FORECAST CITY
Sign in
Shaded-relief map of Utqiaġvik, Alaska: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
ALASKA · NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH

Utqiaġvik

4,668 people, 30 ft above sea level in North Slope Borough.

30 ftElevation, city center
4,668People, 2024 estimate
19 sq miLand area
Sunny 11°
Sunny now Dew point 6° · ENE 30 mph · high 12°
City of Utqiaġvik River Interstate 1 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Utqiaġvik 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 Utqiaġvik

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 11:00 AM AKST
RIGHT NOW Wiley Post-Will Rogers Memorial Airport (PABR) · 12:04 PM
Sunny
11° Sunny Feels like -11° · high of 12° near 1 PM
WindENE 30 mphno gusts
Humidity80%falling to 80% this afternoon
Pressure29.92 in →steady
Visibility2 mifog or heavy haze
CloudsClear
UV index—no forecast
Dew point 6° · Dryabout the same for three days
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Snow
Tomorrow, about 5 AMin about 17 hours · 72% chance · rain
LIKELY AMOUNT0.06–0.1 inmost likely 0.08; 1 in 10 over 0.2
LAST RAINNov. 120.09 in · 2 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
! Blizzard WarningBlizzard Warning issued November 14 at 9:54AM AKST until November 15 at 12:00PM AKST by NWS Fairbanks AK
! Winter Weather AdvisoryWinter Weather Advisory issued November 14 at 9:54AM AKST until November 15 at 3:00AM AKST by NWS Fairbanks AK
! Blizzard WarningBlizzard Warning issued November 14 at 9:54AM AKST until November 15 at 7:00AM AKST by NWS Fairbanks AK
NWS Fairbanks and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 12:15 PM
SUN & MOON
↑ 11:43 AM2:39 PM ↓
2 h 56 m of daylight, 17 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 25% 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
fog
fog
fog
fog
fog
fog
snow
snow
rain
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
windy
rain
TEMPERATURE °F
11°
13°
13°
13°
15°
16°
CHANCE OF RAIN
72% · 0.04 in Sunday morning 50%
WIND, MPH
28
30
31
33
32
32
31
31
28
27
25
25
25
26
29
29
30
30
29
28
26
25
25
23
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 6 to 13°

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 12° / 62°
SAT Nov. 14 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
12° 10°
0% rain — E 28, gusts 47 A
SUN Nov. 15 Showers likely Showers likely
15° 11°
70% rain 0.06–0.1″ E 28, gusts 47 B
MON Nov. 16 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
16° 13°
20% rain — E 30, gusts 43 B
TUE Nov. 17 Chance of showers Chance of showers
19° 11°
50% rain up to 0.05″ SE 18, gusts 25 B
WED Nov. 18 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
19° 14°
10% rain — E 28, gusts 39 C
THU Nov. 19 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
21° 15°
0% rain — E 26, gusts 36 C
FRI Nov. 20 Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
22° 15°
10% rain — SSE 17 C
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 Utqiaġvik about 5,000 feet above the ground was over a point about 8,860 miles to the east three days ago, and over interior Alaska a day ago, about 10,720 miles back along its path. It came down from about 10,100 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. 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 1956 Nov. 16, 1956

The coldest this week has been

−38° on Nov. 16, 1956, the coldest reading for this week of the year since 1920. Next is −29° in 1955.

−29°
−38°
19551956
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Barrow Area threaded record since 1920.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Utqiaġvik stands on

Utqiaġvik’s center stands about 30 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 0 ft to 50 ft, a difference of 50 ft: nearly flat ground. Open water lies within three miles.

Utqiaġvik, cut in half from south to north

A section south to north, 24 miles through the town center
0 ft UTQIAĠVIK30 ftHigh point of the line60 ft ← SN →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 64×.

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

Utqiaġvik’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1920 · Barrow Airport

Utqiaġvik has a tundra climate. Summer afternoons average 48° in July; winter nights fall to about −18° in January. A normal year brings about 46 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 5 inches of water.

