Page 81 - Parks Highway Bearfoot

Parks Highway 0 with Bearfoot WINTER TIM E
You can visit Fairbanks in mid-winter, and have a great time.
WINTER TOURISM Fairbanks is a great town for winter visitors. The weath- er creates a sense of camaraderie among visitors and locals alike.
BUSY SEASON Much of the thriving arts and music scene in Fair- banks is driven by the clear and cold winters here. Art- ists have plenty of uninter- rupted time to hone their crafts, and musicians gath- er in performance ven- ues to sing away the chill. When summer comes, well-practiced musicians burst onto the scene, and and artists sell the wares they were busy making during the winter nights.
Residents also enjoy dog mushing and cross coun- try skiing in the crisp, clear weather.
WINTFR TIM F
LOCAL CULTURE
SEEING THE AURORA Fairbanks is cold in winter, often with tempera- tures reaching -30 and -400 Fahrenheit. However, locals swear that the cold is moderated by the dry weather. High pressure systems, low humidity levels, and fairly still air help Fairbanks avoid the frigid dampness and wind chill of other climates. To some, the dryness of a Fairbanks winter is al- most like that of a desert - just in the opposite di- rection. There is a specific beauty and challenge in this type of "pure cold." Many people travel here from around the world to see the northern lights, also known as the aurora borealis. The au- rora is of special cultural interest to tourists from Japan and China, who travel to Fairbanks in the middle of winter. Aurora -chasing visitors will stay up all night to view the Northern Lights.
THE AURORA is most visible during dark nights.
The aurora is a natural phenomenon in the up- per ionosphere. As solar storms rage , they collide with the ionosphere and create fast moving light shows in the winter skies. In a Fairbanks winter, the skies are clear on the coldest nights, and that's why cold and dark nights are associated with the aurora borealis.
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