Northway, Alaska climate: Normal weather by month, frost dates and records
Northway's normal year runs from −22°F January nights to 72°F July afternoons, with 11.3 inches of precipitation and 43 inches of snow a year. (NOAA 1991-2020 normals)
In metric: a yearly mean of −4.1°C, January lows of −30°C, July highs of 22°C, 286 mm of precipitation a year.
- NOAA stationNorthway Airport
- Station IDUSW00026412
- Location62.96°N 141.93°W
- Elevation1,713 ft (522 m)
- Population (census place)202
On October 23, the normal high in Northway is 26°F and the normal low 9°F, and the chance of measurable rain or snow is 25%.
Normals describe a typical year at the station, not a forecast. The National Weather Service forecast for Northway.
- Jan -4° -22°
- Feb 8° -16°
- Mar 25° -8°
- Apr 45° 17°
- May 61° 34°
- Jun 70° 45°
- Jul 72° 48°
- Aug 67° 44°
- Sep 55° 32°
- Oct 32° 14°
- Nov 8° -9°
- Dec -2° -19°
Each month: normal high (large) and low, °F. Fill: the month's normal mean, colder blue to hotter red.
What is the weather like in Northway each month?
July is the warmest month, with normal highs of 72°F; January the coldest, with normal lows of −22°F. The most precipitation falls in July (2.92 in), the least in March (0.15 in).
Each month has its own page with the day-by-day normals, the month's records and its recent years:
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow | Wet days | 90°F days | Freezing nights | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −4°F | −22°F | -13.3°F | 0.31 | 6.3 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 5 h 50 min |
| February | 8°F | −16°F | -4.0°F | 0.24 | 5.2 | 4 | <1 | 28 | 8 h 40 min |
| March | 25°F | −8°F | 8.3°F | 0.15 | 3.5 | 3 | <1 | 31 | 11 h 40 min |
| April | 45°F | 17°F | 31.1°F | 0.22 | 1.2 | 3 | <1 | 29 | 14 h 50 min |
| May | 61°F | 34°F | 47.2°F | 0.98 | 1.8 | 8 | <1 | 13 | 17 h 50 min |
| June | 70°F | 45°F | 57.2°F | 2.26 | 0.0 | 12 | <1 | <1 | 20 h 10 min |
| July | 72°F | 48°F | 59.9°F | 2.92 | 0.0 | 15 | <1 | <1 | 19 h 10 min |
| August | 67°F | 44°F | 55.0°F | 1.79 | 0.0 | 13 | <1 | 1 | 16 h 20 min |
| September | 55°F | 32°F | 43.2°F | 1.06 | 1.9 | 9 | <1 | 16 | 13 h 10 min |
| October | 32°F | 14°F | 23.2°F | 0.53 | 6.1 | 8 | <1 | 31 | 10 h |
| November | 8°F | −9°F | -0.7°F | 0.51 | 9.8 | 7 | <1 | 30 | 7 h |
| December | −2°F | −19°F | -10.8°F | 0.30 | 7.1 | 6 | <1 | 31 | 4 h 50 min |
| Year (annual) | 36°F | 13°F | 24.7°F | 11.27 | 42.9 | 94 | <1 | 242 |
The same normals in °C and millimetres
| Month | High | Low | Mean | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −20°C | −30°C | −25.2°C | 8 mm | 16 cm |
| February | −13°C | −27°C | −20.0°C | 6 mm | 13 cm |
| March | −4°C | −22°C | −13.2°C | 4 mm | 9 cm |
| April | 7°C | −8°C | −0.5°C | 6 mm | 3 cm |
| May | 16°C | 1°C | 8.4°C | 25 mm | 5 cm |
| June | 21°C | 7°C | 14.0°C | 57 mm | 0 cm |
| July | 22°C | 9°C | 15.5°C | 74 mm | 0 cm |
| August | 19°C | 6°C | 12.8°C | 45 mm | 0 cm |
| September | 13°C | 0°C | 6.2°C | 27 mm | 5 cm |
| October | 0°C | −10°C | −4.9°C | 13 mm | 15 cm |
| November | −13°C | −23°C | −18.2°C | 13 mm | 25 cm |
| December | −19°C | −28°C | −23.8°C | 8 mm | 18 cm |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00026412; annual normals. Wet days: 0.01 inch or more; 90°F days and freezing nights: NOAA's day counts. Daylight: sunrise to sunset on the 15th, computed from the latitude.
