Fairbanks’ First Subzero High Arrives at Unseasonably Late Date
Normally everyone I know in Fairbanks is jumping for joy this time of year because today is Solstice for my remaining friends up there, and that means winter, and the length of the day, has turned a corner. This year hasn’t been so cold however… Happy solstice to all of them anyway on this shortest day, I hope they don’t get burned at the bonfires.
My hazy memories of Solstice parties involve bonfires, beer, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, and then sitting on a stump in the snow during the wee hours of the morn watching the embers burn down while Edith Piaf plays in the background and someone quietly slurs through some maudlin tale as you sip the last remaining beers.
The official high temperature in Fairbanks failed to hit zero for the first time this winter on Friday, marking an unusually late arrival for that weather milestone.
The high at Fairbanks International Airport was minus 4 degrees, the first subzero high of the season. That occurs on Nov. 18 during an average year, according to National Weather Service statistics.
It’s the third-latest subzero high that Fairbanks has seen in 110 years of temperature records. The record occurred on Dec. 26, 1914.