The Summit by the Numbers 2013-12-16 16:44:30.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist NULL 15...the number of days left in our annual year-end giving campaign. To make a donation, head here.14...inches of snow we received from yesterday's Nor'easter. 14.3 inches, to be exact.13...the unlucky Friday, which gave summit staff the chilliest temperatures of the winter to date (-22F).12...hour shifts, which is the amount of time summit staff members are on duty every day during a shift week. 11...the number of folks that can join us for one wintertime overnight trip! To share in this incredible experience, sign up here.10...degrees F. Our

A snowy first half of December 2013-12-15 22:21:34.000 - Tom Padham,  Weather Observer NULL It has been a very snowy day today on the summit, as well as across New England, with our first major snowstorm of the season now in the books. The summit as of 7pm today has picked up 12.8in of snow, with any additional snow overnight due to upslope snow showers and not the coastal storm that affected us this morning. Some other totals for nearby locations are: North Conway 9.5in, Jackson 11.8in, Berlin 8.0in, and Plymouth 8.8in. the highest totals within our local weather office

Well Below Zero 2013-12-14 18:31:48.000 - Samuel Hewitt,  Summit Intern A Snow Drift in Front of Yankee Building Sometime this evening, the temperature will rise above 0 degrees (Fahrenheit) for the first time since 5:00PM Tuesday. In that time, temperatures have dropped as low as -22 and winds between 50-70 MPH have produced wind chills close to -65. This is the coldest temperature the summit has seen this season, and the first time it has reached -22 since January 24th. Because cold air doesn't hold as much water vapor as warm air, it has been extremely dry up here over

Connecting a local school and their teacher to Mount Washington! 2013-12-13 17:41:12.000 - Brian Fitzgerald,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist NULL Tonight on the Rock-Pile we are honored to have our EMS and VASQUE BOOTS contest winner, Ted Teegarden, a teacher from the White Mountain School in Bethlehem, NH, here with us. Ted's presence on the summit will not only be experienced at 6,288', but also via a live connection with his class tonight at 6pm. Our connection tonight will give the Observatory another chance to inform students throughout the country about the tireless and important work happening on Mount Washington, as

A cold and snowy weekend ahead! 2013-12-12 22:11:39.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist NULL As Tom mentioned in his comment yesterday, very cold temperatures have gripped the summit! This morning, we dropped to a frigid low of 20 degrees F below zero, which combined with strong winds to produce wind chills as low as 63 degrees F below zero. It's hard to believe that only weeks ago, I was on vacation halfway across the country, experiencing temperatures some 85 degrees warmer!There's not much relief from the cold in sight, though. Temperatures on Friday are expected to plummet to even chillier

Bring on Winter! 2013-12-11 20:42:33.000 - Tom Padham,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist NULL This week looks to be a cold and snowy one on the Rockpile, with temperatures falling well below zero and wind chills approaching 60 degrees below at times this week. Temperatures in the surrounding valleys will also be quite frigid Thursday and Friday, with overnight lows falling below zero and highs only in the low to mid teens. If you think this is cold, it was just announced that a new world record low was set back in August of 2010 in Antarctica. The temperature fell to an incredibly

Our Volunteer Week on the Summit 2013-12-10 18:21:07.000 - Mike & Sue Zlogar,  Summit Volunteers Mike Dorfman Decorating the Tree Back again on the Summit enjoying the company of Ryan, Becca, Mike and Pratik, "Er...uh..." as the paw slides out from below..."Didn't you forget someone?" Oh yes...and Marty! (Who I might add is presently zipping around the newly decorated Christmas tree.)This week we have enjoyed scenic vistas as far away as the end of our noses for most of our time (one exception being the ride up which was beautifully clear with distant views), and winds sustained in the 50-75mph

Snowflakes on the Summit 2013-12-09 19:12:30.000 - Mike Dorfman,  Weather Observer Paper Snowflakes on the Summit Working week-long shifts every other week, the Rockpile is manned continuously, even on holidays. To make this holiday season more enjoyable for us, our wonderful volunteers this week have generously donated a Christmas tree to the observatory for the second year in a row! To celebrate the snow falling both on and around the mountain, we have made paper snowflakes to put on the tree! Yes, these snowflakes aren't the anatomically correct 6-branched flakes that fall out of the sky, but they're still one

Brushing Up On Looking Down 2013-12-08 17:59:57.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist What it looks like up here to look up and down. When flying home this past Thanksgiving, I picked up a book called "Small as an Elephant" by Jennifer Richard Jacobson. It was a quick read since it was meant more for kids, but it was still enjoyable for two reasons - it takes place along the Maine coastline (so it was very relatable with those, "Oh, I've been there" moments) and it had a poem I really liked. The poem read:We all wear bifocalsSome invisibleWhen looking down,

A New Prespective 2013-12-07 13:50:14.000 - Rebecca Scholand,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist NULL I have returned from vacation and am feeling quite refreshed. Sometimes it helps to get away for a while to appreciate the everyday tasks that we complete here on the summit. I would also be remiss not to mention how awesome it is to be asked, 'Who do you work for?', and be able to answer the Mount Washington Observatory. I always find it humbling to see just how many people have heard of the mountain and it's unmistakable reputation as being 'Home Of The World's Worst Weather'.While