Weather & Climate
RSSAlaska News tracks weather and climate events affecting Alaska communities, including volcanic activity, wildfires, and smoke impacts.
A storm could raise water 4 to 6 feet at low-lying Norton Sound villages
Water will rise 4 to 6 feet above normal high tide at Koyuk and Elim Monday through Tuesday, with beach erosion and property damage possible, the National Weather Service said.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
A magnitude 3.9 earthquake shook Southcentral Alaska near Hope on Friday night
A magnitude 3.9 earthquake shook Southcentral Alaska near Hope late Friday, felt by hundreds across the region but bringing light shaking and no damage.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Salmon dying off in Prince of Wales drainages amid low, warm water
Salmon are dying off in several Prince of Wales Island streams, where low, warm water from drought has killed fish and stranded survivors in shrinking pools.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Interior wind event hits highways as the Mukluk Fire burns near Tok
The winds that drove the Mukluk Fire near Tok hit Interior highways too, with gusts to 75 mph at Isabel Pass and a warning about the Tatlanika fire.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
The state gave Red Dog another decade of eased water limits as the mine looks to run longer
Alaska extended Red Dog's wastewater permit 10 years, to 2036, past the mine's own expected ore life, citing thawing permafrost with no available remedy.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 1mo ago2 min read
Rain is coming to the Interior, and the small creeks will rise — but the big rivers are low enough to take it
Rain will raise the small creeks feeding the Koyukuk and Middle Yukon, but the big rivers are low enough to take it — a routine wet stretch, not a threat.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Yentna River passes flood stage near Lake Creek with water expected in lodge cabins
The Yentna is over flood stage near Lake Creek, with water expected in cabins at two lodges. It should crest around 21 feet Tuesday morning.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Willow Creek forecast to reach minor flood stage Tuesday under Susitna Valley flood watch
Willow Creek is forecast to reach minor flood stage Tuesday morning during Alaska's primary election, with 2 to 4 inches of rain expected across the Susitna Valley through Wednesday.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Gusts to 65 mph on the Anchorage Hillside and in Eagle River through tonight
Guess what! Wind! On the hillside in South Anchorage and Eagle River especially =)
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Heat advisory warns of 80 degrees near Umiat Sunday afternoon
National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for the area near Umiat forecasting 80 degrees Sunday afternoon, though no North Slope villages fall within the warning zone.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Heat advisory covers Noatak, Kobuk and Seward Peninsula zones until 8 p.m. Saturday
Oh, it's gonna be hot… Best of luck with the bugs. Hopefully there's wind.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Juneau lifts its Suicide Basin flood evacuation
Juneau's Suicide Basin flood threat is over — the command reopened evacuated areas after the Mendenhall River crested at 14.7 feet, below the forecast.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago1 min read
UAF will study the landslides thawing under Alaska's pipeline
A UAF researcher will study why landslides start deep in thawing permafrost, aiming to protect Alaska's infrastructure — including the Trans-Alaska Pipeline.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago2 min read
Wind advisory warns of 55 mph gusts on the Richardson Highway Sunday and Monday
Another… Another another wind story. It's gonna be windy. You live in Alaska - you kind of knew this was coming.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
A heat advisory covers much of Southeast Alaska through Friday evening
A heat advisory covers much of Southeast Alaska through Friday evening, with temperatures in the lower 80s — a real risk in a region where most homes have no air conditioning.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
A Juneau evacuation route is restricted as the valley floods
A Juneau road is restricted to local traffic as the Mendenhall Valley floods from the Suicide Basin outburst, with about 5,000 people told to evacuate.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
NOAA pulled the plug on its 20-year Arctic climate record — and Alaska's scientists are scrambling to save it
NOAA cut its 20-year Arctic warming record, written largely by Alaskans — and UAF scientists are now scrambling to publish the 2026 edition themselves.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read
Juneau asks Mendenhall Lake evacuation zone residents to leave by 3 p.m.
