Petersburg Pilot -

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — An unprecedented heat wave has toppled weather records across Alaska.

The Juneau Empire reports the National Weather Service thermometer Friday at Juneau International Airport hit 54 degrees, tying the highest temperature recorded in December there.

General forecaster for the Weather Service in Juneau Devid Levin says the heat wave in Alaska is due to a big ridge of upper-level high pressure. With the jet stream moving to the north, warm air from the tropics has moved north, covering the state.

Records kept by the Weather Service since 1936 say three of the 10 warmest Dec...