August 29, 2026 10:42 am
Major weather change, triggering a “Taste of Fall”, will move through much of the State late this weekend and into the first several days of September.
A strong low aloft, located just west of the Chukotsk Peninsula in interior Russia Saturday morning, will move into the Seward Peninsula Sunday. As the main low moves into the western Alaska Range early Monday morning, a second center will develop on the opposite side of the Range and become the main center. This second low will move through northern Cook Inlet and into the extreme northern Kenai Peninsula/Turnagain Arm area later Monday morning and into the northeastern Gulf of Alaska Monday afternoon…then continue southeast into the Queen Charlotte Islands Tuesday evening.
This will mark the first significant intrusion of colder air into the central and southern Alaskan Mainland of late summer. Snow along higher mountain elevations across the southern Alaska Mainland will accompany this weather system as it moves southeastward.
Around South-central Alaska snowfall along higher mountain elevations is expected to move into the western Alaska Range late Sunday then spread east and south across the rest of the Alaska Range, Chugach Mountains, the Talkeetna Mountains and even into portions of the Kenai Mountain Range. The onset of colder air near sea level locations will be accompanied by moderate to strong winds in many areas.
In the Whittier area, although quite windy today (Saturday), the stronger winds associated with the incoming colder airmass are expected to set in Monday with expected gusts in the 40-60 mph range. As winds die down in the Portage Valley early Tuesday, temperatures should drop into the 30s with local freezing conditions likely there in the morning. Other low lying, wind-sheltered areas of South-central Alaska will also experience temperatures near the freezing mark under clear skies Tuesday morning…including the Campbell Creek area in east Anchorage.
Fortunately, this “taste of Fall” looks like it will be somewhat temporary as warmer air aloft moves into the area later Tuesday and Wednesday.