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Shaded-relief map of Whittier, Alaska: rivers, roads, the city limits and where the water drains.
ALASKA · CHUGACH CENSUS AREA

Whittier

253 people, 50 ft above sea level in Chugach Census Area.

50 ftElevation, city center
253People, 2024 estimate
12 sq miLand area
Sunny 28°
Sunny now Dew point 25° · WNW 8 mph · high 30°
City of Whittier River Interstate 1 miles
Explore the plate Order a print

The Whittier 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 Whittier

NWS forecast and National Blend of Models · updated 9:00 AM AKST
RIGHT NOW Portage Glacier (PATO) · 10:53 AM
Sunny
28° Sunny Feels like 20° · high of 30° near 2 PM
WindWNW 8 mphgusts 17
Humidity88%falling to 75% this afternoon
Pressure29.24 in →steady
Visibility10 mihaze-free
CloudsClear
UV index0none after dark
Dew point 25° · Dry36° by Monday: more humid
DryComfortableStickyMuggyOppressive
NEXT RAIN
Snow
Tonight, about 8 PMin about 9 hours · 100% chance · rain
LIKELY AMOUNT—amounts come within 3 days
LAST RAINNov. 120.08 in · 2 dry days
ALERTS & OUTLOOKS
! Winter Weather AdvisoryWinter Weather Advisory issued November 14 at 5:50AM AKST until November 15 at 9:00PM AKST by NWS Anchorage AK
NWS Anchorage and the Storm Prediction Center · checked 11:15 AM
SUN & MOON
↑ 8:55 AM4:23 PM ↓
7 h 27 m of daylight, 5 minutes less than yesterday
Waxing crescent, 25% lit. Next full moon: Nov. 24.
AIR & POLLEN
52
MODERATEAir quality index · fine particles
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
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
11a
2p
5p
8p
11p
2a
5a
8a
mostly cloudy day
overcast
overcast
snow
snow
snow
snow
snow
snow
snow
snow
rain
rain
rain
rain
rain
snow
rain
rain
rain
snow
snow
rain
rain
TEMPERATURE °F
27°
29°
36°
39°
39°
34°
CHANCE OF RAIN
100% · 3.23 in Sunday morning 50%
WIND, MPH
8
8
7
8
7
8
8
7
6
5
5
7
8
8
5
6
7
8
7
5
6
5
0
0
HOW IT FEELS · DEW POINT
Dry: dew points 21 to 36° More humid: 32° by Tuesday

The next seven days, and how sure we are

Forecast, with the range 8 in 10 ensemble members agree on Normal, about 33° / 22°
SAT Nov. 14 Showers likely Showers likely
30° 27°
80% rain — W 8 A
SUN Nov. 15 Showers likely Showers likely
37° 34°
100% rain 1.9–3.2″ W 6 C
MON Nov. 16 Showers likely Showers likely
41° 32°
100% rain 0.9–2.1″ E 7 B
TUE Nov. 17 Showers likely Showers likely
37° 30°
60% rain up to 0.2″ NNW 2 C
WED Nov. 18 Showers likely Showers likely
39° 35°
90% rain 0.5–2.4″ E 14, gusts 35 B
THU Nov. 19 Showers likely Showers likely
40° 32°
90% rain 0.3–3.0″ E 8 B
FRI Nov. 20 Chance of showers Chance of showers
36° 27°
50% rain up to 1.3″ WNW 5 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 Whittier about 5,000 feet above the ground was over a point about 270 miles to the west three days ago, and over southcentral Alaska a day ago, about 460 miles back along its path. It came down from about 13,000 feet up, warming and drying as it sank. Near the ground the air came from the Gulf of Alaska; at 10,000 feet, from a point about 8,170 miles to the east. 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, EIGHT YEARS AGO Nov. 11–12, 2018

The wettest two days this week has seen

9.70 inches of rain fell in two days, the most for this week of the year since records began in 1972. The next wettest, 5.04 inches, fell in 1999.

5.04″
9.70″
19992018
Source: NOAA RCC-ACIS, the Portage Glacier Visitor Center record since 1972.
MILE2
THE GROUND

What Whittier stands on

Whittier’s center stands about 50 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 10 ft to 3,670 ft, a difference of 3,660 ft: mountain country. Open water lies within three miles. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Carpathian Peak, about 5,900 ft, 8 miles southwest.

Whittier, cut in half from west to east

A section west to east, 24 miles through the town center
0 ft1,000 ft2,000 ft3,000 ft WHITTIER50 ftPlacer Riverabout 40 ftHigh point of the line3,050 ft ← WE →

Heights every 0.1 mile from the Copernicus GLO-90 surface model; vertical exaggeration about 6×.

