Mount Washington Observatory Observer Blog
Higher Summits Anticipating Colder Conditions
Higher Summits Anticipating Colder Conditions 2011-09-12 11:33:23.000 - Rick Giard, Weather Observer / Education Specialist Snow at Tip Top House October 2006 Last week continued the trend toward generally rainy, unsettled weather. During the previous week the major precipitation producer was Hurricane Irene. On the heels of Irene more moisture of tropical origin pelted the peaks, as the long-lasting remnants of Tropical Storm Lee lingered within a frontal system stalled along the Atlantic seaboard. This persistent pest instilled instability and induced a series of rainfall events distributed during Sunday through Thursday. The quantity of weekly wetness amounted to 3.99 inches
Flags on the Summit
Flags on the Summit 2011-09-11 18:39:41.000 - Erin Diveny, Summit Museum Supervisor Raising of the flag Today the summit was filled with people carrying American flags in honor of those who lost there lives on that horrible day of 9/11/2001. People came from all over to fly there flags and many of them had lost love ones on that day. This morning I was out on the observation deck and met a man who wanted to fly a flag in honor of this friend who's in Afghanistan right now and is mailing the flag to him.In addition to the flags
A Great Sunset
A Great Sunset 2011-09-10 21:28:03.000 - Kevin Cronin, Summit Intern Sunset Soiree! Tonight the observatory held the Sunset Soiree, an event where you have an opportunity to enjoy a nice glass of champagne as the sun sets. Festivities began at 5:30pm with a chauffeured motor coach ride from the base of Wildcat Mountain to the summit of Mount Washington. When they reached the top they were given a sumptuous selection of desserts. After desert and coffee they were given champagne to watch the sunset and to hear a toast from Scot Henley, Mount Washington's Executive Director. Conditions couldn't have been
Sunrise and Lenticulars
Sunrise and Lenticulars 2011-09-09 18:48:51.000 - Steve Welsh, Weather Observer/IT Specialist Lenticulars The eastern horizon was a vivid red at 5:30 this morning, some 40 minutes or so before the sun actually rose. As the time advanced a few early birds were treated to a great display of reds, oranges and pinks. I tried to capture it with our camera but unfortunately nothing usable came of it. This one shot, was taken as the sun was crossing the horizon but by then most of the colors had already gone. The abundant high clouds in the photograph are from the outer
A Wonderful Undercast
A Wonderful Undercast 2011-09-08 22:57:52.000 - Erin Diveny, Summit Museum Supervisor Undercast! Well today was a nice day much to our surprise here at the summit! Normally we hear visitors complain about the clouds at the summit-yet today we heard that it was foggy on the drive up and then cleared as they got to the summit which is a rarity. Due to the fact that the weather was rainy and overcast in the valley the summit was extremely quiet. When I went outside during my lunch break I found it so odd how quiet it was yet it was
Astronomical Autumn Approaches
Astronomical Autumn Approaches 2011-09-07 17:49:06.000 - Mike Carmon, Weather Observer/Meteorologist The Rain Continues... Autumn is fast-approaching!The official start of astronomical autumn 2011 is listed as September 23 at 09:04 UTC (05:04 AM EDT).The unofficial start of meteorological autumn 2011 has passed (September 1 at midnight).The signs are becoming increasingly apparent: the days are gradually abbreviating, the afternoon highs are less astronomical, and the overnight lows are dipping into chillier ranges. In addition, the sun that had felt so powerful and energetic through the dog days of the summer months no longer seems to exhibit that same prowess. Summer 2011 is
Observations from a summit volunteer
Observations from a summit volunteer 2011-09-06 23:14:57.000 - Layne Gregory, Summit Volunteer NULL I do not remember who first told me about the opportunity to volunteer for a week and work with the meteorologists and staff on top of Mount Washington. However, I do recall that it was at least fifteen years ago and I have wanted to have this experience ever since. I have always loved to cook, especially for others. It is such a wonderful way to nourish the bodies and the spirits of others. I am not a professional chef. I started cooking in my early 20's
Indoor vs Outdoor Pressure
Indoor vs Outdoor Pressure 2011-09-05 17:32:27.000 - Ryan Knapp, Weather Observer/Meteorologist Pressured fight: Indoor vs Outdoor Barometer As Roger mentioned a few days ago, I was originally going to talk a bit about Hurricane Irene. But as I looked through our comments and everything else that is available, I just couldn't find anything new that hasn't already been said. Mike Carmon's comments before, during and after Irene did an excellent job in summarizing all that needed to be said for up here in my opinion. And Roger took the last piece of Irene I was going to talk about: pressure.
9-4-11 Stephen Rosenman
9-4-11 Stephen Rosenman 2011-09-04 17:16:41.000 - Stephen Rosenman, Summit Intern I'll Miss Having This as my Backyard Well, this is the last comment for me as my internship on the summit will be coming to an end this Wednesday. Even though I was lucky enough to extend my time up here a couple extra weeks because I am going abroad this fall and my semester starts much later than the Hamilton year, it has not quite felt like the end of summer the past couple days as temperatures have hovered around 60, about 15 degrees above average for this time
Radio Shift Experience
Radio Shift Experience 2011-09-03 17:58:56.000 - David Narkewicz, Summit Intern NULL This week I started my second summit intern shift for the fall. I have been learning and experiencing new things as each day goes on. So far one of the toughest and weirdest parts of the job is the 4:00 PM higher summits forecast that the interns compose. As mountain weather changes frequently it is a difficult skill to forecast the summits for an extended period of time. The observers have been giving me new techniques and strategies to use to better my forecast prediction. The weirdest part is
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