Fall 2019 Weather Summary for Arctic Parks

A NPS climate station at Howards Pass, Noatak National Preserve

NPS/Ken Hill

Alaska has warmed over the past 50 years. Fall temperatures have increased the most in the central interior, west coast, and north slope regions of Alaska. The decline in sea ice over the past several years has been a factor in the recent statewide warming trend as sea ice concentration and temperature are strongly correlated in northern Alaska. Over the past 30 years, sea ice extent and volume have been decreasing and the sea-surface temperatures of the north Pacific Ocean over the past several years have been above normal, leading to record warm temperatures over northwest Alaska. Weather and climate are key drivers in ecosystem structure and function, and the high-latitude Arctic parklands are undergoing rapid change.

Annual temperature trends over the past 50 years across Alaska.

Analysis and graphic by Rick Thoman@AlaskaWx

The 5 Arctic parks collectively referred to as the Arctic Network: Bering Land Bridge NP, Cape Krusenstern NM, Noatak National Preserve, Kobuk Valley National Park, and Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve.

Climate, by definition, is the long-term statistical expression of short-term weather. We monitor climate across Arctic parklands with remote climate stations that record temperature, precipitation, wind speed and direction, soil temperature, relative humidity, snow depth, and solar radiation.This information will help us to better understand climate variation as well as long-term changes in park ecosystems.

Long-term National Weather Service stations near Arctic parks in Bettles, Kotzebue, and Nome are used as index sites to compare current climate conditions in the region to the climatological normal—the average weather conditions over a 30-year period. The current normal period is 1981-2010.

Bering Land Bridge National Preserve

Fall season temperatures have increased since we started year-round measurements at Serpentine Hot Springs in 2011. The fall of 2018 was the warmest on record and 2019 was right at average for the 9-year record.

Climate stations in Bering Land Bridge National Preserve.

Left image
Serpentine Hot Springs
Credit: NPS/Ken Hill

Right image
Fall temperatures at Serpentine Hot Springs 2011-2019.

Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve

In Bettles, 2019 was the 3rd wettest and 7th warmest fall season (September-November) on record. The total snowfall November 26-27 was 25.0 inches, breaking the old 2-day record of 23.8 inches set in 1973. The event also broke the 3-day (28.4 inches) and 4-day (28.6 inches) snowfall records. Continuous snowfall records at Bettles date back to 1951.

Map of climate stations in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve

Western Arctic Parklands

It was the 8th warmest and 11th wettest fall season (September-November) in Kotzebue since continuous records began in 1935. Chukchi Sea ice extent was the lowest of the satellite record (1979-) as of the end of the fall season. November marked the 27th consecutive month with above normal temperatures in Kotzebue, 30 miles southeast of Cape Krusenstern National Monument on the tip of the Baldwin Peninsula.

Map of climate stations in Western Arctic Parklands

Sea Ice

Arctic sea ice had another rough year coming in at the second lowest extent arctic-wide (satellite records began in 1979). Regionally, the combined ice extent for the Chukchi and Beaufort seas was the 4th lowest on record. Despite rapid growth as temperatures cooled in mid-November, a warm storm with south winds halted sea ice growth in the Chukchi Sea in late November, and began eating away at the thin, young ice. By December Chukchi Sea ice extent was the lowest of record.
 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/snapandaccap/albums/72157709845875792/with/49981232296/

ACCAP Climate Specialist Rick Thoman

Sisiak Wind

The November 26 storm event which rocked Kotzebue and stalled ice growth in the Chukchi Sea was also recorded at the NPS I&M weather station at Sisiak, 50 miles east of Kelly Ranger Station on the Noatak River. The gust of 62 mph on the 26th was the second highest gust recorded at the site since 2012. The max gust in Kotzebue during the event was 53 mph.
 

For more information, contact:

Pam Sousanes, [e-mail]
Ken Hill, [e-mail]

NPS/Seth Adams