Rapid Temperature Increase

Observation by Olivia Zanto:

Today on 12/8/24 at 8:30am the temperature in my neighborhood was 43F. However, as soon as I got onto the road temperatures dropped down to 33F. This is very interesting because the previous night at around 10:40pm the temperatures were around 16F. The temperature rose so much in such a short amount of time, especially for this time of the year. Hopefully we will get some more snow before Christmas!

LEO Says:

December definitely has been a warm end of 2024. A lot of weather moves through the Anchroage area and can quickly change. Three different mountain ranges surround Anchorage and the Cook Inlet so weather and climate can have many local geographic influences.Climate change has also been a driver for variability and warm winter temperatures. We have included events in the sidebar highlighting how much the weather can fluctuate in December. We also reached out to Richard Thoman from ACCAP for his insights.

Consult by Richard Thoman:

Large temperature differences in short distances are common during the winter months in much of Alaska due to the lack of heating from the sun and snow cover. In the Anchorage area this is often the result of moderate southeast winds aloft across the Chugach mountains. As the winds pick up at any given spot big jumps in temperatures can occur. On December 8th, strong low pressure centered southwest of Kodiak and high pressure across Southeast Alaska combined to produce southeast winds aloft across the area. Reliable temperature reports at 9am December in the Anchorage area ranged from the upper 20s in parts of west Anchorage and downtown (areas where the southeast wind had not reached) to the mid 40s in South Anchorage, on the hillside along the Glenn Highway towards Eagle River.