Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Hot Weather and the Tanana Valley Fair

Tuesday was the fifth day of the Tanana Valley Fair, and the third day thus far with a high temperature in the 80s.  So this raises the question; how unusual are 80 plus temperatures this late in the summer in Fairbanks?

Here's a plot of the calendar day frequency (1930-2012) of days with maximum temperature ≥80F (disclaimer: the plotted data is a three day running mean frequency, just to smooth out the curve):

As you can see, the frequency of hot days in early August is about half that in late June and early July. So while 80ºF temperatures are uncommon this time of year, this is by no means unprecedented.

So, today's trivia questions are: what's the most number of days during the Tanana Valley Fair with a high temperature of 80F or higher?  And will the 2013  Fair break that record?

2 comments:

  1. The dates of the Fair have changed over the years. Used to be later in August. Don't recall the exact dates. Do recall the annual rains that accompanied the event across the street.

    Gary

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  2. If the dates were the same as this year, the record would be 6 from back in 1994. So that will be my final answer - 6.

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