Time for Climate

Given that Alaska has a high location latitude, the territory is familiar to severe seasonal variability.  This environment leads to the warmer weather in the summer and frigid cold winters to keep ‘Frosty the Snowman’ around longer than here in Denver.  These conditions occur when Fairbanks has clear skies and unruffled winds—especially due to the prime location in the valley. Fairbanks sitting in the Tanana Valley surrounded on by the Alaska, Kuskokwim, and the Yukon-Tanana Uplands mountain Ranges. “Almost nowhere on Earth are surface-based temperature inversions stronger than in the Interior of Alaska.”[1]

http://www.greatlandofalaska.com/reference/ranges.html#alaska

The cold continental polar air mass troughs down the slopes to the valley base, where it gets trapped.  Once this air is trapped in the valley base it circulates around the residing community with freezing temperatures—burr.  In the winters, the mean temperature average is slightly below freezing.  Also, during the winter because of this inverse created by being in the valley produces ice fog.  The ice fog is a dense layer of suspended ice crystals, caused by gases being emitted from the surrounding urban island.[2]

*(Web Cams can be seen through the links at the top of RAFscience blog)

Under the Köppen-Geiger, Fairbanks, is considered part of the subarctic climate.[3]  This climate covers an extensive area; western Alaska to the Newfoundland, and Norway to the Pacific coast of Russia.  The subartic climate may also be referred by as the taiga.  In the taiga, coniferous trees are native, but, not too many other plants.  In the summer the residents will encounter millions of insects though, and birds migrate there every year.[4]

http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/taiga.htm

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[1]Shulski, Martha , and Michael Mogil. "Alaska's Climate and Weather."Weatherwise Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <hhttp://www.weatherwise.org/Archives/Back%20Issues/2009/January-February%202009/full-shulski-mogil.html>.

[2] "The Interior." Alaska Climate Research Center. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. <http://climate.gi.alaska.edu/Stations/I

[3]Lutgens, Frederick K., Edward J. Tarbuck, and Dennis Tasa. "World Climate" The Atmosphere: an Introduction to Meteorology. 11th ed. New York: Prentice Hall, 2010. 441. Print.

[4]"Taiga Biomes." Blue Planet Biomes. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. <http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/taiga.htm>.

Springfield, Missouri vs. Fairbanks, Alaska

Springfield, Missouri located near the Ozark Mountains and front row tickets to the action from ‘Tornado Alley’. The topography of this city causes similarities and differences in weather next to Fairbanks, Alaska.  They both share the dry, cold continental polar (cP) air mass, for Springfield it comes down from the north in the winter.  The difference between the cities lies in the collision of the second air mass.  Fairbanks receives a cold, moist air-mass from the Aleutian Low causing a warm occlude front creating the precipitation to form in snow; while Springfield collides with the Bermuda Azores High. The Bermuda Azores High coming in from the Gulf of Mexico has a following of warm, moist air causing a cold occlude front. [1]  The warm air from the maritime tropic (mP) over taken by the colder air of the continent polar (cP); causing the warm parcels to freeze--result--ice storms. [2] 

photo by Weather Journal
http://weatherjournalandmisc.owlinc.org/    

photo by Alan Burkhart
http://alanburkhart.blogspot.com/2009/01/images-from-missouri-ice-storm.html

Springfield, affected by two different types of air masses; the Bermuda Azores High and the Continental Yukon High can make for thunderstorms in the Spring and Summer.   From these storms, a super cell thunderstorm can grow which creates Tornado’s.  The super cell from which the Tornado comes from must be very unstable and consist of the cold, dry polar air (cP) arguing with the warm, moist tropic air (mT). Now, lets imagine a pencil (cold air) rolling across a flat surface. As the pencil is still rolling something slowly starts to lift the pencil into a vertical direction (uplift) while still in motion.  The air mass when colliding starts to swirl and form funnels.  This funnel begins to spin faster and creates a low-pressure area, this in turns gathers more air from the outside (possibly debris) into it; the creation of a Tornado.[3]

diagram from NESTA

photo by Dick Gowan
http://stackedplates.blogspot.com/2009/07/storm-photos-of-day.html

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[1]Morvay, Megan, weatherandclimate3232@wordpress.com

[2]Lutgens, Frederick K., Edward J. Tarbuck, and Dennis Tasa. "Air Masses." The Atmosphere: an Introduction to Meteorology. 11th ed. New York: Prentice Hall, 2010. 249. Print.

