Drought in Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, AK: 0.8 years in 10 since 2000

0.8 years in 10

Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, AK: 2 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. Less drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2013 (19 wk) and 2015 (13 wk). Not a single drought week in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025.

A regular lawn is fine here; plan for the odd dry year

Real droughts are rare here. A smart controller that skips watering after rain covers the odd dry year.

You can keep a regular lawn. Worth doing: a rain-sensing or smart controller, and deeper, less frequent watering if Aug turns dry.

Against the rest of AK

5th most drought-prone of 30 AK counties; the AK middle is 0 in 10. Closest on the list: Petersburg Borough (0.8 in 10) and Fairbanks North Star Borough (0.4 in 10). Driest in AK: Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area (0.8 in 10). Least drought: Northwest Arctic Borough (0 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Aug (11% of weeks), then Jul (8%) and Sep (7%). Least in Dec (0%). May to September averages 5%.

0 Jan
0 Feb
0 Mar
0 Apr
0 May
2 Jun
8 Jul
11 Aug
7 Sep
4 Oct
4 Nov
0 Dec

The worst year: 2013

2013: 19 weeks in drought, peaking at D2 severe. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 2.9% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 0.1% at D2, never any D4. Longest unbroken spell: 19 weeks, Jul 23, 2013 to Nov 26, 2013.

Lately

Last drought year: 2015, 13 weeks. 2016-2025: 0 in 10, against 1.3 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 0 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.