When is the best weather to visit Northway?
Normal highs sit between 65°F and 85°F in June, July and August. Of those, June has the fewest days with rain (12).
That is a measurement, not a recommendation: it counts the months whose normal afternoon high sits between 65°F and 85°F, where a light layer is enough by day.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00026412.
When is the last frost in Northway?
In Northway, the last spring frost (32°F) comes after May 26 in half of years and after June 8 in one year in ten; the first autumn frost comes before September 1 in half of years and before August 18 in one year in ten.
Frost-free in half of yearsFrost in 1 to 9 years out of 10Frost most years
- Last spring frost, half of years after
- May 261 year in 10 after June 8; 9 in 10 after May 13
- First autumn frost, half of years before
- September 11 year in 10 before August 18; 9 in 10 before September 13
NOAA puts the median frost-free season at 97 days, and the season without a hard freeze (28°F) at 120 days.
A hard freeze (28°F) comes after May 13 in half of springs and before September 13 in half of autumns.
The USDA's 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map puts Northway in zone 2a in ZIP code 99764. By the map's own method, the average of each year's coldest night over 1991-2020, Northway's NOAA station is in zone 1b: the coldest night of a typical year reaches −51°F (29 complete years); the map interpolates between stations and terrain, so the station and the ZIP area can differ by half a zone.
Frost dates for every NOAA station in Alaska · Frost dates by ZIP code
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals (frost probabilities), station USW00026412; USDA 2023 Plant Hardiness Zone Map, ZIP listings: PRISM Group, Oregon State University, https://prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed October 8, 2026; the station zone: ACIS daily lows, 1991-2020. A 10% date means one year in ten has a frost after it in spring or before it in autumn.
How hot and how cold does it get in Northway?
In a normal year in Northway, a 90°F day is rare, 242 nights fall to 32°F or colder and 94 days bring measurable precipitation.
- Days at 90°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Days at 100°F or more
- fewer than 1a normal year
- Nights at 32°F or colder
- 242a normal year
- Days that stay below freezing
- 164high of 32°F or less
- Days with 0.01 inch of precipitation
- 94a normal year
- Days with 1 inch of snow or more
- 14a normal year
The highest temperature in this station's record (since 1942) is 92°F, on June 30, 2019; the lowest is −72°F, on January 20, 1952.
The wettest calendar year on that record is 2010, with 18.69 in; the snowiest season is 1955–56, with 67.2 inches.
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 annual normals, station USW00026412; records: ACIS (NOAA Regional Climate Centers), station USW00026412. Records use complete months only; a month missing more than three days is left out.
How humid and windy is Northway, and how clear are its skies?
The summer (June-August) dew point averages 44°F. The muggiest month is July, with an average dew point of 47°F; the driest air comes in December (−13°F). May is the windiest month (5.0 mph on average), and May has the most clear or nearly clear hours (42%).
| Month | Dew point | Humidity | Afternoon humidity | Wind | Clear or few clouds | Overcast |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | −11°F | 88% | – | 1.5 mph | 29% | 36% |
| February | −2°F | 81% | – | 2.7 mph | 32% | 28% |
| March | 9°F | 64% | – | 3.9 mph | 30% | 25% |
| April | 24°F | 57% | – | 4.8 mph | 27% | 28% |
| May | 37°F | 56% | – | 5.0 mph | 42% | 33% |
| June | 46°F | 63% | – | 4.6 mph | – | – |
| July | 47°F | 68% | – | 4.2 mph | – | – |
| August | 40°F | 74% | – | 3.7 mph | 34% | 37% |
| September | 27°F | 79% | – | 3.5 mph | 27% | 37% |
| October | 8°F | 85% | – | 2.7 mph | – | – |
| November | −10°F | 92% | – | 1.5 mph | – | – |
| December | −13°F | 96% | – | 1.2 mph | 31% | 39% |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 hourly normals, station USW00026412. Monthly averages of all hours; afternoon humidity at 3 p.m. local standard time; sky as the share of hours NOAA's observations rate clear or few clouds (a dash where NOAA publishes no sky value).
How sunny is Northway?
