Fairbanks June Wx Summary

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
1245 PM AKDT FRI JUL 1 2011

...JUNE WEATHER SUMMARY FOR FAIRBANKS...
...MILD AND WET...

JUNE STARTED OFF WARM AND DRY...CONTINUING THE TREND FROM LATE MAY. THIS ALLOWED FOR SMOKE FROM INTERIOR WILDFIRES ON A FEW DAYS...BUT IN TOWN THE SMOKE WAS NOTICEABLY DENSE ON JUST ONE DAY. STARTING ON JUNE 9TH...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS BECAME MORE FREQUENT. THUNDER WAS HEARD AT THE AIRPORT ON FOUR DAYS IN JUNE...COMPARED TO AN AVERAGE OF THREE. THE LAST THREE DAYS OF THE MONTH SEEMED MORE TYPICAL OF AUGUST WEATHER IN INTERIOR ALASKA...WITH THICK CLOUD COVER AND PERIODS OF STEADY RAIN.

AT THE FAIRBANKS AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE WAS 70 DEGREES AND THE AVERAGE LOW 51 DEGREES. OVERALL...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR JUNE OF 60.4 DEGREES WAS 0.7 DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL. THIS TEMPERATURE EXCESS WAS DUE TO WARMER THAN NORMAL OVERNIGHT LOW TEMPERATURES...WHICH WERE BOOSTED BY FREQUENT NIGHTTIME CLOUD COVER. ONLY ONE DAY HAD A TEMPERATURE ABOVE 80...BUT THE HIGH TEMPERATURE OF 88 DEGREES ON JUNE 25TH WAS THE HIGHEST JUNE READING SINCE 2004. THE LOWEST TEMPERATURE DURING JUNE AT THE AIRPORT WAS 43 DEGREES ON THE 5TH AND 10TH. SOME OF THE NORMALLY COOLER LOW LYING AREAS RECORDED LOW TEMPERATURES NEAR OR JUST BELOW FREEZING EARLY IN THE MONTH...INCLUDING 30 DEGREES AT GOLDSTREAM VALLEY BOTTOM AND 33 DEGREES AT WOODSMOKE NEAR NORTH POLE...BOTH ON JUNE 5TH.

THE MONTH STARTED OFF CONTINUING THE DRY WEATHER OF SPRING...BUT SHOWERS BECAME MORE FREQUENT AS JUNE WORE ON. MEASURABLE RAIN FELL ON HALF THE DAYS OF THE MONTH...SIGNIFICANTLY MORE THAN THE LONG TERM AVERAGE OF 11 DAYS WITH 0.01 INCHES OR MORE OF RAIN. AS IS TYPICAL FOR JUNE...DAILY RAINFALL VARIED WIDELY IN THE GREATER FAIRBANKS AREA...THOUGH MONTHLY TOTALS WERE SIMILAR. THE AIRPORT MEASURED 1.77 INCHES FOR JUNE...BY FAR THE LOWEST MONTHLY TOTAL IN THE AREA. HOWEVER...THIS WAS STILL ABOUT A THIRD OF AN INCH ABOVE NORMAL. MOST OF THE RAIN FELL DURING THE LAST WEEK OF THE MONTH. OTHER JUNE TOTALS INCLUDE...
GOLDSTREAM CREEK.................2.01 INCHES
UNIVERSITY WEST..................2.15 INCHES
UAF WEST RIDGE...................2.58 INCHES
GILMORE CREEK....................2.60 INCHES
SALCHA...........................2.61 INCHES
NORTH POLE.......................2.91 INCHES
EAST FARMERS LOOP................2.96 INCHES
40 MILE CHENA HOT SPRINGS ROAD...3.95 INCHES

MUCH HIGHER MONTHLY RAINFALL TOTALS WERE MEASURED AT HIGHER ELEVATIONS IN THE UPPER CHENA BASIN...INCLUDING 6.24 INCHES AT MUNSON RIDGE AND 4.53 INCHES AT MONUMENT CREEK NEAR CHENA HOT SPRINGS. HEAVY RAINS ALSO FELL IN THE UPPER SALCHA RIVER BASIN...WHICH PUSHED THE SALCHA RIVER UP TO NEAR FLOOD STAGE ON JUNE 26TH. FARTHER EAST...THERE WAS FLOODING ON THE GOODPASTER RIVER A COUPLE DAYS EARLIER.

LOOKING AHEAD TO JULY...THIS IS OFTEN THE WARMEST MONTH OF THE YEAR IN FAIRBANKS. THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE IS 72 DEGREES AND THE AVERAGE LOW 53 DEGREES. IN THE PAST 106 YEARS...JULY TEMPERATURES HAVE RANGED FROM 99 DEGREES IN 1919 TO A LOW OF 30 DEGREES IN 1905. AVERAGE RAINFALL FOR THE MONTH IS 1.73 INCHES..AND MONTH THE WETTEST AND DRIEST JULYS OF RECORD HAVE OCCURRED IN THE PAST TEN YEARS. JULY IS THE ONLY MONTH OF THE YEAR THAT IT HAS NOT SNOWED IN FAIRBANKS. POSSIBLE SUNSHINE DECREASES FROM 21 HOURS AND 27 MINUTES ON THE FIRST TO 18 HOURS AND 18 MINUTES ON THE 31ST. DURING THE LAST WEEK OF THE MONTH IT WILL AGAIN BECOME DARK ENOUGH FOR THE BRIGHTEST STARS TO BE BRIEFLY VISIBLE.