Unusual Warm Weather Reported in Alaska, Surpassing Records Dating Back 1972 and 1932

Utqiagvik, the northernmost city in the US and the ninth northernmost city on Earth, just reached 40 degrees Fahrenheit earlier this week and is the highest temperature recorded in the North Slope community in December since records started decades ago. This comes as an unusual warm weather was reported in Alaska, surpassing even the highest December temperatures records of 1972 and 1932.

Experts attributed the unprecedented Alaskan warm weather and sudden temperature spike with climate change. Reports indicate that global warming is already affecting even areas near the Arctic Circle and the North Pole, which are typically some of the coldest regions of the world. However, the warming of the planet is starting to take its toll, with the record-breaking temperatures being the evidence.

Still, other weather reports link the warm temperatures in northern Alaska with a storm over the Bering Sea. Formerly known as Barrow, Utqiagvik saw its warmest day during the month of December, breaking the record of 34 degrees Fahrenheit set in 1932. The Alaskan city also surpasses the highest temperature record of 36 degrees Fahrenheit achieved in 1932.

For years, climate scientists and meteorologists have warned the current climate crisis has affected not only the icy polar regions of the Arctic and Antarctica. Rather, the climate emergency also impacts their adjacent regions such as the Northern Hemisphere, which includes the United States, Canada, Greenland, and other countries with a generally cold weather.

Alaska Warm Weather

(Photo : Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)

Temperatures in Utqiagvik broke 40 degrees due to an unusual warm spell driven part by climate change, according to Rick Thoman, a climatologist with the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy, as cited by the Alaska Public Media on Tuesday, December 6.

The open water during the first week of December in the Chukchi Sea is a very clear indicator of climate change, Thoman adds. The latest spike in temperatures comes from a combination of warm air and rain traversing north from the Bering Sea, plus the lack of Arctic sea ice, the Alaskan local media outlet reported.

Furthermore, Thoman said the exposed water is acting as a heating pad, transferring the heat into the polar atmosphere. The climatologist also states the 40 degrees is the highest temperature recorded in the US' northernmost city between October 30 and April 22 in over a century of monitoring.

Also Read: Beavers Building Dams Transform Tundra Stream by Making Warm Lakes that Melt Ice in Seward Peninsula, Alaska

Warmest Winter Record

Utqiagvik's record-crushing high temperature was 6 degrees relatively higher than the next warmest December reading ever measured in the place, in over a century of record, as mentioned before. It is also 36 degrees above recorded temperatures in the city observed between November and March, according to The Washington Post.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Fairbanks also posed the question "who turned up the thermostat"? on its Twitter account, announcing the all-time December record temperature for Utqiagvik, Alaska, as of 7:20 a.m. local time on Sunday, December 4.

The warm temperature came even if the area saw its last Sun set two weeks ago and is expected to rise again until late January, plunging the city and its surrounding areas into total darkness.

Related Article: Alaska's Kodiak Island Hits 67 Degrees, Setting New Temperature Record