In July, when much of the eastern two-thirds of the lower 48 states were recording above-average temperatures, the residents of our 49th state were shivering.
Alaska has been experiencing a cool 2012, and last month was no exception. Anchorage, for example, was on track to set a record for the coldest July on record, but a few days in the low 70s toward the end of the month was just enough to allow the largest city in Alaska to end up with the fourth-coldest July since 1918.
That cold air was not confined to just Anchorage, as nearly the entire state finished with well-below-normal temperatures for the month, and overall it was the 18th-coldest July on record for the state.
The same persistent pattern that has kept our area with consistently warm conditions has, in turn, also kept Alaska colder than average for much of the past year.
The recent pattern shift has at least temporarily allowed most of Alaska to finally experience a touch of summer in recent days.
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