Summer heat 'vacationing' in Canada's North
Last Updated: Thursday, July 23, 2009 | 11:11 AM CT
CBC News
Related
Some of the best summer days across Canada this month are north of 60, where people are basking in some relatively balmy conditions.
Afternoon temperatures in Iqaluit and parts of the Yukon have been almost 3 C warmer than normal these days, according to Environment Canada.
The daytime high in Iqaluit Wednesday reached 23.6 C, well above the normal high of 12 C, according to the weather service's website.
And in Yellowknife, the mercury finally began climbing into the mid-20s this past weekend, following weeks of cooler-than-normal temperatures.
"We have found summer and it's vacationing in the North," senior climatologist David Phillips told CBC News on Wednesday.
"I mean, from the Yukon to parts of the Northwest Territories to Nunavut, that's where summer is hanging out — much to the displeasure of Canadians in the south, where they're wondering, 'Where's the heat?' Well, the heat is in the North."
Phillips said one reason why it's been so warm in Nunavut lately is because sea surface temperatures in the eastern Arctic, including Baffin Bay, Davis Strait, Foxe Basin and the Labrador Sea, are currently well over 3 C.
All of Environment Canada's weather models indicate the warm weather will stay in much of the North over the next week or two, Phillips said.
The forecast calls for temperatures in Iqaluit, Yellowknife and Whitehorse to stay in the 20 C range well into the weekend.
While the weather in Whitehorse was slightly below normal on Wednesday, with a daytime high of 18.3 C, Environment Canada is calling for temperatures to come back to the normal of 20 C by Friday, then keep rising all weekend.
The Yukon capital may even see daytime temperatures break past 30 C early next week, according to Environment Canada's long-range forecast.
Share Tools
Latest North News Headlines
- Iqaluit cab driver not guilty in dispute with laundromat owner
- An Iqaluit taxi driver has been found not guilty of five charges against him. more »
- Cree election not publicized enough, says youth chief
- One James Bay Cree Youth Chief says the nominations for regional Cree leadership are low because of a lack of publicity. more »
- Man charged in Pond Inlet sexual assault
- A 21-year-old man has been charged in a case of sexual assault reported six months ago in Pond Inlet, Nunavut. more »
- Boats collide, killing 77-year-old woman
- A 77-year-old woman is dead after two boats collided outside Trout Lake, N.W.T., Wednesday afternoon. more »
Must Watch
Top News Headlines
- Rob Ford allies set to take over if mayor steps down
- Members of Rob Ford's executive committee say they are prepared to take over the day-to-day running of the city of the Toronto mayor is no longer able to perform his duties, amid a scandal involving allegations he was caught on video smoking crack cocaine.
more »
- Greg Weston: Senate scandal may be Harper's worst hour
- The widening Senate scandal that the prime minister flippantly tried to dismiss as a 'distraction' just days ago has instead become arguably Stephen Harper's worst hour. more »
- Man is ‘lucky to be alive’ after Washington bridge collapse
- A Washington state bridge over a river collapsed last night, dumping two vehicles into the water and sparking a rescue effort by boats and divers who searched the chilly waterway north of Seattle. more »
- 3D printers give rise to 'desktop manufacturing'
- Customizable objects from plastic dollhouse furniture to medical prosthetics can now be designed and printed out by almost anyone at the press of a button, and is going to lead to an 'explosion of new stuff,' predicts author Chris Anderson. more »
- Rob Ford fired chief of staff for telling mayor to 'get help'
- CBC News has learned the details of what precipitated the firing of Mark Towhey as Toronto Mayor Rob Ford's chief of staff — and it was advice from Towhey that Ford needs to 'get help.' more »
- Japanese plane makes unscheduled landing in Whitehorse
- Police deem N.W.T. woman's death suspicious
- Boats collide, killing 77-year-old woman
- Iqaluit cab driver not guilty in dispute with laundromat owner
- Man charged in Pond Inlet sexual assault
- Charges laid in worker's fall at N.W.T. hydro site
- Yukon couple hold record for longest marriage in country
- Body of missing Fort Resolution, N.W.T., woman found
- Cree election not publicized enough, says youth chief

