Datalogger Swapping 2010-08-06 17:30:48.000 - Mike Finnegan,  IT Observer NULL Today Brian Forcier and I completed the first in a long series of datalogger replacements. Although we record an extensive range of information here on the summit, it might not be as well known that we also receive information from a number of remote sites. These sites we refer to as our Mesonet. The Auto Road Vertical Profile is an additional part of the Mesonet that runs of the eastern side of the mountain. At each one of these sites, there are probes that measure given weather variables (wind speed,

A taste of fall in August? 2010-08-05 17:11:25.000 - Brian Clark,  Observer and Meteorologist NULL The forecast for tomorrow night is looking rather interesting. Between now and then several cold fronts will sweep through the region, with the strongest coming through tomorrow evening. Behind the front, Canadian High Pressure will build in and winds will shift to a cold northwesterly direction. Because of this, temperatures will plummet, reaching a low just at or below the freezing mark late tomorrow night.Of course, this means there is a chance that we could see some glaze ice forming. Whether that actually happens or

Three Things 2010-08-04 23:43:18.000 - Ryan Knapp,  Staff Meteorologist Ice Gulch Since today is Wednesday, it means it is shift change day on the summit. And since my shift has just started, I really don't have anything summit related to talk about. The weather is rather bland for our standards with winds 25-40 mph, visibility at zero, and temperatures in the mid-50s. If we were in the clear I would probably be trying to take in the Aurora Borealis the northeast seems to be all abuzz about but since we are in the fog, that doesn't seem likely. But I

NULL 2010-08-03 20:44:55.000 - Sabrina Lomans,  Summit Intern As my last full day as a summit intern comes to its close, I am reflecting upon all the things that I will miss about living and working on the summit. To name a few, would be the beautiful views, the extreme weather, my coworkers... But the thing that I think I will miss the most is mine (and everyone else's) staff member, Marty. I remember my excitement on my first ascent up the mountain, I could hardly wait, I was going to meet Marty. The weather, the environment, the new experiences

NULL 2010-08-02 17:23:56.000 - Stacey Kawecki,  Observer and Meteorologist shiny Who ever knew that small colored squares could ever invoke such excitement amongst the summit dwellers? It's amusing how merely seeing the little squares approach the center circle on a screen seems to fill the room with electricity, especially since the squares symbolize cloud to ground lightning strikes. After a rather chilly start to the week, high pressure has slid offshore and is moving slowly south. The resulting southwest flow opened the gates to the warm, moist air in the Gulf of Mexico. The daytime heating, shortwave trough, and the

Marty 2010-08-01 23:14:33.000 - Marty,  Summit Cat It's a hard life A thousand meows and a few hellos from my mountaintop domain! Marty here, back from a bit of a hiatus to give you all of the important thoughts from my kitteh brain. I know Mike usually claims he helps with the translation, but he takes far too much credit.The usually quiet summit has been all hustle-and-bustle recently! It got warmer, and then the people came. It was a trickle at first, like the slow leak of a drippy faucet that could entertain me for hours. Then, someone turned the

NULL 2010-07-31 21:27:56.000 - Stacey Kawecki,  Observer and Meteorologist NULL Warning - this is a long, somewhat sappy, comment. At 17:05 EST, our interns barged into the weather room, in a maelstrom of giggles. They had just returned from Clay, flush with the effort of hiking and completely rejuvenated. I have to say, I was just a teensy bit jealous. The weather was absolutely perfect for hiking today, with cool temperatures, a little bit of sunshine (that's good for people who are sensitive to the sun), and almost nonexistent wind. I don't want to talk about their hike, but I

NULL 2010-07-30 16:45:54.000 - Kristin Raisanen,  Summit Intern Visitors braving the cold It's been a fairly warm July up here on the summit. There have been 23 days since the beginning of July that were above normal. All the warm weather for the past month has made our recent shift to cooler temperatures a bit more surprising and more difficult to adjust to. A cold front passed through our region yesterday, bringing with it cooler temperatures and stronger winds. Since the passage of the front, our temperatures have dropped into the 30's and lower 40's. This is definitely not cold,

NULL 2010-07-29 18:14:57.000 - Stacey Kawecki,  Observer and Meteorologist NULL I somehow managed to miss the muddle of meetings yesterday, and arrived at a (surprise) foggy summit this morning. After the heat of the valley (it got over 90 degrees in Burlington yesterday, that's HOT) the temperature of 50 degrees was blissful relief. Temperature continued to fall and the clouds did eventually lift for a couple of hours, providing the perfect opportunity to use the sling psychrometer. As I cheerfully shivered on the windy, chilly deck, my nose caught a whiff of a familiar odor. It smelled like fall. By

NULL 2010-07-28 22:32:43.000 - Dennis Vienneau,  Summit Volunteer Tuesday Night Sunset As I write this notation, I'm packed and ready to head down the mountain. It's hard to believe that another week on the summit has passed so quickly. Normally there are two volunteers, as part of the crew, to share the cooking of the evening meal, general housekeeping duties, and any other small project(s) that might come up but this week the other volunteer needed to cancel out at the last minute with a family emergency. Initially the task at hand seemed daunting with Seek-the-Peak cookies to bake and