Blizzard in Eastern Beaufort Sea Coast, Alaska

The Point Thompson AWOS (PAAD) reported an extended period of visibilities at or below 1/4 mile throughout the afternoon and evening of December 31st along with a max wind gusts from the west of 43 mph. Meanwhile just to the east the Barter Island AWOS (PABA) reported 1/4 mile visibility for several hours along with a max wind gust of 55 mph.

Low pressure centers over the south central Interior of Alaska as well as in the northern Bering Sea coupled with strong high pressure over the Arctic Ocean to produce very strong winds the last few days of December. A combination of new snowfall associated with the surface lows and loose snow on the ground resulted in lots of blowing snow and reduced visibilities. Blizzard to near blizzard conditions were observed across most of the North Slope as well as along the Bering Straight coast and portions of the Northwest Arctic Borough.