Arctic Circle hotter than Florida

Fort Mcpherson in Canada reached a temperature of 35°C, the same day that parts of Florida only got to 33°C.

On Wednesday 7th August the Arctic Circle was hotter than parts of Florida, with temperatures in Fort Mcpherson in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories in Canada reaching 35°C.

This was in part due to a weather phenomenon known as a Chinook wind, which is similar to a Foehn wind in the UK.

A Chinook is a warm, dry wind that occurs as it descends downwind of mountain ranges. In this region, the Chinook often sources from the Mackenzie Mountains, which are a part of a large mountain range in western Canada.

In addition to the local enhancement of the Chinook, the Arctic is warming twice as fast as the global average, due to a strong positive ice-albedo feedback loop.

Ice has a high albedo, meaning high reflectivity. However with declining sea ice extent, there is less reflectivity of heat back into space, leading to increased warming at the poles and more melting, further accelerating this cycle.