Climate Watch

By Rick Thoman Alaska Climate Specialist Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy International Arctic Research Center/University of Alaska Fairbanks

Western Alaska did not share in the climate warmth in 2023 that dominated worldwide headlines.

For Nome, the average temperature of 26.2°F was about two degrees below normal.

Precipitation (rain plus melted snow) totaled 22.46 inches. That’s 130 percent of normal and was the fifth year in a row with above normal precipitation.

As always, there was no shortage of active weather in the region. The year started off with comparatively quiet weather but that changed in late February and continued through March as several strong storms rocked the region, including several blizzards and storms that brought significant rain.

Nome Airport finished up with the third highest March precipitation on record (since 1907). At the airport, the maximum 24-hour precipitation of 0.71 inches on March 6 was a new March record and highest 24-hour total in March since 0.74 inches fell March 3-4, 1945, when the Weather Bureau office was downtown. The March 4-6 precipitation total of 1.29 inches was easily a new record 3-day total for the month.

Early April brought a taste of old time cold, being reminiscent of some of the spring cold snaps of the early 20th century. The low temperature of -30°F on April 8 was not only the lowest temperature of the year but also tied the April record low temperature and was the first time a monthly record low has been set or tied at Nome since September 1992.

May was not so extreme but there was some snow for Memorial Day weekend, only to be capped off with a June 1 snowfall of about 2.5 inches. This is likely the second highest June snowfall in the past 116 years (unofficial, since NWS ended snow measurements in Nome and other rural Alaska offices in 2019).

Early June also saw the last of the saw ice clear out in front of town. Thereafter June was a reasonably tranquil summer month, but it was not to persist.

During the July through September late summer season, Nome had measurable rain on 62 days, which ties with 1989 as the greatest number of wet days at this time of year. Only two days, August 12 and 13, saw temperature reach into the 70s.

The last months of 2023 brought repeated swings in the weather. A cool start to the autumn allowed for an early snowpack to be laid down in mid-October, only to be washed away by rain and sustained above freezing temperatures that persisted into November. Sea ice finally returned the first week in December as a fairly dry and cold weather pattern prevailed for the remainder of the month.