textproduct: Fairbanks

KEY MESSAGES

Central and Eastern Interior... - Dry today with mixed sun and clouds.

- A Tanana Valley Jet continues to gust 20 to 40 mph from Delta to Nenana through Wednesday afternoon.

- South gap winds continue in Windy and Isabel Pass with gusts to 50 mph, weakening this afternoon. Gusts increase again Wednesday morning, gusting 55 to 65 mph by the afternoon, and weakening again Wednesday night.

- Slight chances for snow, especially Wednesday as a front lifts from southeast to northwest. Highest chances for snow will be in the Interior terrain and north of Fairbanks, but a brief period of light snow in Fairbanks is possible. *0.5 to 2 inches possible north of the Tanana Valley, a coating to 1 inch possible in the Tanana Valley.

West Coast and Western Interior... - East winds gusting 25 to 45 mph along the coast persist today, turning northeast in the Bering Strait tonight and gusting up to 50 mph. This continues Wednesday then weakens gradually Thursday and Friday.

- Rain showers persist from the Yukon Delta to St. Lawrence Island today. Mixed rain and snow showers likely through the rest of the week with areas of light snow across Western Alaska Friday and over the weekend.

- Temperatures will be warmest today, then a gradual cooling trend is expected with highs dropping to near or slightly above seasonal norms by the end of the week.

North Slope and Brooks Range... - Light snow continues along the Coast and Plains this week with accumulations around an inch or 2 from Wainwright east.

- East winds increase steadily Tuesday through Thursday with gusts around 35 to 45 mph, strongest winds will be Thursday and Friday along the coast, weakening this weekend. *With light falling snow and snow on the ground, low visibility due to blowing snow is possible.

- Temperatures remain steady through the end of the week with a possible cooling trend this weekend into next week.

SYNOPSIS

Fairly quiet weather is expected with the most notable feature being gusty wind east winds along the coast and southerly winds through the AK Range Passes. Areas of light snow meander around Northern Alaska with light snow accumulations, mainly less than 2 inches. The highest chances for accumulating light snow will be in the Interior Terrain Wednesday afternoon into Thursday and North Slope which has light snow through the week. Otherwise, most of Northern Alaska's temperatures remain near to slightly above normal through the week.

SHORT TERM /THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT/

The upper level pattern is a bit messy as there is troughing extending over the Bering Sea and into the Gulf as well as along the Beaufort Sea Coast. In between is a ridge which is being squeezed northwest as troughing takes over from south to north. Today will be pretty similar to yesterday but clouds will be on the increase in the Interior. Periods of light snow persist on the North Slope with rain and snow showers in Western Alaska. East winds will continue, especially along most of the coastline, in the higher terrain of the Interior and from Delta Junction to Nenana. In the Interior and along the West Coast, winds will be weakening as a high lifts to the north, weakening the pressure gradient. However, as the high lifts north, it will result in an increasing pressure gradient along the Arctic Coast allowing winds to steadily increase this week.

Temperatures will be cooling in Western Alaska as colder air moves in aloft from the northeast as well as the south thanks to an occluded low moving towards South-Central Tuesday night into Wednesday. Any rain showers will will become mostly all snow showers mid to late week. The occluded low will also provide a front to the Interior which will likely bring light snow to parts of the Central and Eastern Interior, especially in the higher terrain. There is a chance for snow in the Tanana Valley, including Fairbanks but it would be brief on Wednesday. Winds through the AK Range will be gusty for most of the week, strongest Wednesday afternoon and evening as the low in the Gulf forces its energy from south to north through the Passes. These may push 60 mph for a 6-12 hour period. Otherwise, the end of the week looks to be fairly quiet as well with wind on the coast mostly weakening. One feature we will be monitoring is another low in the Gulf providing another front to the Interior. A bit more widespread light snow is possible Friday into Saturday for much of Northern Alaska. Snow amounts appear to be light, around 1 to 3 inches for now.

LONG TERM /SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY/

Areas of light snow linger across Northern Alaska this weekend thanks to some mid level moisture and shortwave troughs. It is difficult to say when snow will start and stop in some locations due to the uncertainty of the different shortwave placement, but nearly everywhere has a chance to see some light snow. Another low then moves into the Gulf early next week and this may bring southerly or southeasterly flow to the Interior and North Slope. With southerly flow, it would be a drier pattern for much of the Interior and North Slope early next week with east/southeast being slightly more snowy. Regardless, this doesn't appear to be all that impactful as most of the snow will be light. There is an abundance of uncertainty after the weekend but there doesn't appear to be any significant weather as the pattern remains with troughing over most of Northern Alaska.

Coastal Hazard Potential... No significant concern as the storm track remains south.

AFG WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

AK...None. MARINE...Small Craft Advisory until 9 AM AKST this morning for PKZ801. Small Craft Advisory until noon AKST today for PKZ802. Small Craft Advisory until 3 PM AKST this afternoon for PKZ803- 804-806-850. Small Craft Advisory until 6 PM AKST this evening for PKZ805- 807-808-811-816-817-851>858. Small Craft Advisory until 9 AM AKST this morning for PKZ809. Small Craft Advisory from 3 PM this afternoon to 6 PM AKST this evening for PKZ809. Small Craft Advisory until 6 PM AKST this evening for PKZ812. Gale Warning until 3 AM AKST early this morning for PKZ850-852- 853.