Alaska, 2002

Cold in Alaska, January 25, 2002

January 25, 2002 · NWS AFG · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Wind chill temperatures of 63 degrees below zero were reported at Shishmaref. These extremely low wind chill temperatures developed as sufficiently cold surface temperatures combined with winds over 15 mph.

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS AFG wrote it up.

Wind chill temperatures of 63 degrees below zero were reported at Shishmaref. These extremely low wind chill temperatures developed as sufficiently cold surface temperatures combined with winds over 15 mph. Increasing winds developed between a low over the Bering Sea that was moving to the northeast, and high pressure over mainland Alaska.

Event by event

1 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Cold/Wind Chill, Chukchi Sea Coast

When
January 25, 3:15 PM AST to 8:55 PM AST
Where
Chukchi Sea Coast forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

What these are

Cold/Wind Chill
Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Alaska in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, January 2002

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5279784.