95F In Inuvik, Yukon Territory, 130 Miles North Of The Arctic Circle; 4th Heatwave Of The Summer

The arrival of August in the Arctic typically hints that autumn, with its dwindling daylight and cold weather, will soon return. But on a recent afternoon, Sandy Gordon and her four children plunged into the silty waters of the Canada’s Mackenzie River, escaping a searing heatwave that has descended on the town of Inuvik. “We absolutely love it when it’s nice and hot,” she said. “It’s so nice to be able to enjoy a true summer.”

Seasonal change in the north is rapid and, for local people, summer marks a brief reprieve from months of bitter cold. But a heatwave that is currently hovering over the community 130 miles (209km) north of the Arctic Circle threatens to shatter its all-time heat record. While the warmth has brought joy, it also comes with a set of lingering worries, including the threat of wildfires and melting permafrost, leading some to wonder if the growing trend of balmy weather might come with too steep a cost.

On Wednesday, just past the northernmost traffic lights in North America, a digital thermometer slowly climbed, eventually reaching 35C (95F) – and passing an all-time record of 33C set last year. Families left the NorthMart grocery store clutching boxes of popsicles and ice cream. A weather alert from Environment Canada classified the heat as “severe”, warning of “significant threat to life or property”. The unseasonably warm temperatures mark the fourth heatwave of the season. While some dream of escaping work and leaping into nearby lakes and rivers, others aren’t thrilled. “Winter absolutely sucks. I hate it,” said Kamdyn Alexie. “But at the same time, heat in the mid-30s isn’t so great either.”

Unlike more southern cities, where the hottest temperatures peak late afternoon, a midnight sunset in Inuvik means the heat persists well into the evening, offering little relief. The town is surrounded by forest, but the spruce and fir are dwarf-like compared with other regions, and offer little shade. Nor was the community, which sits on more than 1,000ft (305 metres) of permafrost, built with heatwaves in mind.

EDIT

https://www.theguardian.com/world/article/2024/aug/08/canada-arctic-region-heat-wave