Chilly November temperatures observed in Alaska

A spell of extremely cold and frosty weather swept Fairbanks, Alaska on November 16, 2015. The lowest recorded temperature reached -32.8 °C (- 27 °F), while on average – 20 °C (- 4 °F) prevailed across the state. 

Alaska is well known for its cold weather, however reported conditions are nevertheless unusual, as it is only November. Breath taking chilly temperatures of – 30 °C (- 22 °F) hit Fairbanks on November 15, and even colder conditions were forecast to come. Temperatures of – 31 °C (- 24 °F) have been recorded in the small community of Bettles, Alaska on the early Monday morning.

"With these sorts of temperatures, people are at risk of frostbite within a minute of stepping outside, if not less time than that. You've got to be bundled up from head to toe with no exposed skin. With this kind of cold, you walk outside and it really takes your breath away if you're not used to it," Kevin Roth, lead meteorologist at The Weather Channel, warned.

Video credit:  Alaska Weather

Reported temperatures were about 6.7 °C (20 °F) below average for this time of the year, however still not near historic record lows.

The highest temperature reported in Anchorage on November 16 was – 14.4 °C (6 °F), according to National Weather Service (NWS) Anchorage. Last highest temperature that was so low was recorded on December 25, 2013.

Featured image: Matanuska Peak, Palmer, Alaska November 27, 2005. Image credit: Cecil Sanders (Flickr-CC)