Alaska, 2003

Heavy Snow in Alaska, November 23 to 24, 2003

November 23 to 24, 2003 · NWS AFC · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A strong low in the northern Bering Sea had a trailing front that extended across the eastern Bering Sea and pushed into southwest Alaska Sunday November 23rd. Cold air already in place over the south central Region coupled with the inflow of moisture associated with this front and the formation of a low along the front resulted in localized areas of heavy snowfall in the Matanuska Valley.

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 AFC wrote it up.

A strong low in the northern Bering Sea had a trailing front that extended across the eastern Bering Sea and pushed into southwest Alaska Sunday November 23rd. Cold air already in place over the south central Region coupled with the inflow of moisture associated with this front and the formation of a low along the front resulted in localized areas of heavy snowfall in the Matanuska Valley. The Alaska and West coast Tsunami Warning center reported a storm total of 20 inches over a 16 hour period.

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 Anchorage, AK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 23, 10:45 AM AST, 3 hours 25 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 23, 10:45 AM AST, 3 hours 25 minutes before
SOUTH/SOUTHWEST ALASKA FORECAST DISCUSSION
1045 AM AST SUN NOV 23 2003

.DISCUSSION...MRNG UPR ANALYSIS SHWS 150+ KT SW JET MAX AT 250 MB
ACRS THE ALUTNS AND SRN BERING AIMED AT B BAY AND THE SW CST. PTRN
STILL PROGRESSIVE WITH ERN GLF TROF MOVG ACRS PHNHNDL AS FLAT RDG
MOVS ACRS SRN AK TDY. UPR LOW NR THE BERING STRAIT WILL MOV TO THE SE
INTR AND NRN PHNHNDL MON AFTN AND EVE. THIS WILL CHNG THE UPR FLOW FM
ITS CRNT SW DIR TO MR WNW. FLAT RDGING POPING UP OVR THE BERING ON
TUE WILL ALLOW TROF TO CARVE OUT OVR THE SRN INTR TUE NGT AND INTO
THE GLF WED AS ANTR UPR LOW MOVS FM THE RUSSIAN FAR EAST TO THE
BERING STRAIT WED NGT. SW JET WILL DVLP AGN ACRS THE SRN BERING AND
EXTND ACRS MST OF SRN AK BY THU NGT.

AT THE SFC MDLS IN AGRMNT BUT ETA HAS BTR RSLTN WITH THE TROFS IN THE
GLF WHILE GFS IS GOOD ELSWHERE. NRN BERING STORM TO RDVLP ESE ACRS
INR AK LTR TDY AND TNGT WITH A 980 CNTR OVR ERN 2A BY 3PM MON. GUSTY
NW WNDS W OF LOW CNTR WILL CVR NRLY ALL OF THE FCST AREA MON NGT WITH
STGST WNDS KODIAK ISLND N GLF CSTR AND PRINCE WILLIAM SOUND. WKNG
OCFNT MOVS ACRS ERN BERING TUE NGT FOR PSBL LGT SNW ALG THE SW CST
AND EVEN BTR CHCS WED.

.AFC...WATCH/WARNING SUMMARY
PUBLIC...NONE.
MARINE...SEE FCSTS.

PERCY NOV 03

Event by event

1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Matanuska Valley

When
November 23, 2:10 PM AST to November 24, 6:00 AM AST
Where
Matanuska Valley forecast zone
Reported by
OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY

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

More

Every storm in Alaska in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Alaska, November 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: 5372194.