Juneau ordered 5,000 residents in the Mendenhall Valley evacuation zone to leave by 3 p.m. Wednesday as a glacial outburst flood crests early Thursday.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago3 min read
Juneau's glacial outburst flood crested Thursday at 14.7 feet, above major flood stage
Juneau is responding to glacial outburst flooding, nearly 1,900 homes in its advisory area, after the Mendenhall crested above major flood stage Thursday.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
From California to Southeast Alaska, salmon fisheries are closing in lockstep this week — under the same treaty
Southeast Alaska's king troll fishery hit its treaty cap and closed the same week West Coast fisheries are closing — all tied to the same shared Chinook.
by Bill AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Interior faces warmest stretch of summer as Tanana Valley smoke lingers
Interior Alaska is in its warmest stretch of summer, upper 70s to low 80s, with smoke from the Tatlanika Fire — though the advisory has expired and air eased.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Water begins flowing over Suicide Basin ice dam, NWS tells Juneau to finish flood prep
Water is spilling over Suicide Basin's ice dam near Juneau, and the National Weather Service is telling residents along Mendenhall Lake and River to finish flood prep now.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Erosion is forcing Alaska to move the Noatak airport two miles west
The Noatak River has eroded to within about 160 feet of the village's airport — its only lifeline — so Alaska is moving the whole airport two miles west.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Heat advisory covers Lower Matanuska Valley through Monday
I'm gonna be hot if you in the Matsu, don't be surprised if heat stroke finds you.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Yentna River crest ties to flood risk for Lake Creek lodges
Yentna River crested at 22.52 feet Thursday near Lake Creek, two feet above flood stage and high enough to push water into cabins at seven fishing lodges along the Western Susitna Valley.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Magnitude 5.6 quake northwest of Skwentna felt across Anchorage and Mat-Su
A magnitude 5.6 earthquake near Skwentna was felt across Anchorage and the Mat-Su Valley on Saturday night, with no damage reported so far.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Heat advisory brings 80 degrees to the Arctic plains near Umiat
The Arctic plains near Umiat could hit 80 degrees Thursday under a heat advisory, a hot spell standing out in Alaska's coldest year since 2012.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Anchorage ties its wettest July on record as Southcentral soaks
Anchorage tied its wettest July on record and Talkeetna saw its wettest since 1922, part of a cool, soggy stretch and a recent run of unusually wet Julys.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago2 min read
A landslide cut rail service to Denali after record Talkeetna rain
A landslide from record July rain cut off Alaska Railroad service to Denali north of Talkeetna, in a corridor already under a flood-and-erosion emergency.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago1 min read
Yentna flood warning runs to Friday after forecast crest above 22 feet
Yentna River flood warning stays in effect until Friday afternoon as water threatens lodges near Lake Creek, with debris including trees flowing downriver.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago3 min read
NWS forecast calls for 1 to 2 more inches of rain in Southwest Alaska
A Bering Sea storm will drop 1 to 2 more inches of rain across Southwest Alaska through Tuesday, with sustained winds pushing water levels up to 1 foot above normal along the Bristol Bay coast.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
As Alaska's glaciers retreat, new carbon-storing bogs are forming behind them
As Alaska's glaciers retreat, new carbon-storing peat bogs are forming on the bare ground behind them. A UAF grant will map how they form and how long they last.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago2 min read
Wind, high surf and rain batter four Y-K Delta villages into a second day
Four Y-K Delta villages spent a second day under coastal advisories, with high surf, winds gusting to 55 mph and days of rain — landing on Kipnuk as it still rebuilds from Typhoon Halong.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Wind advisory remains in effect for Windy Pass with gusts to 65 mph
WINDY AGAIN, SUCKERS
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Strong winds hit the Anchorage Hillside and Turnagain Arm, with outages possible
Strong winds are hitting the Anchorage Hillside and Turnagain Arm, gusting up to 60 mph through Tuesday morning. Secure loose items — power outages are possible.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Seward faces heavy rain and flood risk again, weeks after July storm
Seward faces 2 to 4 inches of rain Monday through Thursday, with flood and landslide risk — the second such threat weeks after a July flood warning.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Heavy rain now expected in the Mat-Su, with rivers set to crest Wednesday
Heavy rain is now expected in the Mat-Su, 3 to 5 inches, with rivers cresting Wednesday. The Yentna and Talkeetna corridors hit weeks ago are most exposed again.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Heavy sea ice off Alaska's north coast keeps shipping routes shut
Sea ice off Alaska's north coast is the heaviest in over 20 years, keeping Arctic shipping routes shut and complicating the resupply coastal villages depend on.
by Melinda Communities.News1mo ago1 min read
Copper River Valley and McCarthy under a heat advisory through Sunday, up to 83
A heat advisory puts the Copper River Valley at 78 to 83 degrees through Sunday. Hydrate, skip midday exertion, and check on neighbors not used to the heat.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Another round of damaging wind is headed for the Interior
More big wind for the Interior, with 70 mph gusts possible around Delta Junction and the Alaska Range. Trees, power lines and high-profile vehicles all at risk.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