Over a year 69% of the sunlight that would reach the ground under clear skies gets through the clouds in the area around Northway, 2.7 kWh per square metre a day. April is the sunniest month (78%) and November the cloudiest (59%).
| Month | Share of clear-sky sunshine | Sunshine, kWh/m² a day |
|---|---|---|
| January | 64% | 0.3 |
| February | 70% | 1.0 |
| March | 78% | 2.6 |
| April | 78% | 4.4 |
| May | 70% | 5.1 |
| June | 67% | 5.4 |
| July | 65% | 4.9 |
| August | 68% | 4.0 |
| September | 67% | 2.5 |
| October | 60% | 1.1 |
| November | 59% | 0.3 |
| December | 63% | 0.1 |
Source: NASA POWER solar climatology, 2001-2020 (CERES SYN1deg). Satellite-based, for the 1-degree cell (about 100 km across) around the station, so it describes the area rather than the airport.
How much heating and cooling does Northway need?
A normal year in Northway brings 14,679 heating degree days, 2.7 times the median U.S. place (5,373), and 19 cooling degree days, 98% fewer than the median (908). Ten months need 300 or more heating degree days, a monthly mean of about 55°F or colder. For gardens and crops, NOAA counts 764 growing degree days a year above 50°F.
| Month | Heating | Cooling |
|---|---|---|
| January | 2,427 | 0 |
| February | 1,932 | 0 |
| March | 1,759 | 0 |
| April | 1,017 | 0 |
| May | 550 | 0 |
| June | 243 | 8 |
| July | 166 | 8 |
| August | 313 | 3 |
| September | 654 | 0 |
| October | 1,297 | 0 |
| November | 1,969 | 0 |
| December | 2,350 | 0 |
| Year (annual) | 14,679 | 19 |
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00026412. A degree day is one degree of a day's mean temperature below 65°F (heating) or above it (cooling); utilities use them to estimate energy use.
Has Northway been warmer than normal lately?
2025 averaged 27.5°F, 2.8°F above the 1991-2020 normal of 24.7°F. 2 of the 4 complete years since 2021 ran warmer than the normal.
| Year | Mean | Against normal | Precip. | Snow |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 23.0°F | −1.7°F | 7.98 | – |
| 2022 | 24.7°F | at normal | – | – |
| 2023 | 26.5°F | +1.8°F | – | – |
| 2025 | 27.5°F | +2.8°F | – | – |
Over 77 complete years from 1943 to 2023, the station's annual mean temperature rose at a fitted 4.8°F per century (+0.27°C per decade). A fitted rate summarizes the whole record; single years swing well above and below it.
Source: observed years: ACIS, station USW00026412; trend: NOAA GHCN-Monthly v4. A year counts only with all twelve months complete.
How does Northway's climate compare?
Northway is warmer than 11 of the other 84 places with their own NOAA record in Alaska, and wetter than 5. Across the 7,247 U.S. stations with normals, its annual mean of 24.7°F is warmer than 0%.
In the Köppen classification computed from these normals, Northway is Dwc: continental, dry-winter, cool summer. What the classes mean.
Places with the most similar year elsewhere
Measured month by month on the normal high, low and precipitation, among places of 20,000 or more people in other states:
Source: NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 normals for every station PlainClimate covers. Similarity: the root-mean-square difference of the 36 monthly figures, precipitation weighted so an inch counts like 6°F.
Questions about Northway's climate
What is the coldest month in Northway?
January, with a normal high of −4°F and a normal low of −22°F. The warmest is July (72°F by day, 48°F at night).
Does it snow in Northway?
Yes: 43 inches in a normal year, falling on 50 days with 0.1 inch or more, the most in November (9.8 inches).
What is the rainiest month in Northway?
July, with 2.92 in of precipitation in a normal year; the driest is March with 0.15 in.
What plant hardiness zone is Northway in?
The USDA's 2023 map puts Northway in zone 2a in ZIP code 99764. By the same method at Northway's NOAA station, the coldest night of a typical year reaches −51°F (29 years, 1991-2020): zone 1b.
How late can frost come in Northway?
In half of years the last 32°F night comes after May 26; in one year in ten it comes after June 8. Waiting until June 8 leaves about a one-in-ten chance of a later frost.
Nearby and next
- Northway in OctoberThis month day by day, its records and recent years
- Alaska climateThe statewide normals and every place in the state
- Tok (70 mi SE), AK27 miles from this station, 24.2°F a year
- Port Alcan, AK37 miles from this station, 24.1°F a year
- Tok, AK43 miles from this station, 24.7°F a year
- Nabesna, AK52 miles from this station, 26.7°F a year
- Compare two placesMonth by month, side by side
Download these normals (CSV) · JSON · How these figures are made