<P> The climate of Western Alaska is determined in large part by the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska . It is a subarctic oceanic climate in the southwest and a continental subarctic climate farther north . The temperature is somewhat moderate considering how far north the area is . This region has a tremendous amount of variety in precipitation . An area stretching from the northern side of the Seward Peninsula to the Kobuk River valley (i . e., the region around Kotzebue Sound) is technically a desert, with portions receiving less than 10 in (25 cm) of precipitation annually . On the other extreme, some locations between Dillingham and Bethel average around 100 in (250 cm) of precipitation . </P> <P> The climate of the interior of Alaska is subarctic . Some of the highest and lowest temperatures in Alaska occur around the area near Fairbanks . The summers may have temperatures reaching into the 90s ° F (the low - to - mid 30s ° C), while in the winter, the temperature can fall below − 60 ° F (− 51 ° C). Precipitation is sparse in the Interior, often less than 10 in (25 cm) a year, but what precipitation falls in the winter tends to stay the entire winter . </P> <P> The highest and lowest recorded temperatures in Alaska are both in the Interior . The highest is 100 ° F (38 ° C) in Fort Yukon (which is just 8 mi or 13 km inside the arctic circle) on June 27, 1915, making Alaska tied with Hawaii as the state with the lowest high temperature in the United States . The lowest official Alaska temperature is − 80 ° F (− 62 ° C) in Prospect Creek on January 23, 1971, one degree above the lowest temperature recorded in continental North America (in Snag, Yukon, Canada). </P> <P> The climate in the extreme north of Alaska is Arctic (Köppen: ET) with long, very cold winters and short, cool summers . Even in July, the average low temperature in Barrow is 34 ° F (1 ° C). Precipitation is light in this part of Alaska, with many places averaging less than 10 in (25 cm) per year, mostly as snow which stays on the ground almost the entire year . </P>

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