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

Whittier’s year

1991–2020 normals · records since 1972 · Portage Glacier Visitor Center, 6 mi west

Whittier has a subarctic climate. Summer afternoons average 62° in July; winter nights fall to about 16° in January. About 159 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

28°16°31°19°33°18°43°29°52°36°60°43°62°47°60°44°54°40°43°31°33°22°30°18° JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 TODAY WHITTIER 159.3 in rain a year
Normal high to low, by month Rain by month Freezing
July, average62° / 47°high / low, the warmest month
January, average28° / 16°high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year159.3 inwettest months: September and October
Hottest on record84°FJuly 6, 2019
Coldest on record−32°FFebruary 4, 1999
Wettest day on record10.3 inOctober 30, 2021
Nights at or below 32°170and 66 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeSubarcticKöppen Dfc

AROUND THE RING

1Freeze seasonfrom the first fall freeze, about Sept. 10, to the last in spring, about June 1 (median dates)
2Highs below freezingNov. 15 to March 12; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezingOct. 14 to April 23; normal lows fall below 32°
MONTH BY MONTH
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Normal high28°31°33°43°52°60°62°60°54°43°33°30°
Normal low16°19°18°29°36°43°47°44°40°31°22°18°
Rain, inches13.8410.679.5112.3411.897.477.2410.8322.8218.9216.2817.49

Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1972 at Portage Glacier Visitor Center, 6 miles west. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.
MILE7
ON THE NETWORK

Around Whittier on the Forecast Network

Neighboring plates

Anchorage AK · 34 MI 34 miles northwest
FORECASTCITY
Map of Whittier, Alaska. Explore the plate
ALASKA · CHUGACH

Whittier

253 people, 50 ft above sea level in Chugach Census Area.

50 ftElevation
253People
12 sq miLand
Sunny 28°
SunnyDew point 25°
1

Today in Whittier

NEXT 15 HOURS
Now mostly cloudy day 27° 0%
2p overcast 30° 0%
5p overcast 30° 1%
8p snow 30° 38%
11p snow 29° 77%
2a snow 30° 71%
Snow
NEXT RAINTonight about 8 PM · 100%
→
Sat80%
Showers likely Showers likely
27
30
A
Sun100%
Showers likely Showers likely
34
37
C
Mon100%
Showers likely Showers likely
32
41
B
Tue60%
Showers likely Showers likely
30
37
C
Wed90%
Showers likely Showers likely
35
39
B
Thu90%
Showers likely Showers likely
32
40
B
Fri50%
Chance of showers Chance of showers
27
36
C
Letters show how sure the forecast is: A, models agree; B, some spread; C, check back. Sample data.
THIS WEEK, EIGHT YEARS AGO · NOV. 11–12, 2018

9.70 inches in two days, the most for this week since 1972.

2

What Whittier stands on

Whittier’s center stands about 50 ft above sea level. Within three miles the land runs from 10 ft to 3,670 ft, a difference of 3,660 ft: mountain country. Open water lies within three miles. The highest named summit within 15 miles is Carpathian Peak, about 5,900 ft, 8 miles southwest.

Whittier, west to east Whittier50 ftPlacer Riverabout 40 ft ← WE → 24 miles through the town center; vertical exaggeration about 12×.
Elevation, center50 ft
Within 3 miles10 to 3,670 ft
Lie of the landMountainous (3,660 ft of relief)
High point nearbyCarpathian Peak, 5,900 ft, 8 mi southwest
5

Whittier’s year

Whittier has a subarctic climate. Summer afternoons average 62° in July; winter nights fall to about 16° in January. About 159 inches of rain fall in a normal year.

JANFEBMARAPRMAYJUNJULAUGSEPOCTNOVDEC 123 159.3 in
July, average62° / 47° · high / low, the warmest month
January, average28° / 16° · high / low, the coldest month
Rain a year159.3 in · wettest months: September and October
Hottest on record84°F · July 6, 2019
Coldest on record−32°F · February 4, 1999
Wettest day on record10.3 in · October 30, 2021
Nights at or below 32°170 · and 66 days that stay below freezing
Climate typeSubarctic · Köppen Dfc
1Freeze season · from the first fall freeze, about Sept. 10, to the last in spring, about June 1 (median dates)
2Highs below freezing · Nov. 15 to March 12; normal highs stay below 32°
3Lows below freezing · Oct. 14 to April 23; normal lows fall below 32°
Normals 1991–2020 and records since 1972 at Portage Glacier Visitor Center, 6 miles west. NOAA, through RCC-ACIS.