Bitter cold records broken in Alaska – all time coldest record nearly broken, ....

watts up with that? ^ | January 30, 2012 | Anthony Watts

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Jim River, AK closed in on the all time record coldest temperature of -80°F set in 1971, which is not only the Alaska all-time record, but the record for the entire United States. Unfortunately, it seems the battery died in the weather station just at the critical moment.

Image from hamweather.com

While the continental USA has a mild winter and has set a number of high temperature records in the last week and pundits ponder whether they will be blaming the dreaded “global warming” for those temperatures, Alaska and Canada have been suffering through some of the coldest temperatures on record during the last week.

For example in  Circle Hot Springs, AK on Sunday, 29 Jan 2012 the HIGH temperature was a blistering -49°F, breaking the  -44°F record which has stood since 1917. It gets better.

That same day in Circle Hot Springs the low temperature was  -58°F   breaking the old record of  -52°F set  in 1941 by six degrees.

Here’s a list of temperature records in Alaska from the past week:

Brrr!

While all that was happening, the weather station in Jim River, AK closed in on the all time record coldest temperature of -80°F set in 1971. That’s not only the Alaska all-time record, but the record for the entire United States. Unfortunately, the weather station stopped reporting at -79°F.

Here’s the data feed at that moment:

[grey_whiskers]

The comments are *very* enlightening, particularly with regards to the physics and engineering of the thermometers used: due to an issue with the batteries they cannot reliably record temperatures less than -40^o F (the F and C scales cross at that point, btw).

This has the effect of truncating the lowest temperatures in that area and thereby artificially increasing the T in the recorded time series.

Cheers!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Enjoy the warm weather....it may niot last down here in the lower 48 States.

[wardaddy]

exponentially the warmest winter I have ever seen in Middle Tennessee..I lived in Mobile AL on the bay at Point Clear in 75/76

and this is warmer than that..wet though..rain

right now it’s 57 outside at midnight...should be upper 20s and low-mid 20s for an average February 1st evening low

amazing

last year was very cold

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks for the info.

[Tennessee Nana]

HELP !!! HELP !!!

Wez gotz global warming ...

[Ackackadack]

Makes me soooo glad I don't work in Prudhoe Bay (Deadhorse) anymore...although if I did, we'd be shut down for work and in camp at those temperatures, as those currently up there undoubtedly are.

-60 wind chill is pretty much a normal winter workday, but once the ambient (actual temp without factoring wind chill) drops below -40, equipment can be dangerously affected.

[TexasRepublic]

Meanwhile it is 68F at midnight in Houston, Texas. Some winter.

[Sea Parrot]

How well I remember 1971 in Alaska. We lived down in rural Kenai Peninsula and hit 50 below zero several times. For days on end was so cold, propane would not boil off (35 below zero) to make gas for cooking. Luckily we had wood heat and could cook on the stove, vehicle differential lube was so stiff had a hard time moving the vehicles, if they started at all.

And the weather we had was balmy compared to the interior, went caribou hunting near Chicken and it got down to 70 below while there.

[Marine_Uncle]

As many here. I have been following the deep freeze in Alaska, Bearing Straights, northern Canada over the last few months. Getting a bit cold up there for those folks and animal life. And of course the huge snow falls in Europe and cold temps. Sounds as if the global warming phenomena has waned a bit........../sarc for the last statement.

[beaversmom]

Here have been our temps just outside of Denver for January. All in all, a pretty mild month for us here in CO:

January
Sun
1

OBSERVED

Hi 34°F
Lo 18°F

Precip (in)
0in.

Mon
2

OBSERVED

Hi 54°F
Lo 18°F

Precip (in)
0in.

Tue
3

OBSERVED

Hi 52°F
Lo 32°F

Precip (in)
0in.

Wed
4

OBSERVED

Hi 59°F
Lo 26°F

Precip (in)
0in.

Thu
5

OBSERVED

Hi 64°F
Lo 38°F

Precip (in)
0in.

Fri
6

OBSERVED

Hi 53°F
Lo 26°F

Precip (in)
0in.

Sat
7

OBSERVED

Hi 37°F
Lo 21°F

Precip (in)
0.12in.
8

OBSERVED

Hi 36°F
Lo 14°F

Precip (in)
0in.