−5°−18°−6°−18°−4°−17°11°−3°27°19°41°31°48°36°44°35°37°30°26°17°12°0°0°−12° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 TODAY UTQIAĠVIK 5.4 in rain and snowmelt
Normal high to low, by month Record high to low, by day Rain by month Freezing
July, average48° / 36°high / low, the warmest month
January, average−5° / −18°high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow5.4 inwettest months: August and July
Snow a year45.8 insnowiest: October
Hottest on record79°FJuly 13, 1993
Coldest on record−56°FFebruary 3, 1924
Wettest day on record1.42 inJuly 26, 2022
Snowiest day on record15.0 inOctober 26, 1926
Nights at or below 32°300and 237 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeTundraKöppen ET

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Aug. 6, to the last in spring, about July 29 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingSept. 28 to May 29; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingSept. 9 to June 19; normal lows fall below 32°
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Utqiaġvik normally reaches 12° and falls to 0°. The record high is 34°, in 1937; the record low −29°, in 1955. The most rain on this date, 0.31 in, fell in 1965.

MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high−5°−6°−4°11°27°41°48°44°37°26°12°0°
Normal low−18°−18°−17°−3°19°31°36°35°30°17°0°−12°
Rain and melt, in0.140.210.180.180.280.430.981.090.770.540.370.22
Snow, inches3.53.52.93.63.40.70.20.84.110.37.85.0
Record high36° (2017)36° (1982)34° (1998)42° (1936)47° (2015)73° (2019)79° (1993)76° (2023)62° (1995)44° (2016)39° (1937)40° (2022)
Record low−53° (1975)−56° (1924)−52° (1971)−42° (1924)−19° (1984)4° (1969)22° (1936)20° (1925)1° (1975)−32° (1970)−40° (1948)−55° (1924)

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1920 from the Barrow Area threaded record (Barrow Airport, here). NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Utqiaġvik on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

FORECASTCITY
Map of Utqiaġvik, Alaska. Explore the plate
ALASKA · NORTH SLOPE

Utqiaġvik

4,668 people, 30 ft above sea level in North Slope Borough.

30 ftElevation
4,668People
19 sq miLand
Sunny 11°
SunnyDew point 6°
1

Today in Utqiaġvik

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now windy 11° 0%
3p fog 12° 0%
6p fog 12° 0%
9p fog 11° 0%
12a fog 12° 0%
3a fog 13° 7%
Snow
NEXT RAINTomorrow about 5 AM · 72%
→
Sat0%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
10
12
A
Sun70%
Showers likely Showers likely
11
15
B
Mon20%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
13
16
B
Tue50%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
11
19
B
Wed10%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
14
19
C
Thu0%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
15
21
C
Fri10%
Mostly cloudy Mostly cloudy
15
22
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK IN 1956 · NOV. 16, 1956

−38°, the coldest this week of the year has been since 1920.

2

What Utqiaġvik stands on

Utqiaġvik’s center stands about 30 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 0 ft to 50 ft, a difference of 50 ft: nearly flat ground. Open water lies within three miles.

Utqiaġvik, south to north Utqiaġvik30 ftHigh point60 ft ← SN → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 122×.
Elevation, center30 ft
Within 3 miles0 to 50 ft
Lie of the landNearly flat (50 ft of relief)
5

Utqiaġvik’s year

Utqiaġvik has a tundra climate. Summer afternoons average 48° in July; winter nights fall to about −18° in January. A normal year brings about 46 inches of snow; with the rain, that comes to about 5 inches of water.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 5.4 in
July, average48° / 36° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average−5° / −18° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain and melted snow5.4 in · wettest months: August and July
Snow a year45.8 in · snowiest: October
Hottest on record79°F · July 13, 1993
Coldest on record−56°F · February 3, 1924
Wettest day on record1.42 in · July 26, 2022
Snowiest day on record15.0 in · October 26, 1926
Nights at or below 32°300 · and 237 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeTundra · Köppen ET
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Aug. 6, to the last in spring, about July 29 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Sept. 28 to May 29; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Sept. 9 to June 19; normal lows fall below 32°
NOVEMBER 14 IN THE RECORD

On November 14 Utqiaġvik normally reaches 12° and falls to 0°. The record high is 34°, in 1937; the record low −29°, in 1955. The most rain on this date, 0.31 in, fell in 1965.

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1920 from the Barrow Area threaded record (Barrow Airport, here). NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.