Heavy Snow in Alaska, December 22, 2003

Name: Heavy Snow in Alaska, December 22, 2003
Start: 2003-12-22T14:00
End: 2003-12-22T22:00
Location: Alaska

December 22, 2003 · NWS AFG · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Heavy Snow was reported at:Zone 218: Snow began at 0800 AST and reached 6 inches at 1800 AST. Zone 219: Snow began at 0600 AST and reached 6 inches at 1400 AST.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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.

A low pressure center at upper levels over southern Alaska and the Gulf of Alaska created upslope and mid-level warm advection over the northern interior resulting in heavy snowfall on or near the south slopes of the Brooks Range.Heavy Snow was reported at:Zone 218: Snow began at 0800 AST and reached 6 inches at 1800 AST. Coldfoot State of Alaska Department of Transportation Maintenance Station: 6.0 inches.Zone 219: Snow began at 0600 AST and reached 6 inches at 1400 AST. Jim River State of Alaska Department of Transportation Maintenance Station: 9.0 inches. Bettles Co-operative observing site: 9.0 inches by 9pm on the 22nd.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Fairbanks, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 22, 6:00 AM AST, 8 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 22, 6:00 AM AST, 8 hours before

NORTH ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
600 AM AST MON DEC 22 2003

.DISCUSSION...
SURFACE...A 964 MB LOW IS JUST WEST OF PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND AND
WILL SLOWLY DRIFT SE AND WEAKEN THROUGH WEDNESDAY. A COMPLEX
FRONTAL SYSTEM EXTENDS NE FROM THE LOW INTO SE ALASKA. AN ARCTIC
FRONT IS FROM EAST OF KODIAK NORTH TO PANN AND NE TO PFYU AND OLD
CROW. THIS BOUNDARY WILL SLIP SE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. A
HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE EXTENDS SE FROM ERN RUSSIA TO BRISTOL BAY.

ALOFT...BROAD UPR LOW EXTENDS FROM THE CHUKCHI SEA SE TO KODIAK
AND WILL SLOWLY MOVE EAST INTO THE INTERIOR THROUGH MID WEEK. A
VORT IS OVER THE SEWARD PENN. AND WILL DROP SE TO KODIAK BY
TUESDAY. UPR FLOW WILL REMAIN SOUTHERLY OVER MOST OF ALASKA
THROUGH TUESDAY. VORT ENERGY WILL MOVE NORTH OVER THE ERN BROOKS
RANGE MONDAY NIGHT.

MODELS...ETA AND AVN DIFFER IN PLACEMENT OF UPR LOW FOR THE THE
FIRST 24HRS. BOTH COME INTO LINE IN MOVING THE LOW OVER THE
INTERIOR BY MID WEEK. ETA HAS OUT PERFORMED AVN WITH CURRENT GULF
STORM AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE THE MODEL OF CHOICE THROUGH 60 HRS.

NORTH SLOPE...LIGHT FLOW REGIME OVER THE REGION WITH AREAS OF
FREEZING FOG REDUCING VISIBILITIES BELOW A HALF MILE. LIGHT SNOW
WILL MOVE INTO ERN ZONES MONDAY NIGHT NIGHT WITH SEVERAL INCHES
POSSIBLE.

WEST COAST...BROAD UPR LOW FROM THE CHUKCHI TO NORTON SOUND
KEEPING SNOW SHOWERS OVER THE REGION. ORGANIZED SNOW WITH UP TO 2
INCHES POSSIBLE FROM ZONE 216 TO ZONE 209 THROUGH TUESDAY WITH
OVER RUNNING OF ARCTIC AIRMASS.

INTERIOR... LOW OVER NRN GULF HAS MOVED WEST TO NEAR 150 W
ALLOWING CHINOOK FLOW TO REDUCE SNOWFALL FROM PAFA SE. THE MORE
SIGNIFICANT SNOW WILL BE OVER ZONES 219 AND 218 AS ARCTIC BOUNDARY
IS OVER RUN. SNOW ADVISORIES ARE IN PLACE FOR THESE ZONES FOR UP
TO 5 INCHES.

.AFG...WATCH/WARNING/ADVISORIES...
PUBLIC...SNOW ADVISORY...219..218
MARINE...HEAVY FREEZING SPRAY WARNING...14

CS DEC 03

Event by event

2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Upper Koyukuk Valley

When: December 22, 2:00 PM AST to 10:00 PM AST
Where: Upper Koyukuk Valley forecast zone
Reported by: OFFICIAL NWS OBS.

Heavy Snow, S. Slopes of Ern Brooks Range

When: December 22, 6:00 PM AST to 10:00 PM AST
Where: S. Slopes of Ern Brooks Range forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS

What these are

Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Alaska in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Alaska, December 2003

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: 5336641, 5336640.