Anchorage, Alaska, hit 90 degrees for first time on Thursday

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Alaska’s largest city and two other state locations reached record high temperatures on Independence Day.

The National Weather Service says Anchorage on Thursday afternoon reached 90 degrees (32.22 Celsius).

UPDATE! At 5pm this afternoon, #Anchorage International Airport offically hit 90 degrees for the first time on record. #AKwx #RecordHeat

— NWS Anchorage (@NWSAnchorage) July 5, 2019

Meteorologist Bob Clay says the previous record for Anchorage was 85 degrees (29.44 Celsius) on June 14, 1969.

Kenai and King Salmon also reached new high temperatures of 89 degrees (31.67 Celsius). Palmer matched its record high at 88 degrees.

Clay says a high pressure ridge over much of south-central Alaska is strengthening and responsible for the record temperatures.

Rick Thoman (TOH-man) of the Alaska Center for Climate Assessment and Policy says the high temperatures are both a weather story and a climate story as extreme weather events become much more likely in a warming world.