Alaska climate report: A wet and cool July

Talkeetna got soaked. The community nearly 200 air miles south of Fairbanks had its wettest July in just over a century, according to the monthly report from the Alaska Climate Research Center.

Several rounds of heavy rain from July 19-23 flooded the community’s low-lying areas and caused extensive erosion along the Susitna River. The flooding affected homes, businesses and transportation infrastructure. The Matanuska-Susitna Borough and state of Alaska both declared an emergency.

Talkeetna received 10.6 inches of rain, 3 ½ times its July average. That total is second only to the 11.68 inches received in 1922, four years after measurements at the station began in 1918. 

The Alaska Climate Research Center issued its July summary earlier this month. The climate center is part of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute.

The heavy rain came via a broad weather system that gradually moved into Alaska from the Bering Sea, bringing moist air from the southwest.

“The persistent rainfall kept the ground wet and also helped keep wildfire activity unusually low for this time of year,” said ACRC Director Martin Stuefer, who is also the Alaska state climatologist. “I’m sure gardeners would have liked it a bit warmer, though.”

Anchorage received 247% of normal (4.5 inches) and Homer 246% (3.6 inches), followed by McGrath at 231% (5.8 inches) and St. Paul Island at 221% (4.4 inches). Juneau received just 31% of normal precipitation (1.6 inches), Yakutat 41% (3.1 inches), Kotzebue 59% (0.9 inch), Kodiak 64% (2.9 inches) and Fairbanks 66% (1.5 inches).

Percentage deviation is based on the 1991-2020 normal.

Temperatures remained cooler than average across most of the state. Interior and Southcentral communities had the greatest deviation from normal among the 19 stations, which all recorded below-normal temperatures.

McGrath had the greatest deviation, at 5 degrees Fahrenheit below normal; followed by King Salmon at 4.1 degrees below normal and Talkeetna at 4 degrees below normal. Anchorage and Homer were each 3.2 degrees below normal, while Cold Bay and Fairbanks were each 2.8 degrees below normal. The smallest departures occurred at Nome, with eight-tenths of a degree below normal, and at Ketchikan and Kodiak, each nine-tenths of a degree below normal.

Other July highlights:

• Alaska’s wildfire season continues to be slow. Moderate increases in fire activity following the lightning episodes in early July were quickly dampened with the onset of the wet, cool weather period around mid-month.

• About 2.5% of the state was listed as abnormally dry as of late July. The abnormally dry area is entirely situated around Kotzebue Sound and in the northern half of the Seward Peninsula.

• Arctic sea ice extent at the end of July was near the level of 2024 and 2025 and slightly higher than 2019 and 2020.