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Shaded-relief map of Sitka, Alaska: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
ALASKA · SITKA CITY AND BOROUGH

Sitka

8,355 people, 40 ft above sea level in Sitka City and Borough.

40 ftElevation, city center
8,355People, 2024 estimate
2,870 sq miLand area
Sunny 53°
Sunny now Dew point 42° · SE 13 mph · high 50°
City of Sitka River Interstate 5 miles
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The Sitka plate. Relief from Copernicus GLO-30; rivers and lakes from USGS NHD; watersheds from the USGS Watershed Boundary Dataset; roads and city limits from Census TIGER 2024.

MILE1
TODAY

Today in Sitka

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 12:00 PM AKST
RIGHT NOW Sitka - Sitka Airport (PASI) · 11:53 AM
Sunny
53° Sunny Feels like 53° · high of 50° near 12 PM
WindSE 13 mphno gusts
Humidity66%falling to 74% this afternoon
Pressure29.06 in →steady
Visibility9 mihazy
CloudsClear
UV index0none after dark
Dew point 42° · Dryabout the same for three days
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Overcast
Tonight, about 11 PMin about 10 hours · 67% chance · rain
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 120.1 in · 2 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
No watches or warnings for Sitka City and Borough
NWS Juneau and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 12:45 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 7:41 AM3:50 PM ↓
8 h 8 m of daylight, 4 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 26% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
—
Air quality index ·
No pollen source yet.

The next three days, hour by hour

Sky: clear, cloudy, night Rain likely National Blend of Models
SATURDAY, NOV. 14
SUNDAY, NOV. 15
MONDAY, NOV. 16
TUESDAY, NOV. 17
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
Noon
3p
6p
9p
Mid
3a
6a
9a
mostly cloudy day
overcast
overcast
overcast
rain
partly cloudy night
mostly clear night
mostly sunny
partly cloudy day
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
TEMPERATURE °F
50°
49°
50°
44°
45°
43°
CHANCE OF RAIN
99% · 0.82 in Monday morning 50%
WIND, MPH
13
13
14
15
15
14
15
17
18
18
17
17
19
19
17
18
18
16
14
12
11
11
12
12
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 38 to 43°

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 44° / 36°
SAT Nov. 14 Chance of showers Chance of showers
50° 47°
40% rain — ESE 13 A
SUN Nov. 15 Showers likely Showers likely
51° 43°
90% rain 0.06–0.6″ ESE 17, gusts 28 A
MON Nov. 16 Showers likely Showers likely
48° 41°
100% rain 0.5–1.0″ SSE 17, gusts 28 A
TUE Nov. 17 Showers likely Showers likely
48° 42°
100% rain 0.2–1.1″ ESE 12 B
WED Nov. 18 Chance of showers Chance of showers
48° 39°
50% rain up to 0.2″ E 1 B
THU Nov. 19 Chance of showers Chance of showers
47° 40°
50% rain up to 0.7″ SE 10 A
FRI Nov. 20 Chance of showers Chance of showers
47° 38°
50% rain up to 0.7″ E 12 B
How sure are we? AModels agree: highs within 4° BSome spread: within 8° CWide spread: check back
Range from the National Blend of Models percentiles · graded on Forecast Scores
AIR MAIL

Where today’s air came from

The air arriving over Sitka about 5,000 feet above the ground was over a point about 930 miles to the southwest three days ago, and over British Columbia a day ago, about 1,170 miles back along its path. Near the ground the air came from the Gulf of Alaska; at 10,000 feet, from a point about 970 miles to the west. It has stayed over land, which is why it feels dry. Traced back 72 hours through NOAA’s hourly RAP analyses and the GFS beyond them, nine paths at each of three heights.

THIS WEEK IN 2003 Nov. 11–12, 2003

The wettest two days this week has seen

4.78 inches of rain fell in two days, the most for this week of the year since records began in 1944. The next wettest, 3.28 inches, fell in 2005.

3.28″
4.78″
20052003
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Sitka Airport record since 1944.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Sitka stands on

Sitka’s center stands about 40 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 0 ft to 2,710 ft, a difference of 2,710 ft: mountain country. Open water lies within three miles. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Mount Bassie, about 4,360 ft, 11 miles east.

Sitka, cut in half from west to east

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
0 ft2,000 ft4,000 ft SITKA40 ftArrowhead Peak3,070 ftHigh point of the line4,390 ft ← WE →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 4×.