9

OBSERVED

Hi 47°F
Lo 22°F

Precip (in)
0in.

10

OBSERVED

Hi 59°F
Lo 32°F

Precip (in)
0.02in.

11

OBSERVED

Hi 47°F
Lo 1°F

Precip (in)
0.22in.

12

OBSERVED

Hi 38°F
Lo 3°F

Precip (in)
0in.

13

OBSERVED

Hi 43°F
Lo 19°F

Precip (in)
0in.

14

OBSERVED

Hi 54°F
Lo 28°F

Precip (in)
0in.
15

OBSERVED

Hi 57°F
Lo 34°F

Precip (in)
0in.

16

OBSERVED

Hi 40°F
Lo 15°F

Precip (in)
0.07in.

17

OBSERVED

Hi 28°F
Lo 5°F

Precip (in)
0in.

18

OBSERVED

Hi 47°F
Lo 19°F

Precip (in)
0in.

19

OBSERVED

Hi 63°F
Lo 39°F

Precip (in)
0in.

20

OBSERVED

Hi 54°F
Lo 33°F

Precip (in)
0in.

21

OBSERVED

Hi 63°F
Lo 37°F

Precip (in)
0.02in.
22

OBSERVED

Hi 45°F
Lo 26°F

Precip (in)
0.02in.

23

OBSERVED

Hi 48°F
Lo 27°F

Precip (in)
0in.

24

OBSERVED

Hi 34°F
Lo 22°F

Precip (in)
0.02in.

25

OBSERVED

Hi 61°F
Lo 21°F

Precip (in)
0in.

26

OBSERVED

Hi 55°F
Lo 34°F

Precip (in)
0in.

27

OBSERVED

Hi 43°F
Lo 13°F

Precip (in)
0.03in.

28

OBSERVED

Hi 45°F
Lo 14°F

Precip (in)
0in.

[beaversmom]

Getting a bit cold up there for those folks and animal life

I don't know how people and especially animals can make it up there. I think they need to build those animals some cabins so they can get out of the cold :) I know my little 3.5 pound Chihuahua wouldn't be able to do any Call of the Wild stuff. He shivers when it's 60 degrees out.

[dixiechick2000]

Since I’m currently in the PNW, we’ve heard how cold it is up there. We had a very, very dry fall, to the point they were talking “drought”.

However, in the last few weeks, the snow pack in the Cascades has increased to the point where we no longer have to fear a drought! They had to shut down the ski resorts so that they could dig the ski lifts out of the snow.

This week, though, we are expecting temps in the mid to high 50s, and sun.

That is NOT normal at all.

Last year here was cold and wet, and we had only three weeks of summer. For this area, that was worse than a downer.

[steelyourfaith]

Thanx for the ping Ernest_at_the_Beach !

 

Beam me to Planet Gore !

[txrefugee]

Just be sure to keep Algore out of AK. His visit could initiate the next Ice Age.

[hattend]

I live in King Salmon, AK and work for NWS at the airport.

It’s been very cold, very long and we finally started warming up this week. It’s almost above freezing (31F above) right now at 2:20AM Wednesday morning.

WooHoo!

[Eye of Unk]

Yeah it was a bit nippy this last weekend, was -31F near my house just north of Wasilla. But it was almost balmy yesterday, I hear Anchorage may have 80mph winds today.

Its been quite a few years since I saw some decently cold temps, even with synthetic brake fluid I could feel the difference in pedal pressure, and if I didn’t have synthetic gear lube and engine oil the truck would have been hard to start and to get it down the road.

This may be my last winter in Alaska, next year I plan on being some where warmer, six months of winter up here is just too long.

[wolfcreek]

A friend sent me this on FB. Looks photoshopped to me.

[Forward the Light Brigade]

The Rains are coming folks! Get ready because when they come its going to be like the Monsoon. Get batteries and flashlights, get your radios ready and food for 3 days at least. Be prepared for its goin’ to rain and rain hard! Clean out your drains and be ready with cloths and valuables to be rushed to the Red Cross center. March will be the wettest on record. I hope I am wrong. Flooding coming to any city near a major river. BE READY & LIVE!

[SouthTexas]

That is why I live in Texas! :)