[3]"Tornado Formation." Windows to the Universe. National Earth Science Teachers Association (NESTA). Web. <http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/Atmosphere/tornado/formation.html>.

Air Pressure and Fronts

The air masses that affect Fairbanks, Alaska is the maritime (m) polar (P) or mP, and the continental (c) polar (P) or cP.  The mP drops by in the winter, blowing cool, humid air from the ocean into the state.  This air mass causes a warm-type occluded front.  The warm-type occluded front carries with it cool air from the Pacific Ocean gently nudging the cold air originating over the continent.  This pushes the warm air aloft and forms precipitation.[1]  There is also an air mass that originates over the state of Alaska called the continental polar (cP). This air mass is dry, and cold.  It forms at the end of winter when it packs its bags full of cold, dry weather and travels out of Alaska to visit the United States along the Rockies.

The Aleutian Low is a semi-permanent pressure system near the Aleutian Islands. Its crazy intensity in the winter creates strong traveling cyclones.  These types of storms cause cold winds to roll down from the Arctic poles and circulate over the continent—burr.  In a ‘positive phase’ oscillation, high pressure moves ocean storms farther towards the arctic providing a messy,wet system over the State of Alaska.[2]

Surface maps, similar to below, illustrated a cold and occluded front taking place around Alaska.  They will be encountering a cold front coming in from the north heading south.  Also, on Sunday the 30th  the beginning occlusion cyclonic circulation over the Aleutian Islands will be moving northeast into the state bringing precipitation.

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(updating images provided by Mountain Weather http://www.mountainweather.com/index.php?page=alaska_weather)

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[1] Lutgens, Frederick K., Edward J. Tarbuck, and Dennis Tasa. "Air Masses." The Atmosphere: an Introduction to Meteorology. 11th ed. New York: Prentice Hall, 2010. 248. Print.

[2] The Arctic Oscillation and Arctic Weather Patterns." National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC). Web. <http://nsidc.org/arcticmet/patterns/arctic_oscillation.html>.

General Information

Fairbanks, Alaska is rumored to have harsh winters and wonderful summers.  This city is the focal point for many scattered villages and a staging area for Barrows and the oil fields of Purdue Bay.  Fairbanks is located south of the Arctic Circle; during the summer solstice the sun never sets, and during the winter solstice the evening never meets with the day. [1] This blog will take you, the reader, briefly through the ins’ and outs’ of the weather and climate of this location.

Here, in the city of Fairbanks, for the month of October of 2011 the average high is 43^o and the average low is 26^o.   Looking back for the last four years the average high temperature has been somewhat on the rise while maintaining a fairly steady low.  The month of October is very dry with no precipitation and a dew point of 24^oF.[2]

Fairbanks, is the second largest city in Alaska, and is located in the central Tanana Valley.  The elevation of the city Fairbanks is 432 feet above sea level.  North of the city are hills that lead into the White Mountains Range and the Yukon River, to the west are the Kuskokwim Mountains.  The snow pack in the area is established in October and remains until May.  On clear days, one can see the Alaska Mountain Range in the distance.[3]

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[1] "Fairbanks Alaska." Fairbanks Alaska Visitor Information Site. Aurora Web Masters, 30 May 2011. <http://fairbanks-alaska.com/>.

[2] Masters, Dr. Jeff. Weather Forecast & Reports - Long Range & Local | Wunderground : Weather Underground. Weather Underground INC, 2011. <http://www.wunderground.com/>.

[3]  "Snow forecast for Fairbanks-area hills",Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. September 22, 2009. Accessed October 4, 2009.