December 2024 in Sitka was the warmest on record, with average temperatures of 42.7 degrees Fahrenheit.
Those temperatures outpaced the previous record, set in 1969. Rick Thoman, a climate specialist with the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy, said the high average wasn’t the only unusual finding for Sitka.
“One of the things that really stood out in December for Sitka was the number of really mild days,” he said. “In fact, there were 11 days when the high temperature for the day was 50 [degrees] or higher.”
Thoman said persistent storms brought warm air and moisture to the region last month. But long-term, he attributes warming waters in the Gulf of Alaska to the record-breaking temperatures.
“When we go back, say, into the 1960s, the sea surface temperatures now are significantly higher than they were then,” he said. “That is a big contributor not just to the warm weather in December, but the overall climate warming that we’ve seen in Sitka and across Southeast.”
That pattern wasn’t limited to Southeast Alaska. Thoman said communities across the state reported warm Decembers.
You can read Thoman’s full analysis at alaskaclimate.substack.com.
