This fall season 2018, the weather in Alaska and the Arctic has been insanely warm. There is a freak high-pressure system over the northern part of Alaska and it has been holding summer hostage, keeping at bay the cold winds of winter that usually land on the Interior and Northern Alaska regions by October. Weather scientists are shocked by these changes, while many Alaskans are just soaking in these insanely warm autumn days.
Weather across Alaska has been unusually warm and dry over the last month. A high-pressure system over a high altitude area formed what's known as a ridge over the Bering Sea in early September and the effects are still lingering.
This large swath of Northern and Northeast Alaska, as far down as the Alaska Range, has been under clear skies with warm, sunny conditions for the last month. Snowfalls are arriving late and this autumn has been much longer than average.
In northern Alaska, along the Dalton Highway deep in the northern Interior, September 15, 2018. The golden colors of the Alaskan paper birch were out and the tundra had it's autumn hues of crimson and indigo.
The long, beautiful autumn is lasting much longer than usual in the arctic. This photo from September 15, 2018 is from the area near the Yukon River Bridge.
On September 15, the fall colors had already spread across the Chugach Mountains near Anchorage. This shot is from Rainbow Peak on a gorgeous, and unusually dry fall day in Southcentral.
This photo was taken on October 1, 2018 in the Anchorage area. The warm and dry weather has left the hillsides green far longer than normal in Southcentral Alaska.
Southeast Alaska communities were shocked at the warm temperatures without a cloud in the sky. Skagway recorded an all-time record high of 93 degrees Fahrenheit.
The current weather report for Alaska shows the lingering effects of this high-pressure system and warmer-than-average weather and clear skies. Snow and freezing temperatures should be arriving soon enough, but these last few insanely warm autumn days are a gift to enjoy:
