Ask a Climatologist: An Alaska-sized storm sets record

The Dec. 31, 2020 “bomb” cyclone over Shemya Island. (Earth.nullschool.net)

At the end of 2020, a massive Aleutian storm set a record for the lowest atmospheric pressure ever recorded in the North Pacific … but you may not have heard about it.

Thankfully, the 60-foot seas and 80 mph winds were hundreds of miles from most Alaskans. But what does it actually mean for there to be an area of extreme low pressure?

National Weather Service climate researcher Brian Brettschneider spoke with Alaska Public Media’s Casey Grove to explain.

a portrait of a man outside

Casey Grove is host of Alaska News Nightly, a general assignment reporter and an editor at Alaska Public Media. Reach him atcgrove@alaskapublic.org. Read more about Caseyhere

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