Jump to content
  • Member Statistics

    17,584
    Total Members
    7,904
    Most Online
    LopezElliana
    Newest Member
    LopezElliana
    Joined

Alaska/Western Canada obs and discussion


patrick7032
 Share

Recommended Posts

I'm thinking of flying up to Fairbanks in late October to hopefully catch the Auroras. With the trend towards el nino this fall, how will that play out for the start to the snow season up there? I was looking at some of the F6's for Fairbanks and it appears the snow generally doesn't start to accumulate until the last week of October. Ideally, I'd like to fly up there for that brief period where it's not bitterly cold, there's still some daylight, a bit of snow on the ground, yet good weather for potential Aurora viewing. Perhaps it's pie in the sky, but is October good for that, or would November be better?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm thinking of flying up to Fairbanks in late October to hopefully catch the Auroras. With the trend towards el nino this fall, how will that play out for the start to the snow season up there? I was looking at some of the F6's for Fairbanks and it appears the snow generally doesn't start to accumulate until the last week of October. Ideally, I'd like to fly up there for that brief period where it's not bitterly cold, there's still some daylight, a bit of snow on the ground, yet good weather for potential Aurora viewing. Perhaps it's pie in the sky, but is October good for that, or would November be better?

Definitely early October...the longer you wait the worse it gets storm wise. Even Fairbanks will get socked in with clouds in the interior for long periods of time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Another day, another storm in AK. 975 lows up here are a walk in the park it seems. I have a love/hate relationship with weather up here. I love the constant action and the extreme challenges, but it always seems to rain on my days off.

Man, imagine if we had troughs like those swinging across the lower 48...

Also, I think Josh should consider chasing storms up here while the hurricane season is quiet. :scooter:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

great googly moogly. From the NWS:

Saturday Night: Showers. Lows in the mid 40s to lower 50s. Southeast wind 35 to 50 mph with local gusts to 65 mph. Along turnagain arm and higher elevations...southeast wind 70 to 85 mph with gusts to 110 mph after midnight.

Sunday: Rain likely. Highs in the lower to mid 50s. Southeast wind 35 to 50 mph with local gusts to 65 mph. Along turnagain arm and higher elevations...southeast wind 70 to 85 mph with gusts to 110 mph.

Like how they casually throw in the "gusts to 110 mph". Pretty chuckle-icious.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

great googly moogly. From the NWS:

Saturday Night: Showers. Lows in the mid 40s to lower 50s. Southeast wind 35 to 50 mph with local gusts to 65 mph. Along turnagain arm and higher elevations...southeast wind 70 to 85 mph with gusts to 110 mph after midnight.

Sunday: Rain likely. Highs in the lower to mid 50s. Southeast wind 35 to 50 mph with local gusts to 65 mph. Along turnagain arm and higher elevations...southeast wind 70 to 85 mph with gusts to 110 mph.

Like how they casually throw in the "gusts to 110 mph". Pretty chuckle-icious.

Haha, Turnagain Arm winds are awesome. Classic true gap wind where, in SE flow, the air mass literally is blocked on the windward side of the very dense and large coastal ranges/Chugach Range, creating high pressure and accelerating down the inlet, reaching peak wind status at the end. It just so happens the end of the inlet is 5 miles SE of Anchorage, so the wind will go from 30 MPH to 90 MPH in literally less than 5 miles. You can see the Turnagain Arm in the image above with the graphics.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Weather pron, ECMWF caves to NCEP guidance, deepens a strong bent-back surface occlusion in Bristol Bay. NAM Hi-res 4 km backs it up. Even tiny track differences yield massive pressure changes/wind field changes that can completely screw up local terrain influences. Doesn't get much better than this. Great way to start fall, can't wait for the true beasts pushing 940 hpa.

post-999-0-09571600-1347692244_thumb.png

post-999-0-84348100-1347692264_thumb.png

post-999-0-15339000-1347692270_thumb.gif

post-999-0-04836100-1347692325_thumb.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Haha, Turnagain Arm winds are awesome. Classic true gap wind where, in SE flow, the air mass literally is blocked on the windward side of the very dense and large coastal ranges/Chugach Range, creating high pressure and accelerating down the inlet, reaching peak wind status at the end. It just so happens the end of the inlet is 5 miles SE of Anchorage, so the wind will go from 30 MPH to 90 MPH in literally less than 5 miles. You can see the Turnagain Arm in the image above with the graphics.

Thanks for the background. Always wondered why turnagain arm had the ridiculous winds. Alaskan weather is fascinating.

Don't know how it would be to think of 974 lows as the warmup act.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Storm in rapid intensification mode, down to 981 based on surface obs near the Ak Pen, will drop into the upper 960s before all is said and done. NWS Anchorage has unleashed the hurricane strength wind warning for portions of the marine zones.

Looking like a Miller A Nor'easter on satellite....similar setup as those storms.

post-999-0-03689800-1347764126_thumb.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Man, imagine if we had troughs like those swinging across the lower 48...

Also, I think Josh should consider chasing storms up here while the hurricane season is quiet. :scooter:

You're correct bud....975mb there is like 1002mb in the midwest....wait for the winter when you get the sub 950 or even 940mb lows and have Hurricane Force warning in the Bering. Remember one last year we had winds SE 70kt gusts to 80kt seas of 34 building to 42 feet. You're gonna have a blast forecasting those storms.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lord knows above all the drama and whatnot, Deadliest Catch has taught me something about Bering Sea weather (i.e. it's violent on an almost regular basis, sort of like the Southern Ocean).

I second this Andy. Favorite show to watch. Also those pictures up there are great. Would love to move up there if I could get a job but the wife says no way.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...