Fairbanks March Summary

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
244 PM AKDT SUN APR 1 2012

...MARCH WEATHER SUMMARY FOR FAIRBANKS...
...COLD AND SNOWY...

FOLLOWING A VERY MILD FEBRUARY...THE WEATHER PATTERN OVER NEARLY
ALL OF ALASKA FLIPPED...AND MOST AREAS HAD WELL BELOW NORMAL
TEMPERATURES FOR MOST OF MARCH. FAIRBANKS WAS NO EXCEPTION.

THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE OF 4.5 ABOVE WAS NEARLY SEVEN DEGREES
COLDER THAN NORMAL AND RESULTED IN MARCH...QUITE UNUSUALLY...BEING
COLDER THAN FEBRUARY. AS WAS THE CASE IN JANUARY...DAILY
TEMPERATURES WERE NOT EXCESSIVELY LOW...AS THERE WERE NO
TEMPERATURES EVEN CLOSE TO RECORD LEVELS. RATHER...THE PERSISTENCE
OF CHILLY TEMPERATURES WAS MOST NOTABLE. EVERY DAY BUT ONE FROM
THE 10TH THROUGH THE 23RD WAS TEN OR MORE DEGREES COLDER THAN
NORMAL.

FOR THE MONTH...THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE AT THE AIRPORT WAS
18 ABOVE AND THE AVERAGE LOW WAS 9 BELOW. THE TEMPERATURE ROSE
ABOVE FREEZING FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE BEFORE CHRISTMAS ON THE
27TH...AND THE HIGH FOR THE MONTH WAS 44 DEGREES ON THE 28TH. THE
LOW TEMPERATURE IN MARCH WAS 30 BELOW ON THE 5TH...WHICH IS VERY CLOSE
TO THE LONG TERM AVERAGE LOWEST TEMPERATURE IN MARCH. THERE WERE
EIGHT DAYS WITH LOWS OF 20 BELOW OR LOWER...A BIT MORE THAN IN AN
AVERAGE MARCH.

MARCH IS TYPICALLY A DRY MONTH IN FAIRBANKS...BUT NOT THIS YEAR.
TOTAL SNOW OF 14.7 INCHES AT THE AIRPORT MADE THIS THE THIRD
SNOWIEST MARCH IN THE PAST 45 YEARS. MOST OF THE SNOW CAME ON THE
5TH THROUGH 7TH...WHEN SOME PLACES NORTH AND EAST OF TOWN RECEIVED
MORE THAN 18 INCHES OF SNOW. THE SNOW WAS QUITE POWDERY...WHICH IS
USUAL FOR THIS TIME OF YEAR. THIS BROUGHT THE SEASONAL TOTAL
SNOWFALL UP TO 57.4 INCHES...ABOUT 4 INCHES BELOW NORMAL. THE SNOW
DEPTH REACHED 29 INCHES ON THE 8TH...THEN COMPACTED TO 22 INCHES
BY THE 31ST.

SOME PRECIPITATION FELL ON MORE THAN HALF THE DAYS IN MARCH. THE
SNOW MELTED DOWN TO 0.74 INCHES OF WATER...NEARLY THREE TIMES
NORMAL.

LOOKING AHEAD TO APRIL...NORMAL TEMPERATURES CONTINUE TO INCREASE
RAPIDLY. AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURES RISE FROM 35 DEGREES ON THE FIRST
TO 54 DEGREES IN THE 30TH. APRIL IS OFTEN QUITE DRY. IN THE PAST
20 YEARS...HALF THE APRILS HAD LESS THAN ONE TENTH OF INCH OF
PRECIPITATION. MOST OF WHAT DOES FALLS TYPICALLY FALLS AS
SNOW...THOUGH RAIN SHOWERS SOMETIMES OCCUR...ESPECIALLY THE SECOND
HALF OF THE MONTH. ON RARE OCCASIONS SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL OCCURS
IN APRIL...THOUGH ONLY FIVE APRILS IN THE PAST 60 YEARS HAVE
RECEIVED MORE THAN 10 INCHES OF SNOW. THE WINTER SNOWPACK USUALLY
MELTS OUT IN TOWN DURING APRIL. THE AVERAGE DATE FOR LAST DAY WITH
AN INCH OR MORE OF SNOW ON THE GROUND IS APRIL 22ND.

APRIL IS OFTEN A SUNNY MONTH...AS POSSIBLE SUNSHINE INCREASES FROM
13 HOURS AND 41 MINUTES ON THE FIRST TO 17 HOURS ON 30TH. DURING
THE LAST WEEK OF APRIL...SOME TWILIGHT REMAINS VISIBLE IN NORTHERN
SKY ALL NIGHT LONG.

$$
RT APR 12