Winter Weather Education 2013-02-11 23:09:24.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist Winter seems to be fully hitting its stride recently, with plenty of cold air and snow to be had over the last few weeks.The National Weather Service uses quite an array of terms to describe winter weather events, so much so that there is probably a good deal of confusion in circulation. So, let's take some time to clarify some of the terms you may hear before, during, and after these events:Winter Weather Advisory: Issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) when a combination of winter weather is expected (sleet,

Two Feet of Powder 2013-02-10 18:32:25.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist Deck Drifting This weekend's Nor'easter certainly did not disappoint.While the massive snowstorm left behind some astronomically high snow totals (upwards of 40 inches) along coastal New England, originally, we were not expecting much on the summit.Computer models had a hard time agreeing, as they usually do, on the exact path of this storm. Originally, it appeared as if we wouldn't see too much of the white stuff up here on the summit--maybe a foot or so (still a decent mark, but nothing we're not accustomed to). However, as the

Volunteer's Comments 2013-02-10 00:10:05.000 - Pam Trett,  Summit Volunteer NULL The Snowcat ride up on Wednesday was great and lasted about 1.5 hrs. What a great week to be up on the rock pile! We had record high temps, and incredible winds peaking to about 117 mph. Two groups visited at the beginning of the week. Five hikers from NH, NY and NJ. We had a very nice visit, and woke up to a beautiful sunrise. On Saturday a group of eleven came up for an edutrip. Again, a real nice group of people from all over---NH, IN, CT and

Predicting Snowfall 2013-02-07 18:34:49.000 - Mike Dorfman,  Summit Intern Cloud Cover Begins to Increase Ahead of the Storm What tools do we use up here to determine how much snow might fall in a storm? There are many different models which are able to predict how much liquid precipitation may fall from a storm, however this cannot be automatically translated directly to snow depth. The water to snow ratio is determined by several factors, including humidity and temperature and crystal size and shape. One of the best tools for snow prediction that I have been shown during my internship on

Freezing Experiments 2013-02-06 06:38:19.000 - Michael Kyle,  Summit Intern As some of you might have seen on the Mount Washington Observatory Facebook page last night, the observers took advantage of the cold temperatures to display the properties of Charles' Law by use of balloons. In the past, the observers have used experiments in the extreme cold to show how boiling water crystallizes when thrown into the air and how a soapy solution can be used to make bubbles that freeze before sinking to the ground. While you might not see the extreme cold as we do here on the summit,

The Ups and Downs of January 2013-02-04 21:33:29.000 - Roger Pushor,  Weather Observer/IT Specialist January 2013 Hourly Temperature Chart This past January saw a temperature spread of 83F degrees here on the summit; with the coldest day being on the 23rd, with a low of 35F degrees below zero, and the warmest being 48F degrees above zero on the 13th.During the month, the previous monthly record high of 47F degrees above zero was broken on the 13th, with a temperature of 48F degrees above zero. Three new daily records were also set, and two daily records were equaled. The records

Dear NFL The Lights Are Still On At The Mount Washington Observatory 2013-02-03 20:56:30.000 - Rebecca Scholand,  Weather Observer / Education Specialist NULL Dear NFL,In light (punt intended) of your recent loss of power, we would like to offer the summit of Mount Washington's Sherman Adams building as a location for next year's Super Bowl XLVIII. Here on the summit, we not only receive grid power from the valley but can switch to generator backup with almost a seamless delay. With two large generators running on kerosene, the summit of Mount Washington rarely loses power. Not to mention that the

Volunteer Comment 2013-02-02 15:38:33.000 - Gail Langer,  Summit Volunteer NULL 'I've learned that everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you're climbing it.' - Andy RooneyI would like folks to know that although I am writing this from the summit of Mount Washington, I did not climb it; but traveled in the warm comfort of the Observatory's snow cat. And, although I have climbed this mountain many times, I must say that I find complete happiness by both climbing this mountain and being chauffeured here in the comfort of a

Up, Up, Down, Down... 2013-02-01 21:01:45.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist NULL Growing up, every car I rode in had a crank on the door that was used to roll the window up or down. However, as I got older, friends started to get cars with power windows, where, with the flick of a switch or button, the window went up or down. As a kid, I was fascinated with this and when I rode in a vehicle equipped with this feature for the first time, I would 'experiment'. I would push the button down, and the window would go

Thundersnow 2013-01-31 19:42:37.000 - Michael Kyle,  Summit Intern Over the past few days many of the interior states from the Gulf Coast to the Ohio River Valley have seen unusual severe weather. According to the Storm Prediction Center's website there have been 736 storm reports from January 29th through January 30th. Of these reports 30 have been tornados, 643 of strong winds, and 13 of hail. The occurrence of thunderstorms in these areas of the country is not abnormal however, it is unusual to see severe thunderstorms in January. So it got me wondering; has Mount Washington ever seen thunderstorms