Heights from Copernicus GLO-90 (a surface model: it includes buildings and tree canopy); summits from USGS GNIS; rivers from USGS NHDPlus HR.
MILE5
THE ALMANAC

Sitka’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1944 · Sitka Airport

Sitka has a oceanic climate. Summer afternoons average 62° in August; winter nights fall to about 32° in January. About 84 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

40°32°41°32°42°33°48°37°53°43°58°48°60°53°62°53°58°48°51°42°44°36°41°33° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 TODAY SITKA 84.5 in rain a year
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
August, average62° / 53°high / low, the warmest month
January, average40° / 32°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year84.5 inwettest months: October and September
Hottest on record88°FJuly 31, 2020
Coldest on record−1°FFebruary 17, 1948
Wettest day on record6.17 inSeptember 8, 1948
Snowiest day on record15.0 inDecember 17, 1961
Nights at or below 32°69and 9 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeOceanicKöppen Cfb

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Oct. 30, to the last in spring, about April 12 (median dates)
2Lows below freezingJan. 3 to March 19; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretchSeptember through November: 33.4 of the year’s 84.5 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Sitka normally reaches 44° and falls to 36°. The record high is 57°, in 1976; the record low 21°, in 1950. The most rain on this date, 1.92 in, fell in 1944.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high40°41°42°48°53°58°60°62°58°51°44°41°
Normal low32°32°33°37°43°48°53°53°48°42°36°33°
Rain, inches8.225.935.604.313.812.924.627.2511.6911.789.918.43
Record high63° (2018)61° (1968)67° (2019)76° (1976)82° (2023)83° (1948)88° (2020)84° (1950)77° (1986)70° (2022)65° (1970)65° (1944)
Record low0° (1971)−1° (1948)4° (1951)20° (1948)29° (2002)35° (1955)41° (1945)37° (1948)31° (1956)20° (1984)2° (1985)1° (1970)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1944 at Sitka Airport, here. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Sitka on the Forecast Network

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FORECASTCITY
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ALASKA · SITKA

Sitka

8,355 people, 40 ft above sea level in Sitka City and Borough.

40 ftElevation
8,355People
2,870 sq miLand
Sunny 53°
SunnyDew point 42°
1

Today in Sitka

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly cloudy day 50° 0%
3p mostly cloudy day 50° 4%
6p overcast 49° 9%
9p overcast 49° 26%
12a rain 49° 60%
3a rain 49° 39%
Overcast
NEXT RAINTonight about 11 PM · 67%
→
Sat40%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
47
50
A
Sun90%
Showers likely Showers likely
43
51
A
Mon100%
Showers likely Showers likely
41
48
A
Tue100%
Showers likely Showers likely
42
48
B
Wed50%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
39
48
B
Thu50%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
40
47
A
Fri50%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
38
47
B
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 2003 · NOV. 11–12, 2003

4.78 inches in two days, the most for this week since 1944.

2

What Sitka stands on

Sitka’s center stands about 40 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 0 ft to 2,710 ft, a difference of 2,710 ft: mountain country. Open water lies within three miles. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Mount Bassie, about 4,360 ft, 11 miles east.

Sitka, west to east Sitka40 ftArrowhead Peak3,070 ftClarence Kramer Peak4,130 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 8×.
Elevation, center40 ft
Within 3 miles0 to 2,710 ft
Lie of the landMountainous (2,710 ft of relief)
High point nearbyMount Bassie, 4,360 ft, 11 mi east
5

Sitka’s year

Sitka has a oceanic climate. Summer afternoons average 62° in August; winter nights fall to about 32° in January. About 84 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 84.5 in
August, average62° / 53° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average40° / 32° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year84.5 in · wettest months: October and September
Hottest on record88°F · July 31, 2020
Coldest on record−1°F · February 17, 1948
Wettest day on record6.17 in · September 8, 1948
Snowiest day on record15.0 in · December 17, 1961
Nights at or below 32°69 · and 9 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeOceanic · Köppen Cfb
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Oct. 30, to the last in spring, about April 12 (median dates)
2Lows below freezing · Jan. 3 to March 19; normal lows fall below 32°
3Wettest stretch · September through November: 33.4 of the year’s 84.5 inches
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Sitka normally reaches 44° and falls to 36°. The record high is 57°, in 1976; the record low 21°, in 1950. The most rain on this date, 1.92 in, fell in 1944.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1944 at Sitka Airport, here. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.