limate - Every Day is Different

Many people who have never been to Alaska expect to find a frozen wasteland with temperatures in the sub-zero range all year round. Nothing could be further from the truth! Before I moved here in 1977, I had never really thought about the climate in Alaska. I honestly don't recall what I expected it to be, but I was delightfully surprised by what I found. Our climate in the Interior bottomlands region of Alaska is considered "continental". That means we have extreme temperatures and low precipitation. There are generally fewer clouds here than in other climate zones, so there is more warming by the sun during the long days of sunmmer and more cooling during the long nights of winter. Precipitation is usually light because air masses affecting the area lose most of their moisture crossing the Alaska Range mountains to the south. In the twenty-two years I have lived here I have seen highs in the mid-90 degree Fahrenheit range in July, and lows down to -55 degree Fahrenheit on the coldest days of winter. After that sort of cold, even -20 degrees Fahrenheit doesn't feel too bad! We spend as little time as possible out in the winter cold, but Don walks to and from work every day, no matter what the weather. (SMILE)

(photos © 1999 Barbara Logan)
Yep, that's a moose in our garden in the ice fog
at 40 Below in Fairbanks, December 1999.

Temperature and Precipitation for Fairbanks, Alaska