Deconstruct SunFairbanks, AK: Hardiness Zone 2a & Sunlight by Season
Fairbanks is in USDA hardiness zone 2a. Here’s what that means for winter, plus sunrise, sunset, daylight hours and the sun’s path through the year.
Zone 2a in Fairbanks
On the 2023 USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, Fairbanks falls in zone 2a. That means the coldest night of a typical winter drops to between −50 and −45 °F. Perennials, shrubs and trees labeled for zone 2a or colder (a lower number) should survive the winter here. Parts of the area sit near the boundary with zone 2b, so a sheltered courtyard or an exposed hilltop can behave like the neighboring zone.
A zone only covers winter cold. For a plant to do well it also needs the right amount of sun, and that varies far more from one corner of a yard to the next than the zone does across town.
This is not the official USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map. Zones are derived from the official 2023 dataset, resampled to about 2 km.
Nearby cities
- Anchorage, AK Zone 5b
- Juneau, AK Zone 7a
- Bellingham, WA Zone 8b
- Everett, WA Zone 8b
- Seattle, WA Zone 9a
- Bellevue, WA Zone 9a
- Kent, WA Zone 8b
- Tacoma, WA Zone 8b
The sun over Fairbanks
On the June solstice the sun rises in the north at 2:57 AM and climbs to 49° above the horizon at 1:52 PM. On the December solstice the noon sun reaches only 2°, so a 20-foot tree casts a noon shadow about 573 feet long. In June the same tree’s noon shadow is only 18 feet.
Sunrise, sunset & daylight by month
| Date | Sunrise | Sunset | Daylight | Noon sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 21 | 10:09 AM | 3:55 PM | 5h 47m | 6° |
| Feb 21 | 8:27 AM | 5:42 PM | 9h 15m | 15° |
| Mar 21 | 7:46 AM | 8:10 PM | 12h 24m | 26° |
| Apr 21 | 5:52 AM | 9:48 PM | 15h 55m | 37° |
| May 21 | 4:06 AM | 11:31 PM | 19h 25m | 46° |
| Jun 21 | 2:57 AM | 12:47 AM | 21h 50m | 49° |
| Jul 21 | 4:13 AM | 11:38 PM | 19h 25m | 46° |
| Aug 21 | 5:57 AM | 9:47 PM | 15h 51m | 37° |
| Sep 21 | 7:31 AM | 7:54 PM | 12h 23m | 26° |
| Oct 21 | 9:03 AM | 6:05 PM | 9h 03m | 14° |
| Nov 21 | 9:47 AM | 3:24 PM | 5h 38m | 5° |
| Dec 21 | 10:58 AM | 2:39 PM | 3h 42m | 2° |
Local time (Anchorage), including daylight saving time. “Noon sun” is the sun’s height above the horizon at solar noon.
Daylight through the year
What “full sun” means in Fairbanks
Full sun is 6+ hours of direct sun. In Fairbanks an open spot has 21.8 hours of daylight to work with in June and 3.7 in December, so a bed that clears 6 hours in summer can easily drop to part shade in winter once the low sun slips behind trees and houses.
Measure the sun in your Fairbanks yard
Daylight is the ceiling. Deconstruct Sun traces the trees and buildings around one exact spot and tells you its real direct-sun hours, today and at every solstice and equinox.
Questions
What hardiness zone is Fairbanks, AK in?
Fairbanks, Alaska is in USDA plant hardiness zone 2a on the 2023 map. The average coldest winter night is −50 to −45 °F (−45.6 to −42.8 °C). It is near the boundary with zone 2b.
How many hours of daylight does Fairbanks get?
About 21.8 hours on the June solstice (sunrise 2:57 AM, sunset 12:47 AM) and 3.7 hours on the December solstice (sunrise 10:58 AM, sunset 2:39 PM). Around the equinoxes it is close to 12 hours.
How many hours of sun does my Fairbanks yard get?
Up to the daylight hours above, minus whatever trees, buildings and fences block. In winter, when the sun stays low, that can be most of it. The Deconstruct Sun iPhone app measures the real direct-sun hours for one exact spot by having you trace what is around it.
When is the best time to plant in Fairbanks?
Zone 2a tells you which perennials survive winter, not planting dates. For timing, use your local average frost dates from your county extension office, and choose plants rated for zone 2a or colder.
Source: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023. Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, planthardiness.ars.usda.gov. Underlying data © PRISM Group, Oregon State University, prism.oregonstate.edu, accessed 2026-08-30. Sun times calculated for 64.837, -147.652.