevation snows to return to normal. Read about the Sept-Nov season and see what early 2020 has in store.