June snow in Alaska, Fairbanks temperature drops to coldest so late in the season since 1960

Parts of Alaska experienced yet another round of June snow this week. The temperature in Fairbanks, the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, dropped to 2.2 °C  (36 °F) on June 12, its coldest temperature so late in the season since 1960.

Winter Storm Warning remains in effect until 04:00 AKDT, June 15, the National Weather Service in Fairbanks said, adding that heavy snow is expected across the northeastern Brooks Range. A Winter Storm Warning for snow means severe winter weather conditions are expected. This can make travel very hazardous or impossible.

Residents should plan on difficult travel conditions, especially on the Dalton Highway through Atigun Pass, NWS said. Total snow accumulations expected in the region are between 7.6 to 15.2 cm (3 and 6 inches).

This prolonged chilly weather and rounds of heavy snow are a result of low pressure area to the north of the state over the Beaufort Sea, whose counterclockwise flow is sending cold temperatures to interior Alaska.

Fairbanks recorded 2.2 °C (36 °F) on Tuesday, June 12, which tied its coldest temperature so late in the season since 1960, TWC meteorologists Brian Donegan and Chris Dolce report.

It was the coldest temperature recorded in Fairbanks on any day in the month of June in 12 years. Tuesday's 36-degree low also tied the daily record for June 12, which was last set on that date in 1931. For perspective, the average low temperature in Fairbanks this time of year is 9.4 °C (49 °F) and the average high is 21.6 °C (71 °F), Donegan and Dolce noted.

Featured image credit: Eureka Lodge, AK DOT&PF