A hot time in Nunavut’s capital city

Iqaluit had one of its warmest years on record last year.

According to Environment Canada statistics, the mean temperature in Iqaluit was negative 8.3 C, a full 1.2 C above normal. That made it the 12th warmest year since record keeping began in Iqaluit 50 years ago.

The warmest year ever in Iqaluit was 1955, when the annual mean temperature was — 6.7 C. The coldest year was 1972, when the mean temperature was — 12.7 C.

Iqaluit ended 2000 with a remarkable heat wave. Over the holidays, temperatures climbed to the freezing mark on five different days, including Christmas Day, which saw a high temperature of 1 C. The mean temperature for December was a full 10 C above normal.

The year 2000 was also the fifth wettest in Iqaluit’s history, with 561.9 millimeters of precipitation. The normal is 424.1 millimeters.