Why Are We Hounding You? 2012-09-14 17:17:02.000 - Cara Rudio,  Marketing and Communications Manager We need your help! As you know from our website, emails, and Facebook posts, the Observatory is currently competing in the 2012 Chase Community Giving contest.What you might not know is why an institution like ours has decided to participate in a national contest of this scale. Indeed, the reaction I've heard from many acquaintances is "why the heck are you even bothering with this? Isn't it a shot in the dark?"In a word, no.Let me explain. As a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit institution, our funding is

What Is METAR? And Does That Mean We Can Fly a Kite Today? 2012-09-13 16:47:00.000 - Brian Fitzgerald,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist A Perfect Day for Flying a Kite It's 60 degrees, the winds are low and visibility is over 100 miles in every direction. It's days like these that make it easy to forget about the dead of winter and the frozen insides of turbulent clouds. It may not be the most extreme weather day up here on Mount Washington, but as I train and study for my METAR certification, it begs the question: Why do we take weather observations?First,

What a Difference a Day Makes 2012-09-12 23:17:28.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist A haze-free sunset this afternoon. When we arrived on the summit today for shift change, the horizon was muddled with a milky white haze to the east and a brownish-red haze in all our other quadrants. For those who have worked here a while, this haze looked a bit familiar, but I didn't want to just make assumptions as to what we were seeing. And I know, saying I don't work off assumptions is a funny thing to say since I'm a meteorologist and I work off

Volunteer Thoughts 2012-09-11 23:10:09.000 - Sharon Camp & Sandy Fisher,  Summit Volunteers "Variety is the spice of life." Volunteering for the OBS on the summit of Mt Washington, we have experienced a variety of weather conditions this week from being "in the clouds" to 120 mile visibility with a magnificent sunrise through the rime ice, to winds gusting to 80 mph, as well as our first thunder and lightning storm on the summit.Thursday, we were blessed to witness the first ever Naturalization Ceremony on the summit as 20 men and women from 14 countries took the Oath to become US

Dreaming of Convective Clouds 2012-09-10 15:14:36.000 - Mike Dorfman,  Summit Intern A diagram of thunderstorm formation As summer slowly fades to winter, I am reminded of summer days full of warmth, travel and, best of all, thunderstorms. Although my parents' dog doesn't like it too much, whenever I see the little red line of severe weather barreling towards me on the radar I can't help but get excited.There are a few ways these severe storms can form. Most common on hot and humid days, the ground soaks up the sun throughout the day, quickly warming the air next to the

Fall is on the way 2012-09-09 16:33:22.000 - Steve Welsh,  Weather Observer/IT Specialist NULL What a difference a day makes. After all the recent mild muggy conditions it was so refreshing stepping outside this morning and breathing in some cool crisp air for a change. It really felt very Fall like with temperatures in the mid-30s and haze free unrestricted views of the surrounding mountains. The storms that came through yesterday evening certainly scoured the air mas out and with a temperature drop of ten degrees in an hour we knew a big change was on the way.On Friday I

Good Morning From the Top of New England! 2012-09-08 15:49:03.000 - Mike Dorfman,  Summit Intern NULL Welcome to a foggy day on top of the Rock Pile! Stepping outside this morning was a harsh reminder of the ever-changing weather on top of this mountain. Yesterday's clear skies and beautiful views quickly turned into gusty winds and thick fog overnight. I (the new intern) even had to wander around a bit to find the precipitation can outside the building!Living at the top is a unique experience. In the evening, I've found myself in the observer's quarters downstairs lying back on a

Miss New Hampshire 2012-09-07 17:25:50.000 - Rebecca Scholand,  Weather Observer/Education Specialist NULL Back on the summit again and off to a great start to the week. Yesterday I had a very special visitor that was here to film a promotional video that will be featured on the Miss USA YouTube channel in the coming months. Miss New Hampshire, Meagan Lyman was here with an unusual request outside the basic description of what I do here on the summit. Luckily it was something that I have done in the past and could pull off. What is it you might ask? Well

Chase Community Giving Contest 2012-09-06 09:06:50.000 - Scot Henley,  Executive Director NULL MWO Friends and Supporters,Today is a big day for the Observatory. It's the start of the Chase Community Giving contest, where we are competing with nonprofits from all across the nation for a share of $5,000,000 in grants. Believe it or not, we have a legitimate shot at winning an unrestricted grant of up to $250,000 to support our work in research and education. All we need is your vote!This is the easiest possible way to support the Observatory! To participate, simply click the 'Help Us Win' banner

Winter on its way 2012-09-05 23:20:05.000 - Mike Carmon,  Weather Observer/Meteorologist NULL With the month of September in full swing, 'transition' is the word.The days are growing shorter, the temperatures just a little cooler, and the autumn rains have commenced.Up on the summit, the Auto Road is closing a little earlier, the volume of visitors has noticeably decreased, and the number of hikers is dwindling. Inside the Observatory, work has begun on wintertime projects, preparations in anticipation of snowfall have started, and our fall interns have replaced our summertime ones.When my shift left the summit last Wednesday, temperatures had bottomed