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NOAK49 PAFG 032320
PNSAFG
AKZ222-041130-

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FAIRBANKS AK
220 PM AKST WED DEC 3 2008

...NOVEMBER WEATHER SUMMARY FOR FAIRBANKS...
...CHILLY WEATHER CONTINUES...

TEMPERATURES DURING NOVEMBER...WHILE NOT AS RELENTLESSLY BELOW
NORMAL AS IN OCTOBER...WERE STILL ON THE CHILLY SIDE. OVERALL...
THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH AT THE FAIRBANKS
AIRPORT WAS 7 ABOVE AND THE AVERAGE LOW WAS 9 BELOW. THE AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 1.4 DEGREES BELOW ZERO WAS 3.7 DEGREES LOWER THAN
NORMAL. THE HIGH FOR THE MONTH AT THE AIRPORT WAS 17 DEGREES ON
THE 11TH AND 28...WHILE THE LOW 25 BELOW OCCURRED ON THE 19TH.
THIS IS ONLY THE SIXTH NOVEMBER IN MORE THAN 100 YEARS OF
OBSERVATIONS WHEN THE TEMPERATURE FAILED TO REACH 20 DEGREES IN
FAIRBANKS.

FOR THE SEPTEMBER THROUGH NOVEMBER PERIOD...THE AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 20.0 DEGREES WAS MORE THAN FOUR DEGREES BELOW
NORMAL AND IS TIED WITH 1999 FOR 10TH COLDEST AUTUMN OF RECORD.

SNOW DURING THE MONTH WAS FREQUENT BUT VERY LIGHT. SOME SNOW FELL
ON 19 DAYS BUT MORE THAN AN INCH FELL ON JUST TWO DAYS. THE TOTAL
SNOWFALL OF 6.5 INCHES IS LESS THAN HALF OF NORMAL...AND NEARLY
HALF OF THAT TOTAL...2.9 INCHES...FELL ON THE 3RD AND 4TH. THE
SNOW MELTED DOWN TO JUST 0.28 INCHES OF WATER...BARELY A THIRD OF
NORMAL. SNOW DEPTHS INCREASED FROM SIX INCHES ON THE FIRST TO 10
INCHES BY THE EVENING OF THE 30TH.

SNOWFALL FOR THE SEASON THROUGH THE END OF NOVEMBER TOTALED JUST
OVER 20 INCHES...MORE THAN EIGHT INCHES BELOW NORMAL.

WINDS DURING THE MONTH WERE QUITE LIGHT...EVEN BY FAIRBANKS
STANDARDS. THE AVERAGE WIND SPEED AT THE AIRPORT WAS LESS THAN
1 MPH...AND THE PEAK WIND SPEED WAS JUST 15 MPH ON THE 30TH.

LOOKING AHEAD TO DECEMBER...AVERAGE TEMPERATURES CONTINUE TO DROP.
THE AVERAGE HIGH TEMPERATURE FALLS FROM 5 ABOVE ON THE 1ST TO TO 1
BELOW AT THE END OF THE MONTH. AVERAGE LOWS FALL FROM 12 BELOW ON
THE 1ST TO 17 BELOW ON NEW YEARS EVE. IN THE PAST 105
YEARS...TEMPERATURES DURING DECEMBER HAVE RANGED FROM A HIGH OF 58
IN 1934 TO A LOW OF 62 BELOW IN 1961. IN ABOUT HALF OF DECEMBERS
THE TEMPERATURE FAILS TO RISE ABOVE FREEZING. TEMPERATURES FALL TO
40 BELOW OR LOWER IN THE MAJORITY OF DECEMBERS. SNOWFALL AVERAGES
ABOUT 13 INCHES.

$$
RT DEC 08