Alaska Climate Research Center

The Alaska State Climate Center
The Alaska State Climate Center
The Alaska State Climate Center
Home > City Summaries > Fairbanks May 2013

Fairbanks May 2013


Highlights

For Fairbanks May was overall colder than normal, with below normal temperatures until the last 1/3 of the month. The average temperature was 44.3°F, a hefty -5.1°F below the long-term mean of 49.4°F. The highest temperature for the month was recorded on the 30th, a warm 84°F, which tied the highest temperature for this day with over a century of observations.  The minimum temperature occurred on the 6th, with a chilly 16°F. Further, two record low minimum temperature for May were broken, on the 18th 24°F was recorded, 3 degrees cooler than the old record set in 1943, and on the 20th the observed low of 27°F broke the old record set in 1964 by 1°F.

Precipitation in May was a mere 0.15", or 25% of the normal amount. The 2.0" of snowfall in May, however, was over double the normal amount of 0.9". 1.7" of the snowfall fell on the first three days of May. The mean wind speed was 5.4mph, while the max wind speed was 27mph on the 13th, blowing from a westerly direction.